The mistakes
·Scout stays in her costume
·Denying the fact they both could be in great danger
·Not taking the ride that was offered to them
·Forgetting Scouts Shoes
·Leaving so late
·They should have run, when they first heard Bob Ewell walking towards them
·Forgetting to bring the flashlight
· Jem should have told Scout when he first heard
·Covering up the fat streaks on Scouts Costume
It seems unrealistic for Atticus and Aunt Alexandra to let Jem and Scout go off on their own. It is Atticus’s fault for not realizing the situation, but his children also made some mistakes. If they had been more careful the likely hood of something like this happening would be a lot less. Despite the fact that Bob Ewell was completely drunk, he seemed to have picked a perfect time and place to attack the two children. Atticus should have realized how Bob Ewell might feel. He wants to get back at Atticus exactly like how Atticus did, and that was through the children. Atticus said, “I cant conceive of a man who’d-”(361) Was Atticus being his unrealistic self when he thought Bob Ewell would never follow up with his threat?
Do you think it was a mistake for Jem and Scout to call out at who they thought was Cecil Jacobs but who was actually Mr. Ewell?
ReplyDeleteResponding to Christian's question I think that Atticus was being his unrealistic self. He didn't think that Mr. Ewell would seek revenge at night by sneaking up behind them. He thought he would face him. He didn't acknowledge that Mr. Ewell was crazy and not brave. The definition of courage is: the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty. I think that courage depends on the situation. What do you think? Do you think Boo Radley was brave to help Jem and Scout? Do you think that Bob Ewell knew Atticus was not with them?
Earlier on in chapter 29 Atticus says “I can’t conceive of anyone low-down enough to do a thing like this, but I hope you found him (356).” This is completely ironic because the minute Atticus said that, the name, Bob Ewell came to mind. It makes perfect sense to assume that Bob Ewell attacked the kids since he was considered very “low-down” in Maycomb society. So, yes this could be Atticus being his “unrealistic self” since he seems more of a symbol sometimes rather than a person in the novel. Also, the fact that Bob Ewell attacked on a night when no one was there to protect Scout and Jem seems really unrealistic as well. It was too perfectly planned. Harper Lee could of screamed “here’s the climax” and it would have had the same effect. It completely gave away what would happen. Atticus and Aunt Alexandra both didn’t go, so Scout and Jem were alone. It was dark outside, the auditorium lights turned off and then Scout and Jem realized someone was following them. Harper Lee does a great job of the scene when the two children are being followed and then during the fight but how she led up to it seemed like overkill on the foreshadowing.
ReplyDeleteI think Arthur “Boo” Radley killed Bob Ewell to save Jem and Scout. Earlier on in the novel Boo had (possibly) put little objects in the tree: the watch, Indian-head pennies, little carvings of Scout and Jem, etc. This showed that Boo could have started to create some sort of friendly relationship/connection with the kids and so ran to there rescue when they were in danger. Also, Boo came out and saved Scout and Jem on a night when the moon was not out. This is ironic since every tale about Boo talks about him coming out when the moon is in the sky. So it just gives further evidence to cast down those tales about him as myths and show how Boo is a real person and not some squirrel-eating monster. Boo was also kept inside and oppressed by the rumors about him. So, when Scout and Jem started to think of him as a real person, Boo revealed himself. Why did Harper Lee choose to have Boo reveal himself at this moment and not earlier in the book or later on? Why did Scout react the way she did when she realized it was Boo that had saved them and was standing in front of her?
In response to Christian's post, I agree with Celia that Atticus was not being his usual self. Atticus did not analyze the situation correctly, something he would not usually have done, and guessed that Bob would leave him and his children alone.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Catherine when she says that Harper Lee could have screamed that a climax was coming and that she overkilled on the foreshadowing. I think Harper Lee was very clever with the way that she led up to the climax. We did know it was coming, but the suspense added to the story, making the reader wish to read on. If there had not been any foreshadow, the death of Bob Ewell would not have been as exciting. We already knew Jem was going to break his arm, but we did not know that Bob was going to die. Why did Harper Lee kill Bob Ewell?
I agree with Catherine when she says that Boo Radley probably killed Bob, but for a different reason. Harper Lee dropped many hints that is was not Jem: Jem screamed, meaning he broke his arm. Boo was dragging a weight (meaning Jem was unconscious before, most likely from breaking his arm), the fight ended after Jem broke his arm, and he could not have gotten back up to attack Bob if he had been unconscious. Do you think Atticus thinks Jem or Boo killed Bob? Why?
Responding to the prior posts, I would like to add some thoughts. I feel that all the mistakes Christian listed were correct. I think it was too obvious that something bad was going to happen. I like how Harper Lee starts the book off saying that Jem breaks his arm but with all the mistakes in chapters 28-29 she makes it no mystery that an event will occur. Harper Lee is great at leaving the reader on cliff-hangers but her traditional style is ignored when she overly, heavily foreshadows the climax. Do you like Harper Lee's writing style? What do you think is Harper Lee's worst writing in the book? Best writing?
ReplyDeleteI think Boo Radley killed Bob Ewell because his characterization makes him a kind, non-squirrel-eating-monster. Harper Lee wouldn't include the scene with the blanket if it wouldn't have an effect later. I do not think Jem killed Bob Ewell because he had a broken elbow at the time and was screaming and writhing in pain and then he became unconscious. What do you think Boo Radley was doing while the trial was happening?