News From the Knot-Hole

First off, sorry Ms. Schultz for posting this so late.

Secondly, I think Aunt Alexandra is unnecessary.  I personally believe that Atticus is doing a good job raising Scout, even if she isn’t very lady-like.  Aunt Alexandra came to the house and started ordering everyone around and changing the way they live to try and re-raise the kids to her standard.  You don’t do that in somebody else’s house.  It’s impolite. 

But maybe Aunt Alexandra is necessary.  I guess it depends on how you look at it.  During the trial, Atticus was at work pretty much 24/7, and Calpurnia isn’t getting paid enough to stay late with the children.  So when Aunt Alexandra came around, Atticus didn’t have to worry about the children being home alone everyday.  Aunt Alexandra also began teaching them manners and chiding them when they said something inappropriate for their ages. 

I still don’t like her, but I trust Atticus’s judgment on this.  He’s portrayed as a responsible parent and that’s commendable.

So this time we read until the end of the book. I was expecting a happy ending for To Kill a Mokingbird, and I got one. I really didn’t think that Bob was that a bad of a person that he would go as far as to attack Scout and Jem. I mean he had that much hate for Atticus for finding out that he was actually the person who beat Mayella, that he would harm children. I was actually glad that he died at the end, karma is really something. I wasn’t expecting at all for Boo to come out the house and help the children. As a matter of fact, everything happened so fast I didn’t even know completely what was happening. I thought that Atticus, One Shot Finch, would come and save his children by shooting whoever at that point was attacking them. When that didn’t happen, I thought that Cecil would come back and help. This passage was full of twists and turns that I didn’t expect. I am glad with the ending though. Luckily, the Finches were safe, and the bad guy was caught. Scout even got to walk Boo home and bring closure to their relationship.

I chose Ball of Confusion by The Temptations because it talks about a lot of touchy subjects in the song. One of them was about racism and discrimination. The song lyrics are, “Segregation, determination, demonstration, integration, aggravation, humiliation, obligation to our nation.” The trail was not fair at all to Tom Robinson, and the people of Maycomb only found him guilty because he was black. Another lyric says, “Ball of confusion. Oh yeah, that’s what the world is today.” This explains what Jem and Scout are feeling as they grow up in their racist town. I feel bad for them, that they had to go through this whole journey. It’s good too, because what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.

It’s amazing how the author of To Kill A Mockingbird can make a town look innocent, than continue to turn it into a racist town that believes in White Supremacy. When starting out the book, the town seems like any normal small town. The more and more the story progresses, the more and more you see the other side of the small innocent town. I was somewhat shocked to learn about Atticus accusing Bob of the rape and abuse. Even though everyone Atticus points out seems to be true, the jury could not look past the fact that Tom was black. The jury had been brainwashed by the old White Supremacy beliefs.

The fact that any white guy could blame a black guy for what he did and get away with it is scary. All they have to do is get even the smallest piece of evidence that gives people the slightest doubt, and they can get off scotch free. I really hope that the jury gets past its beliefs and see the truth. Although, just from foreshadowing, I think Tom will be found guilty and most likely be executed.Let’s all hope for the best…

This has to be the first time in this book that I’ve actually wanted to read more. This book got off to a really slow start and I think that now is where it gets good, and things are revealed. Finally we got to the trail, and everything has been good so far. I completely believe Tom and his side of the story. I could see how a poor lonely girl could lust for this man that’s helped her with everything. Then since the feeling isn’t returned to Mayella, she is angered and hurt so she decides to do the one thing that would get him back the most. She accuses him of raping her, knowing that it would be nearly impossible to overcome this accusation. I felt really bad for Tom, only doing what was right in helping someone that needed it, only to find out later that it was all in vein. This is like the ultimate betrayal on the Ewell’s part. To have to sit in a courtoom and listen to people lie on you, and believe something about you that is completely untrue has to be painful. Now that Calpurnia has come into the courtroom I want a big twist to come into play.

I chose this picture because in chapter 13 Aunt Alexandra comes to stay with the Finches. The welcome mat symbolizes how the town of Maycomb had no problem with Alexandra moving in and how they welcomed her. The shoes represent her not going anywhere anytime soon. While living in Maycomb Aunt Alexandra becomes very controlling and tries to change quite a few things. For one she tries to get rid of the loving maid and cook, Calpurnia. She also instructs Scout not to attend church with her anymore, and even gets angry when Atticus continues to represent Mr. Robinson on trial. I think that things would have been just as fine if Aunt Alexandra didn’t come to live with the Finches.

