Theme
Definition of Theme:
Theme is the central idea, message, or main idea of a literary work.
Family:
Family is a group of people who are related to each other who are living under the same name.
Questions about Family:
- What's the effect of having the Finch children call their father by his first name? What does that suggest about their characters? About his? Their relationship? Do you know anyone who calls their parents by their first name? (Do you?)
- Why is Aunt Alexandra so obsessed with Old Family and Finch pride? What does she hope to accomplish by making Scout and Jem feel that as well?
- How does family intersect with class in the novel?
- What do the examples of good and bad parents in the novel suggest about the best way to raise kids?
- How does Maycomb's African-American community think about the idea of family?
Examples of Family:
"Jem, Scout," said Atticus. "I don't want to hear of poker in any form again. Go by Dill's and get your pants, Jem. Settle it yourselves." (Page 73)
"Scout, I'm tellin' you for the last time, shut your trap or go home - I declare to Lord you're gettin' more like a girl every day!" (Page 69)
"Jem and I found our father satisfactory: he played with us, read to us, and treated us with courteous detachment." (Page 6)
"Calpurnia always won, mainly because Atticus always took her side. She had been with us ever since Jem was born, and I had felt her tyrannical presence as long as I could remember." (Page 7)
"Scout, I'm tellin' you for the last time, shut your trap or go home - I declare to Lord you're gettin' more like a girl every day!" (Page 69)
"Jem and I found our father satisfactory: he played with us, read to us, and treated us with courteous detachment." (Page 6)
"Calpurnia always won, mainly because Atticus always took her side. She had been with us ever since Jem was born, and I had felt her tyrannical presence as long as I could remember." (Page 7)