♬Theme♪..영재

Prejudice ♠ Prejudice runs rampant in Maycomb county. ex1. The town
has prejudice against blacks. This is seen in the case against Tom Robinson.
It is obvious that he is innocent through evidence presented by Atticus(Bob
Ewell is left handed, Tom's left hand is useless, etc.)but since the jury
"cannot" find a black man innocent over a white family they find him guilty.
ex2. prejudice against boo Radley. No one bothers to find out about the real
Arthur "boo" Radley. He may seem a little scary but the town ridicules him
and shuns him from society. All the children have been raised to fear him as
the town freak. If they took the time to see the world from his eyes they
might not be so prejudiced to his situation.

Maturity ♠ Different degrees of maturity are displayed by the
characters of the novel. ex1. Atticus. One might say he is an adult and
therefore mature. This is a very irrational statement because there are many
adults that have no hint of maturity. His view is very enlightened for a
white southern man in the thirties. He shows his mature and enlightened views
in the court room while defending Tom Robinson. He doesn't take Tom's defense
lightly because he's black but tries hard to with his case. He also shows how
mature he is in the way he treats and raises his children. The life lessons
and the free thought that are exchanged show his maturity and understanding in
bringing up scout and Jem. ex2. Scout. She shows a maturity level that is
advanced for her age. This is due not only to her free spirit and intelligent
approach to experiences but from the teachings of Atticus. She constantly asks
questions and truly cares about important issues such as reading.

Friendship ♠This is an influential theme in the novel. ex1. with
Dill. The friendship with Dill opens scout and Jem up to a new world. He
talks of experiences outside of their small closed community. He also
introduces them to the stories of boo Radley. ex2. Atticus with his children.
if Atticus did not have some kind of friendship with his children they couldn't
call him Atticus. They also might not see his important lessons in the same
light because not only is it teachings from a father but life advice and
insight from a friend. ex3. Boo with Jem and Scout. It isn't really a
friendship that they develop but a friendly understanding. For certain
purposes is is just as important because just to understand that Boo was
another real relatable person gave them the ability to oversee the stereotypes
set on him. Plus their friendly manner allowed Boo to have an outside contact
with the world(gifts in the tree)

Status ♠ Status plays a role in every story. But the status divisions in
this story are very defined and influences many happenings in this novel.
The social structure is made up of four layers. The highest level is held
by white, educated "wealthy" families(especially the men of those
families). This includes the Finches and Mr. Tate. The second layer is
the working "middle" class. Although these people are generally poor, they
work and are somewhat educated. The members of this class would include
small shop owners and farmers for example the Cunninghams. The next class
although financially similar, has completely different morals, standards and
quality of life. This class may include some who work, but most noticeably,
it is made up of the town drunks, fools and all around irresponsible
people. This class certainly includes the Ewell family. Finally the
lowest rank in this hierarchy is the made up of the black citizens.
Although they may be as educated and economically stable as those in the
second or even first rank, because of their skin they are immediate
outcasts and can obviously never move out of their strata. This specific
structure had influence in certain events in this novel.

Sacrifice ♠ When someone sacrifices something for the benefit of others it
is usually well praised. But in this novel not all sacrificial acts are
given their recognition. ex1. Tom Robinson sacrifices his life for his
family: After the guilty verdict in Tom's trial, he was sentenced to be in
jail and later hanged. But, this would almost definitely lead to his
family being further ostracized from the Maycomb community. His execution
and trial would linger with them. So, to end this future suffering for his
family, Tom purposely tried to be killed while he made his "escape." No one
truly realizes his intentions; maybe because he was black or people figured
he was trying to save his own life.

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