To Kill A Mockingbird, chapters 16-The End.

I have to admit, I did really enjoy this book. I had heard really good things about it, but I also had misconceptions over what it was about. I knew it was about Jem, Scout, and Boo...but it's less about Boo than I thought. The story is obviously very important for Dill, Atticus, and Tom Robinson as well. The one part I really liked about the book was how it addressed Scout and Jem's naivety of the cruel ways of the world. I often feel as though I have had trouble accepting how harsh and unfair things can be, even though I am considerably older than Jem and Scout were in  the novel. Even though the book is from Scout's point of view, I feel as though the reader follows Jem's journey, too. I have a brother and I know that the bond siblings share is not something that can be replicated easily. Scout is acutely aware of her brother's shifts in mood, and the fact that he is at a different point in his maturation than he is. Even though they argue on occasion, they silently make up and are back to being brother and sister. I really liked how Lee portrayed their relationship throughout the book.

Dead Week

I have a program tonight, and not much time after that before my work has to be done, and I can officially stop stressing. A while ago, I stumbled upon 8Tracks, and didn't think to use it in the classroom or anything, but today it came in very handy! Music is frequently my outlet- I use to influence my mood on days that could be improved. Today, I used it to help me stay focused... you may think you can't focus on work while music is playing, but I beg to differ! 8 Tracks offers music for any and every occasion. They have playlists such as:

• Music to stare at the ceiling to.
• Songs to listen to if you're having trouble sleeping.
• Songs to listen to when all you need to do is cry.
• Songs to listen to if you're energetic!
• Music Coffee.

And so on... several playlists have been designed for this specific week, and next week also. These playlists are called, for example:

• Songs for the reluctant study-er.
• Study Mix for Finals week 2010
• DESTROY YOUR FINALS

And so on and so forth... I find that sitting in silence allows me to get sidetracked SO easily, so putting on a study mix was super helpful! Maybe it was just mind over matter; maybe since it had study in the title, I was able to stay more focused... regardless- I feel like i got a lot more done today!

To Kill A Mockingbird, chapters 10-16.

Bear with me for a second:
In my EDU class, we're discussing moral development (a HUGE theme in TKAM, I think). The unit discusses the different ways people judge their actions at different ages; for example, young children judge actions based on direct outcomes, whereas teenagers and adults judge actions based on intention. However, this is not always true. Adults tend to think like children when they are annoyed or angry, which in turn, teaches the child a very important lesson about their actions... Our text book used this example: A mother is very busy cooking dinner, and her son wants a glass of milk. In order to not disturb his mother, the child tries to pour the milk himself but ends up spilling it. The mother is irritated by this and scolds the boy. She has not taken into consideration the fact that her son's intention was to try and be independent so as to not take the mother away from her work, but instead the mother focused on the consequence: a big, milky mess. The child, in defending himself, considers his intention to help his mother.

This lesson popped into my head when I was reading TKAM, specifically the chapter in which Scout, Jem, and Dill go to town late at night to see where Atticus is, and jump to defend him when he is confronted by townsmen. Instead of getting angry that his children are out of bed and sneaking around late at night, Atticus recognizes that their actions were out of concern and love for their father. It became clear to me when I was reading this, that that has been Atticus's general attitude throughout the whole book. He has the ability to look beyond the outcomes of things, to the intentions of the actions that caused those outcomes. I think it is that ability that leads the reader to interpret Atticus as such a gentle-hearted, kind, patient man.

At the end of chapter 16, the trial has just begun...I'm excited (and nervous!) I can't wait to pick the book up again.

To Kill A Mockingbird, chapters 2-9

I guess the progression of this story is nice... I like the development of the family side of things... the sense of family connectedness is there, as well as the conflicts that often are present within immediate and extended family. I find it strange that Scout and Jem call their father by his name, though. That seems so odd. Also, while I said earlier that I liked the introduction of characters, I think now I have met too many characters for me to remember, and am getting confused when they are each reintroduced in minor ways. Also, I'm confused about the Finch family in that Atticus said they were poor, but not very poor, yet he is a lawyer and they have a car... I don't know what time period this is either, so I have a hard time picturing the story playing out. Maybe it is my ignorance of history that makes it difficult for me to understand, but it's frustrating. Scout's naivety and innocence obviously makes her character endearing, but in a cliche kind of way. I'm undecided on this book so far... I don't love it as of right now, but I'm holding out hope because I've heard good things.

To Kill a Mockingbird, chapters 1&2.

I just started To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. It's an easy read so far...nothing significant has happened yet, don't think, but Lee has introduced and overviewed the characters clearly, so that I can tell that they will come into play soon. I think his unique and interesting description of the characters, from Scout Finch's point of view is what keeps the reader's attention.