Essay, Research Paper: To Kill A Mockingbird Summaries

The beginning of chapter one opens up with Scout telling us that Jem has a broken elbow. She then
takes us back to summer of 1933 where we meet a young boy named Dill. Together Jem, Scout
and Dill begin their adventures and their obsession with Mr. Aurthor Radley, or Boo as the kids call
him.

We find out that there are rumors about the Radley House. These include the most memorable
rumor which is that he stabbed his mother in the leg with a pair of scissors. We never do find out if
they are true, however we can assume they are not.

Later on in the book, the kids are daring each other to go into the yard. Jem is the first to
adventure there. He is dared to go up and touch the side of the house. He does that and thus ends
chapter 1.

After the summer ends, scout has to start school. She meets her teacher, Miss Caroline. Miss
Caroline learns that Scout knows how to read. This upsets Miss Caroline because she doesn't want
Scout ahead of the others. She tells scout not to read at home anymore. This upsets her greatly
because one of the highlights of her evenings is to read with Atticus. He tells her to go ahead and
read anyway.

She also meets Walter Cunningham.Miss Caroline tries to give Walter some money for his lunch but
he refuses. Scout tries to explain to her that because he is a Cunningham, he won't take any thing he
can't pay back. She thinks that rude of Scout and yells at her more.

In chapter 3, Scout becomes mad at Walter because she thinks he got her in trouble. She begins to
rub his face in the dirt. Then she really beats him up. Jem stops her and invites Walter to supper. At
supper, Walter over-pours syrup on his food. Scout yells at him and Calpurnia calls her into the
kitchen. Cal tells her that Walter is her guest and no matter what he does, she needs to respect him
and keep quite.

The story begins to develop in chapter 4. Scout is passing home from school, and sees two oak
trees in the yard. She looks, and sees some foil sticking out of the knot hole. She grabs it and
finds two pieces of gum. She quickly rams them both in her mouth. Later when Jem comes home he
tells her to spit it out. He said that she doesn't know where they've been. She tells him where she
found them and on the last day of school, they both pass by the house and they see more foil. The
grab it and run home. When they get home, they open it and see a purple velvet box with a minuet
catch. They open it and see two shiny Indian-Head pennies; one from 1906 an one from 1900.

School was over, and summer was here again. Dill returned and the three started with their
adventures again. They find a tire and decide to roll Scout in it. She falls out of the tire and it rolls in
to the yard. Since Jem rolled it, they made him go and get it. They return home and start to play a
game. They create "scripts" and this one was called "Boo Radley". They just started to play it when
Atticus show up. They told him they were doing some thing different, but he saw right through that.

We hear about Miss Maudie Atkinson in chapter 5. We learn that she hated her house and enjoyed
the outdoors and nursing her flowers. She let the kids play in her yard as long as they leave her
flowers alone.Scout and Maudie would often sit on the porch and watch the sun go down. One
night she Maudie if she thought Boo was still alive. She said that yes he was because she hadn't seen
him carried out yet.

The next morning, they decide to give a note to Boo. They wrote a letter asking Boo to join them
for Ice Cream. They grabbed a long fishing pole and through it in the porch. Atticus caught them
and interrupted all of their "fun". They never got an answer back.

In chapter 6, the kids decide to go back to the Radley's and to peek into the window. They got up
to it and looked in. All they saw at first was a shadow.They heard a shotgun and ran for it. Jem got
his pants caught in the fence. He kicked then off and kept running. When they got home, they said
they were playing strip poker. Later that night, they snuck back to the house to get the pants before
anyone saw them there. They found then neatly folded on the porch and in perfect condition.

