Note: This post is a synopsis of the book and contains spoilers.
Harper
Lee's classic, To Kill a Mockingbird is close to a lot of hearts and was even
made as a compulsory read in American classrooms. Though I was not compelled to
do so, I found myself grabbing my own copy and turning the pages until the book
ended.
This
novel was set in a southern town in Alabama as the story unfolded through the
perspective of an innocent girl named Scout. Scout had a lot of adventures with
her brother Jem and her sweetheart Dill. Most of the things that puzzled Scout
and Jem were always elucidated by their father. Atticus is a lawyer who accepted
goods such as firewood for his legal services. Atticus was appointed to defend
a Negro who was facing a rape charge by a white woman; a case which ruling was
already known before it even began. This, however, was not known to his
children which caused them to struggle in their dealings with other people. To
help Scout out of her troubles, Atticus taught the latter a simple trick: to
consider things from others’ points of view.
Despite her father’s effort, Scout and Jem still found themselves
struggling as the case drew nearer and people’s opinion of their father being a
Nigger-lover became louder. Baffled and wanting to fight back, Scout turned to
Atticus who then made a remarkable pronouncement. “Before I can live with other
folks, I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by
majority rule is a person's conscience.” Atticus exerted his best to defend Tom
Robinson despite the dangers of a mob and the stigma from the rest of the town.
Although he was able to clean Tom’s name by revealing Tom’s physical and moral
incapability to commit such a crime and Mayella’s true desire, the scales of justice didn't tilt in their favor. The jury's verdict, considering all facts supporting Tom's innocence, is still depressingly guilty. Tom ended up being shot
dead while climbing out of prison.
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