Question #2-Scout's Narration

[[deleted user]]

To Kill a Mockingbird is narrated by Scout and she reflects back on her childhood (aged 6 to 8) as an adult.
Did you find the account her narrator provides believable? Were there incidents or observations in the book that seemed unusually "knowing" for such a young child?

[Emily]

Scout is a pretty streetwise kid - in large part because Atticus does seem to treat his children as miniature adults. Scout and Jem get a lot of autonomy and freedom, especially when compared to children of their age in 2015. I love that she is mature enough to read and to have insights into people's behaviours, but truly young enough to have conversations with her father such as the one when she asks him: "Well if you don't want me to grow up talkin' that way, why do you send me to school?"

Scout is very flawed, but also very endearing. I am so charmed by her! I know a young girl who is simultaneously innocent and sassy in similar ways to Scout, and so I actually find her voice to be very believable.

[Allison]

I agree, Emily, with everything you said, although I disagree with Scout being very flawed. I could not find fault with Scout at all. I admit, I thought she was a pretty perfect child: precocious (probably gifted), with a strong sense of morality, openmindedness, curiosity, and having great empathy for others. She is probably not representative of the norm for children her age (and so, in that sense, "unusually knowing"), but raised as she was by a father such as Atticus I found her voice to be entirely believable.

[Emily]

Allison wrote: "I agree, Emily, with everything you said, although I disagree with Scout being very flawed. I could not find fault with Scout at all. I admit, I thought she was a pretty perfect child: precocious (..."

I love the way that you describe her, Allison! That does sound like a pretty perfect child. I like her spunk, but I'm not a huge fan of her temper and tendency to get in fistfights (at least as described near the beginning of the book). I much prefer verbal sass - but toughness, especially for a girl at that period of time, would have been hard to prove without things coming to blows occasionally, I suppose!

[Allison]

Emily wrote: "Allison wrote: "I agree, Emily, with everything you said, although I disagree with Scout being very flawed. I could not find fault with Scout at all. I admit, I thought she was a pretty perfect chi..."

Ah, yes...I see where you're going with the fighter in her. Scout was scrappy to be sure, and maybe having some impulse-control issues, but always I recall acting out of a genuine sense of justice. Personally, I feel any immature behavior is understandable given her young age. So, I forgive her of these sins. :)

[Susan]

Emily and Allison, I love all your descriptions of Scout: street-wise, precocious, sassy, tough, scrappy, endearing. I agree with all of them. I read the novel for the first time only about five years ago, and I fell in love with Scout. I didn't expect the novel to be as funny as it is - mostly because of Scout.

I found her narration to be completely believable. Scout left me somewhat in awe of how smart and wise she was for her age. I loved that Atticus never hesitated to answer her questions, even about "adult" subjects: e.g., "Atticus, what is rape?" I would have wanted to shield my child from such things, but Atticus doesn't. Scout grew up quickly, with a whole community to guide her development.

I loved her language when she talked about how bored she was with school, and the way she sometimes swore. I laughed out loud several times when reading it. There was a dinner scene in which she had been warned to mind her manners, and then she turned to someone and said, "Would you pass the damn ham?!" I think Atticus loved her sassiness and even encouraged it.

Jean Louise is an unforgettable character; I think her spunk and sass are partly what makes the book appealing to high school students - both male and female. Most people have known a child like her, one who is wise beyond her years and so delightfully surprising all the time.

[Sylvia]

Wonderfully said, Susan! Love your character sketch of Scout & your appreciation of her sassy ways:))
Were you ever a teacher? You would make a great one !!

[Susan]

Sylvia wrote: "Wonderfully said, Susan! Love your character sketch of Scout & your appreciation of her sassy ways:))
Were you ever a teacher? You would make a great one !!"
Thank you, Sylvia! Never a teacher, just a librarian. It's such a pleasure to write about characters like Scout. She's one that will stick with me for life.

[Maureen]

Allison wrote: "Emily wrote: "Allison wrote: "I agree, Emily, with everything you said, although I disagree with Scout being very flawed. I could not find fault with Scout at all. I admit, I thought she was a pret..."

Firstly, I loved Scout. I'm glad she wasn't my daughter, mind you, because she would've been a worry! (Do I sound like Calpurnia or--egads, Aunt Alexandra?)

I so much enjoy the comments here that I was reluctant to comment but I was more of the mind that much of what Scout wrote was that of an adult looking back, remembering as best she could what it was like for her family at a difficult time. When she says that Aunt Alexandra and her husband produced a son in "a burst of friendliness" (an expression that made me laugh outright) or when you get a sense of the danger Atticus is in at the jailhouse although young Scout is unaware of it, I thought it was the adult Jean Louise speaking.

[Allison]

Maureen wrote: "Allison wrote: "Emily wrote: "Allison wrote: "I agree, Emily, with everything you said, although I disagree with Scout being very flawed. I could not find fault with Scout at all. I admit, I though..."

I think you are bang on, Maureen!

[Susan]

Maureen wrote: "Allison wrote: "Emily wrote: "Allison wrote: "I agree, Emily, with everything you said, although I disagree with Scout being very flawed. I could not find fault with Scout at all. I admit, I though..."

Maureen, Lawrence Hill says this so much more eloquently than I could: "Like Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations, To Kill a Mockingbird achieves a level of artistic genius by offering a child’s point of view that is suffused with the wisdom and linguistic playfulness of an adult who is looking back on life."
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/b...
I think the expression "burst of friendliness" is a great example of linguistic playfulness.

[Jennifer]

I really loved the character of Scout and she seems much more mature than her character age. I think it has to do with her upbringing. Atticus Finch treats his children as equals and does not shy away from difficult conversations. I think that with that kind of upbringing, her account is believable.

[Kate]

I also like Scout and I like that Harper Lee gave her credit than most people give kids. They're a lot smarter and wiser than we give them credit for in my experience. I also really appreciate Atticus' honesty and directness in dealing with his children's questions. That may be a big reason why Scout is as shrewd as she is. Jem as well.

There is also, as mentioned earlier, the fact that this is adult Scout reminiscing on her youth so there's probably a little bit of that experience colouring the child Scout's observations as well.

[Sylvia]

Oh, how I love that expression Susan found by Lawrence Hill: 'linguistic playfulness' - and yes, 'burst of friendliness' is wonderful example of this style.
Thanks for the article link.

[Susan]

Sylvia wrote: "Oh, how I love that expression Susan found by Lawrence Hill: 'linguistic playfulness' - and yes, 'burst of friendliness' is wonderful example of this style.
Thanks for the article link."

You're most welcome, Sylvia. I hope you will join OPL on October 5th when we host Lawrence Hill as part of our "In Conversation With" series. He is always so eloquent and insightful. It's an evening that should not be missed!

[Sylvia]

Thanks for that reminder, Susan. Unfortunately, I have night school Mondays :( I'm sure it will be a brilliant evening listening to Mr. Hill. I have read a couple of his books.