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Scout Character Growth

Decent Essays

The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee involves growing up and maturing. There are many characters who undergo some type of character growth, but none more than Jean Louise Finch, also known as Scout. In the beginning of the novel Scout is a very naïve young girl, but by the end, she is a highly mature young lady who is ready to take on almost anything that the world may throw at her. The growth of Scout is fuelled through her exposure to events occurring around her, her questions and wonderings, and her relationships with other people. Scout’s exposure to the events occurring in Maycomb impacted her growth in both subtle and forceful manners. The shooting of the wild dog, Tim Johnson, clears up the fact that Atticus is not a bland or boring person, but a very interesting and skilled one — hence the nickname “one-shot finch”. The shooting of the wild dog, taught Scout that there may be more to people than there first appears to be, and it is solely up to her to find out what “more”, the person contains inside. Prior to the shooting of the wild dog, Scout describes her father as feeble, but after, her opinion changes. When miss Maudie asks “Still think your father can’t do anything? Still ashamed of him?” (Lee 98), Scout replies with a simple “Nome” (Lee 98) strengthening the fact that Atticus is no longer boring, and there is now more to learn about the other people from the town. Later on, the Tom Robinson case comes along, and the jury rules that Tom is guilty.

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