To Kill a Mockingbird Summary

When does the story take place?

1933-35; 1930s over the course of several years during the Great Depression

Setting of most of the story

Maycomb, Alabama

The character whom Scout describes as “lov[ing] everything that grew on God’s earth, even the weeds”

Miss Maudie

The character who “was the deadest shot in Maycomb county in his time”

Atticus Finch

In the pageant that celebrates the products of Maycomb County, Scout dresses as a…

cured ham

Arguably, the evidence that most strongly suggests Tom Robinson’s innocence is…

his withered left hand

Name of the Black church in Maycomb.

First Purchase M.E.

The character whom Atticus describes as “conscious to the last… [c]onscious and cantankerous” is

Mrs. Lafayette Dubose

In her reporting of events whose full implications she does not grasp, Scout may be recognized as what type of narrator?

Naive narrator

Boo Radley only speaks to Scout once. What does he ask her to do?

take him home

Jem is busy with which extracurricular near the end of the book?

football

Why does Scout miss her cue for the pageant?

She fell asleep.

How does Maycomb’s black community thank Atticus for defending Tom?

They leave a lot of food on his porch.

Which of the following characters is not worried about Bob Ewell’s threat of revenge?

Atticus

What is Miss Maudie’s favorite pastime?

gardening

What is the only distinguishing feature Scout can notice about the person who carries Jem home after they are attacked?

He has a bad cough.

According to Sheriff Tate, publicly announcing that Boo Radley killed Bob Ewell would be…

a sin

In order, what were the items found in the tree on the Radley property?

2 pieces of chewing gum, Indian head pennies, string/twine, soap dolls, an entire pack of gum, a spelling bee medal, a pocketwatch and an aluminum knife; the hole was finally filled with cement

The neighbor whose image, according to the narrator, “blurred with [Scout’s] sudden tears” is

Arthur Radley

The youngster responding to Miss Fisher’s directive, declaring, “You ain’t sendin’ me home, missus. I was on the verge of leavin’—I done done my time for this year” is the cootie'-laden Ewell known at home as

Burris

“Jem and [Scout] were burdened with the guilt of contributing to the aberrations of nature, thereby causing unhappiness to our neighbors and discomfort to ourselves,” according Mr. Avery’s reading of (the)

Rosetta Stone

Miss Maudie’s chastising questions, “Well now, Miss Jean Louise, […] still think your father can’t do anything? Still ashamed of him?” follow Atticus Finch’s

shooting a mad dog.

The argument that transpires between Atticus and Aunt Alexandra while Jem reads a sports magazine on the couch and Scout is in the bathroom concerns

Calpurnia’s continued employment.

Both Atticus’s and Alexandra’s given names are significant in that each name reflects something about its bearer’s character; the term for this significant relationship is

redende name.

Alexandra means “defender of man" or "protector of man". The name was one of the epithets given to the Greek goddess Hera and as such is usually taken to mean "one who comes to save warriors.”

“Atticus,” which means “man of Attica” or “from Attica.” Attica was a region of ancient Greece that included Athens, known for its classical learning and philosophical traditions. The name thus carries connotations of intelligence, wisdom, and cultural refinement.

Scout recounts that the evidence “would tend to show that a left-handed person did it”; she continues, “Sherlock Holmes and Jem Finch would agree.” This yoking of two dissimilar items—in this case, two people with differing levels of authority—should be recognized as a case of

syllepsis.

When was To Kill a Mockingbird published?

July 1961

What major award did To Kill a Mockinbird win?

1961 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction

Who is Jem based off of?

Harper Lee’s brother, Edwin

Who is Scout based off of?

Harper Lee in her childhood

Who is Dill based off of?

Childhood friend Truman Capote

In the quote, “…until someone investigated and brought forth Eunice Ann saying she didn’t want to play Shadrach anymore,” what kind of device is employed by Narrator Scout?

Biblical allusion to Shadrach, who didn’t burn when placed in a fire because of his faith

In the beginning of the book, adult Scout and Jem talk about an event that happens at the end of the book — the only event told out of order in the story. They debate over what caused…

Jem to get his arm broken at 13 years old.

From who does the Finch family originate?

Simon Finch, a fur-trapping apothecary from Cornwall, England

What is Atticus’s occupation?

Lawyer in Maycomb and serves in the state legislature

What is Dill’s full name?

Charles Baker Harris

Where is Dill from?

Meridian, Mississippi

Who does Dill stay with during the summer?

His relative, Miss Rachel

Describe Maycomb.

Slow, quiet, old, close-knit, and run-down. Everyone knows everyone, and most people are related to each other by some degree.

