Whitehurst 1
Ellen Whitehurst
Honors English
Mrs. Kelley
6/8/14
Jean Louise's Expedition
When a child is born, they come into the world without knowing how it is and how
people live. The genre of bildungsroman primarily revolves around a young character with
innocence. The character gradually loses their innocence, but gains maturity and self awareness
instead. In Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird, Jean Louise Finch learns how to see from
another person's perspective, accepting others as they are, and having tolerance.
The term 'blood is thicker than water' has been used throughout the years to symbolize
the bond of family being stronger than the bond of people who are unrelated. Scout's brother,
Jem teaches her the importance of being nice to people even if they are different. At the
beginning of Chapter 3, Scout gets into a brawl with Walter Cunningham. Jem disrupts the fight
and orders them to stop. "I stomped at him to chase him away, but Jem put out his hand and
stopped me."(Lee 23). Jem invited Walter to dinner as compensation for him getting hurt by
Scout. After the verdict of Tom Robinson, Jem expresses his negativity about the case to Scout.
"'If there's just one kind o f folks, why can't they get along with each other? If they're all alike,
why do they go out of their way to despise each other?'"(Lee 227). Scout soon realizes that she
should not alienate people because they are different.
Whitehurst 2
Rumors can fuel fear and create an inaccurate representation of a person. Throughout the
story, Scout developed an infatuation with Boo Radley. In Chapter One, she explains how
"People said he went at night when the moon was down, and peeped in windows... people's
chickens and household pets were found mutilated... A negro would...