Idiom In To Kill A Mockingbird

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The saying ¨don’t judge a book by its cover” has been heard over and over again by today’s youth. Harper Lee takes this common idiom to the next level in her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Maycomb, Alabama, in the 1930’s, in which the novel takes place, was overflowing with racism, especially in the south. Jem and Scout are absolutely terrified by their neighbors, the Radley’s, because of the rumors the hear about what happens in that house. The most elusive and mysterious Radley is Arthur “Boo” Radley. Through out the novel, Boo Radley teaches Jem and Scout life lessons. Lee uses Boo Radley to teach the children about prejudice, living for something, and how different people can be from what gossip and rumors say. To begin, the character…show more content…
Lee captures this gossip about Boo when Scout is explaining what she knows about Boo. ¨According to Miss Stephanie, Boo was sitting in the livingroom cutting some items from The Maycomb Tribune to paste in his scrapbook. His father entered the room. As Mr. Radley passed by, Boo drove the scissors into his parent’s leg, pulled them out, wiped them on his pants, and resumed his activities” (Lee 13). Lee uses this passage to introduce the hard to believe, heinous accused crimes of Boo Radley. Nearly the whole town knows the stories of Boo, and they believe them because that’s what they heard. Meanwhile, these people don’t have a clue about who he actually is. Another rumor about Arthur comes from page 14, where Scout talks about what happened after the alleged scissor incident. “Miss Stephanie Crawford said some of the town council told Mr. Radley that if he didn’t take Boo back, Boo would die of the mold from the damp. Besides, Boo could not live on forever on the bounty of the county. Nobody knew what form of intimidation Mr. Radley employed to keep Boo out of sight, but Jem figured he was chained to the bed most of the time” (14). This only adds to Boo’s characterization as a wild
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