Essay Questions and Guidelines

[Daniel]

TASK
CHOOSE ONE OF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS AND WRITE A 2000-WORD ESSAY ANSWERING IT.

1. Analyze the childhood world of Jem, Scout, and Dill and their relationship with Boo Radley.

2. How do Jem and Scout change during the course of the novel? How do they remain the same?

3. What is Atticus’s relationship to the rest of Maycomb? What is his role in the community?

4. Discuss the role of family in To Kill a Mockingbird, paying close attention to Aunt Alexandra.

5. Examine Miss Maudie’s relationship to the Finches and to the rest of Maycomb.

6. Discuss the author’s descriptions of Maycomb. What is the town’s role in the novel?

7. Analyze the author’s treatment of Boo Radley. What is his role in the novel?

8. How do gender and race intersect in the novel?

9. Why do so many of the characters have nicknames? What is their importance?

10. Is there anyone who the novel suggests isn’t deserving of compassion and forgiveness? Who, and why?

11. Why does Scout take being called a girl as an insult? What is the role of gender in the novel?

12. What does the novel say about what things should be considered scary, and what shouldn’t?

13. What do individual characters in the novel base their ideas of right and wrong on?

14. What difference does it make to the novel that it’s narrated from a child’s perspective? How would the book be different if an adult perspective was dominant?

15. Discuss the trial of Tom Robinson. What are its strengths, weaknesses and surprises?

16. Choose your own question. (Needs consultation)

[Daniel]

Word Limit
Students are allowed to go 5% over or under the word limit with no penalty(1900 words -2100 words). Any more or less will result in deductions of 5% from the final grade per 100 words short or over the limit.
Format
Essays must be typed in Word. Hand-written essays will not be accepted.
References
References must be used in the correct format when quoting from the novel or from an additional source using Microsoft Word’s ‘Insert footnote’ function:
Author Name, Book Name, page number.
(i.e. ‘Simon would have regarded with impotent fury the disturbance between North and South’ )

Deadline
The deadline for handing in the essay will be the last lesson of term.

[Daniel]

Hope this helps. Any questions, get in touch.

Attachments:

[Daniel]

Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird, (Vintage: London, 2004), p.__
Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockinbird, (Grand Central: New York, 1982), p.__

[Daniel]

Explaining Question 7:

Look at how the author/narrator(these are different things!) talks about/describes/treats/deals with Boo Radley. What is important about Boo Radley in the novel?