How old are Scout, Jem, and Dill at the beginning of the book?

5, 10, and 6, respectively

Describe the family history of the Radleys. Why is Boo a recluse?

Boo/Arthur was involved with a gang in his youth and mostly kept to himself after that. He is rumored to have attacked his family with a pair of scissors.

In the first chapter, Scout, Dill, and Jem try to make Boo come out of his house. Jem runs up and touches it. What happens after?

The children run away, and there is a hint of motion in one of the windows, suggesting someone or something saw them.

What sets apart Scout’s teacher, Miss Caroline Fisher, from her students?

She is from northern Alabama in contrast to some of the students who in rural poverty and/or have repeated the first grade multiple times. Additionally, she isn’t ready for Scout’s high reading ability or the rest of the class’s low literacy.

How does Walter Cunningham get Scout in trouble in the events of Chapter 2?

Walter can’t afford a lunch, so Miss Caroline Fisher offers to give him money for one that day if he’ll pay her back later. Scout intervenes, explaining that he can’t afford to do so and won’t take her charity; they pay through bartering rather than money. This earns Scout several slaps of a ruler.

What does Scout do after getting in trouble for explaining Walter’s situation to their teacher?

She fights Walter on the playground before Jem intervenes, inviting him to lunch.

Why is Walter’s behavior at lunch strange to Scout?

He eats his lunch of meat and vegetables with a heavy dollop of syrup and is able to talk about farm work in a very adult way with Atticus.

Why does Miss Caroline Fisher end up in tears?

Burriss Ewell has cooties/head-lice; she tells him to go home and wash, but he rudely announces that he won’t come back to school for the rest of the year. Little Chuck Little comforts her, however.

Why doesn’t Scout like school?

She isn’t allowed to read on her own and doesn’t like the way her teacher treats her.

How does Atticus convince Scout to continue going to school?

He “compromises” that she has to continue to attend school, but they will still read together.

What is the first thing Scout finds in the knothole of a tree on the corner of the Radley property as she walks home from school?

Chewing gum still in the wrapper. Jem makes her spit it out for fear that it’s poison.

How does Scout accidently crash into the Radley yard?

She is rolled around in an old tire

What does Scout hear after she crashes in the tire?

Laughing from inside the Radley property

What game do the other adults disapprove of the children doing?

Acting out the scary rumors about the Radleys

What are some of the things Miss Maudie Atkinson grows?

Scuppernongs (southern grapes) and azaleas

Why is Miss Maudie frowned upon by “foot-washing Baptists?”

They believe her garden is sinful

Why does Scout start spending more time with Miss Maudie?

Jem and Dill have been playing together without her

How do the children try to give a note to Boo?

They use a fishing pole to slip it through the shutters of one of the windows

What does the note the children attempt to pass to Boo say?

That they want him to come out so that they can buy him ice cream

Why does Jem say he doesn’t want to be a lawyer anymore?

Atticus tricks him into confessing about the children playing pretend as the Radley family with the “oldest lawyer’s trick on record”: he asks Jem rapid-fire questions and gets him to accidentally admit they were playing the game by denying their intentions.

Why are Jem’s pants caught on the Radley fence?

Despite Atticus’s strict forbidding of messing with the Radleys, Dill and Jem — with a reluctant Scout — try one last adventure: looking in the house through the back window. They see a shadow of a person standing on the porch and flee, hearing a single gunshot as they ran. Jem’s pants get caught on the fence.

How does Dill explain why Jem is missing his pants?

They were playing strip poker

How does Jem find his pants when he went to retrieve them?

Folded neatly and hung across the back fence, the tear mended, albeit poorly

What happened to the tree’s knothole when Scout and Jem wanted to give the benefactor a thank you note?

Mr. Nathan Radley filled it with cement because the tree was dying. Atticus says it was in perfectly good health. Jem cries over this later.

During Chapter 8, it snows for the first time in Maycomb since…

the 19th century (1885)

Who gives the announcement over the phone that there will be a snow day, and school is canceled?

Eula May, “Maycomb’s leading telephone operator. She was entrusted with issuing public announcements, wedding invitations, setting off the fire siren, and giving first aid instructions when Dr. Reynolds was away.”

Who do Scout and Jem make their snowman look like?

Mr. Avery with a large stomach; Atticus tells them to make it look less like him, so Jem uses Miss Maudie’s hat

How does Miss Maudie feel about her house burning down?

She’s happy; she hated it and wants a smaller one with a bigger garden

Who put the blanket over Scout?

Boo