These few chapters really irritated me. I mean the kids already had a female role model in their lives. Calpurnia was doing a great job, and she has for a while. She disciplines the children and she actually cares about them. Since Alexandra has come to live with them she’s done nothing but cause trouble. She wants to get rid of Calpurnia, claiming there’s no need for her. Aunt Alexandra wants everything done her way, and this leads to clashing with Scout and Calpurnia. She is very inflexible and acts as if she’s lived in the house for years. Another thing that concerned me was when Aunt Alexandra told Scout that she couldn’t attend church with Calpurnia the next Sunday. To me it seems that she doesn’t want to compete with the influence of Calpurnia on the children. She sees Calpurnia as a threat, and she wants to be the only female to tell Scout what to do. To finish carrying out her plan, she tells Atticus to get rid of Calpurnia. Later she argues with Atticus about the trail. There seems to be no good in her heart. She only cares about how the trail will make her family look, and not about what’s right. Aunt Alexandra should be sent home where she belongs.

“Forgot to tell you the other day that besides playing the Jew’s Harp, Atticus Finch  was the deadest shot in Maycomb County in his time.”  - Miss Maudie

Who knew?  And here Scout and Jem were all ashamed of their old man, and now look at ‘em.  I still don’t get why Atticus wouldn’t tell his children sooner that he’s good with a gun, but maybe Miss Maudie is right and Atticus is too civilized to gloat about his marksmanship.  But, I’d give anything to have aim like Atticus’s!

The whole scene with sick Tim Johnson and Atticus shooting a gun for the first time in thirty years was very important for Atticus’s character.  We now know a little more about him and that’s just strengthening my liking of his character. 

Mrs. Dubose is truly a wicked woman.  After all, she messes with Jem and Scout any chance she gets and she doesn’t say the nicest things to anyone.  Except Atticus, but that’s just because he’s a “gentleman” and makes an extravagant display of greeting to Mrs. Dubose any time he walks by.  But the things she says when Atticus isn’t around are just plain rude, and unfortunately, despite Atticus’s warnings, he takes them to heart.  Both he and Scout need to take a chill pill when it comes to ignorant remarks against their father.  When Jem destroyed Mrs. Dubose’s camellias, I laughed, but then I felt bad for him once he learned his punishment.  I’ve been around sick old ladies, and it truly isn’t a pretty sight, so I’m with you Jem!  It’s too bad she died, but I guess it was for the worst.  Morphine is a good drug when used specifically for medicinal pain killing, but use it and you’re hooked.  It’s like opium or whatever that feel-good drug is. 

I finally know why the characters are making such a big deal about Atticus defending a black.  I guess I missed the part when they said he was going up against the Ewells.  I really need to pay attention, geez.  Other than that, I’m hooked!  This book is one of the best I’ve read, and that’s because I can connect to it.

In chapter 12 it looked like there were still a group of kind people in the town of Maycomb. When Calpurnia decided to take the children to church, I thought that they would be nice because their father is defending a black man. The people of the church welcomed the children with open arms. The people of the church seem very humble and thankful for what they have. Even though they cannot speak well, and don’t have a lot of money, they are very nice. The rest of the people of the town are racist and not forgiving. It takes courage to turn the other cheek, and that’s what the people of First Purchase are doing. They could be equally mean and racist to the whites for accusing an innocent man. Even now that Mr. Robinson’s wife can’t find work, because of the accusation; the people of the church still take up a collection to help each other. First Purchase represents the good of Maycomb. They help better each other, and help each other when in need. They know the importance of sticking together, and doing right even when nobody is looking. This is what everyone in Maycomb should be practicing.

The knot hole was one way the Scout, Dill, and Jem communicated with Boo. Boo would leave them presents in the knot hole and it was one of the first times we got to see him as a human being with feelings. Mr. Radley, Boo’s brother, closed up the hole because he said that the tree was dying. This leads to the children being very sad and some of their happiness is gone. Scout wasn’t that mad about it, because she just saw it as her not getting any more presents from boo. Jem is very sad though, and even cries.

Everything was moving slow in the book, and Sam, Jem, and Dill were happy. They had innocence, and never really had any worries. They had their games, their summer, and each other. Even Boo didn’t seem so bad because he began to place gifts in the knot hole. This is the first time we’ve seen him as a person with feelings. Before, we knew him as a bad person who never came out of the house. Their knot hole was closed by Mr. Radley, and now some of their happiness has gone away. Later poor Ms. Maudie’s house burns down which brings a sense of sadness into the story, seeing that Ms. Maudie was sort of Scout’s role model in the book. At least she didn’t die Seriousness is now a mood of the book. The interaction Sam has with her classmates is a thing that’s important. This is the first time we’ve seen Sam have to deal with her father’s job. People in the town may not like her because her father is defending a black man on trial for raping a white female. Before this Maycomb seemed like a nice town, with loving people. Now their true colors are showing and we see that everything was a front. We know see the racist Southern town that Maycomb truly is. Even their relatives do not agree with Atticus representing a black man. It seems that whether or not he’s guilty, just because he’s black he’ll be put in jail or killed.

I feel so bad for Ms. Maudie!  But at the same time, I’m glad she’s finally going to get the smaller house she wanted.  More room for her azaleas.  What really upset me, however, is how slow the fire department was and how poorly made their trucks were back then.  The truck wouldn’t start, it was so cold.  And the fact that two trucks from two different towns had to come is also upsetting.  People should be more concerned about their safety and forget the furniture!  Mr. Avery was too busy tossing down furniture that he ended up landing, probably very painfully, in the bushes.  And when the Finchs’ house was threatened, Jem asked if they could start moving the furniture out.   That is not the way to save yourself from the dangers of a fire!  What also amazed me was Atticus’s coolness about everything.  He just told the kids to run on down to the Radleys and then stood there with his hands in his pockets watching his neighbor’s house burn literally to the ground.  Maybe to keep his kids calm, even though Jem was freaking out about Mr. Avery?  And who exactly put the blanket around Scout’s shoulders?

Other than that, this section was probably one of the most important.  Freakin’ Mr. Radley cemented up the knot-hole, and the kids finally saw snow.  Oh, and Atticus helped a black person in court, a taboo thing to do in pre-Civil Rights Alabama, AKA Bigotsville, USA.  I thought it was a brave and noble thing for Mr. Finch to do, not to mention daring.  And Scout decided it would be fun to beat the snot out of her cousin.  Good times, good times.

“He declared Egyptians walked that way; I said if they did I didn’t see how they got anything done, but Jem said they accomplished more than the Americans ever did, they invented toilet paper and perpetual embalming, and asked where would we be today if they hadn’t?” -Scout Finch about her brother

This quote is one of my favorites out of all the book so far.  For one, it’s funny.  Even though I doubt the mummy bandages were used for TP, Jem is right to believe it was.  He’s a kid, what are you gonna do about it?  He also poses a good question.  Where would we be today if the Egyptians just did nothing and wrapped their pharaohs in toilet paper?  The Egyptians invented and used many devices that we have modified and are using now in the 21st century.  They also were mathematical geniuses, not to mention amazing philosophers.  Even though the Egyptian philosophers aren’t as famous as the Greeks, they pondered on some of today’s most controversial subjects such as the afterlife, language, and government.  Although the Egyptians lived ages ago, we still have a lot to learn from them.

It is strange that Jem is running around walking like one of the Egyptian profiles that grace the walls of the Great Pyramids, but it’s all fun and games, don’t judge him.  If I were in his predicament, I’d probably do that too!  It really does look like a ton of fun.  I’d probably fall on my face, too.  But I digress.  

“That’s okay, ma’am, you’ll get to know all the country folks after a while.  The Cunninghams never took anything they can’t pay back–no church baskets and no scrip stamps.  They never took anything off of anybody, they get along on what they have.  They don’t have much, but they get along on it.” – Scout Finch

First off, let me say that I admire little Scout for being so forward.  She tells it as it is, and that’s awesome.  Anyway, the Cunninghams obviously were hit hard by the stock market crash, and they must have been poor to start out with.  It’s unfortunate, but you gotta live with what you got, y’know?  The Cunninghams are good people, and what they do by not taking what they can’t pay back is called integrity.  That’s a value that many people do not believe in today.  Instead they take all that they can get and forget everyone else.  People, be more like the Cunninghams and don’t bite off more than  you can chew.

Ah, Maycomb, Alabama.  The quintessential Southern community.  Everyone knows everybody, and I’m not too sure about that.  Gossip travels fast in little Maycomb, and sometimes the gossip is way off from the truth.  Take for instance poor Boo Radley.  Everyone thinks he’s either dead and stuffed up the chimney, or is a lurk that runs around stalking everyone in Maycomb in the dead of night eating cats.  First of all, both of those assumptions is kind of weird, second of all, that’s just gross.  Dead and stuffed up the chimney?  Come on.  And of course the children are all over that.  Dill, Jem, and Scout are going way out of line with their little games because now they want Boo to come out and talk with them.  What if he is the psycho they all think he is?  Sitting around, cutting up news papers and stabbing people in the leg.  Gosh, people in small towns really need to get a life and leave the weirdos alone.

Other than that, To Kill A Mockingbird is a very interesting book.  It’s nice to read about Depression-ridden America and all the stuff the people did for fun.  Maycomb is a tight-knit community, and you don’t see stuff like that anymore.  I can’t wait to see the importance of the magical knothole and all the stuff somebody keeps putting in there.

In this first part of the book the narrator, Scout, enters school already knowing how to read and write. For some strange reason her teacher doesn’t like this and is angry. If she was really a good teacher she would be glad that a student of hers could already read and write, meaning she is literate.

So since middle school I”vr heard nothing but excellent things about this book. Reading the book has changed my mind. The first parts of books are supposed to grasp the reader’s attention, but the book managed to almost put me to sleep. Hopefully this book will get better, because if it continues at this rate I will not enjoy this book at all. The introduction to the character’s was great, I guess, but other than that, this book is lame. I’m looking forward to what my classmates have to say about TKAM.