They start school again in chapter 7. They go buy the tree and find more stuff in it. They found twine
this time. They left it to see if anyone would take it. They finally started to consider any thin in that
knot-hole theirs. Later on in October, they find two soap people. One was a girl and the other a
boy. They think they look like themselves. Once again, two weeks later, they find a full pack of gum
in the tree. Later, they find a knife. Later, they find out that the tree had been filled with cement.
Nathan Radley told them that the tree was dying. Atticus said it wasn't but left them to figure it out
themselves.
Chapter 8 opens up with a little bit of weather background. We learn that they had two weeks of
the coldest weather since 1885. Boo's mother died that year and Jem and Scout decided Boo had
got her at last. But Atticus said she died of natural causes.

Scout woke up one morning to find snow on the ground. She had never seen snow before on a
count of it hadn't snowed in Maycomb since 1885. Jem and Scout decided to build a snowman.
They took the snow from Miss Maudie's yard and built a big snow man which resembled Mr.
Avery, who was a little on the heavy side. Atticus told them that they had to take some off of the
front and put an apron on it. He said it looked like a caricature.

They went back to bed since there was no school. However they were awakened by Atticus. A fire
had started at Miss Maudie's and spread through the town. Everybody was out. There were fire
trucks from 3 counties. Everybody was scurrying to put out the fires. Atticus had told the kids to
stay under the oak trees. During all of the bustle, no one had noticed that Boo had put a blanket
around Scout's shoulders. No one saw it till they got home. After it was over, Miss Maudie was, to
everyone's surprise, calm. All she could think about was her flowers. She decided to stay at
Stephanie Crawford's until her house was rebuilt.

In chapter 9, the trial part of the book begins. Scout hears a kid a school saying that Atticus was a
black man lover.Scout later learns that Atticus will be defending Tom Robinson, a black, who is
accused of raping Mayella Ewell,a white. Atticus explains to Scout that he knows that he will not
win the case because of the prejudice.

In chapter 10, the title of the book is made more clear. Maudie tells scout that its is a sin to kill a
mockingbird because they don't do anything but innocently sing their songs for us.

Throughout the remainder of chapters 10 and 11, the Radly story is fading into the background as
the children come of age and start to mature. The Tom Robinson situation is now becoming the
focal point in the book.

Chapter 12 signals the beginning of Part Two of To Kill A Mocking Bird. At this point in time, the
Robinson trial has come into full perspective. The children are maturing and loosing interest in Boo
Radley. Jem is now twelve and going through the changes of life. Scout is becoming angered that
Jem thinks he can tell her what to do.

School was out and summer returns again in chapter 12. Jem is telling her he doesn't want her
around him anymore. She stays with Cal until Dill comes. However, Dill writes Scout a letter saying
that he has a new father and will not be coming to Maycomb that summer. The legislature was
called to an emergency meeting and Atticus was to leave for two weeks.

When Atticus left, Cal decided to take the kids to her church. When they arrived, prejudice was
just as alive there as it was at a white church. All of the congregation was protesting against Cal
bring whites into a black church. Finally, the Reverend stepped in and allowed the kids to enter.

In chapter 13, Scout and Jem's Aunt Alexandra came to visit. Atticus also returned the same day.
Scout is told by most everyone that it is time that she started acting more like a girl. Scout is
offended by these remarks. She sees nothing wrong with the way that she is acting now. Now
nearing the end of the chapter, Atticus decides that it is time that Jem learns the Facts of life. Jem
replies by saying that he already knows all that stuff, however Atticus rebounds that comment by
saying that Alexandra insisted that he knows the truth.

Dill runs away and hides under Scout's bed in chapter 14. He said his new father bound him in
chains locked him in the basement. Atticus calls Dill's Aunt Rachel and asks if Dill can stay with
them. The remainder of this chapter deals with a night time conversation between Dill and Scout.
In chapter 15, we learn that Dill was given consent from his mother to stay at Aunt Rachael's. They
eavesdrop, during diner, on one of Atticus' conversations. This conversation has to do with the
moving of Tom to the county jail. At the end of the chapter, Atticus goes to the jail to see Tom and
the children secretly follow him. While they are there, a lynch mob comes upon Atticus. The children
appear and break it up.

We finally get to move inside the court room in chapter 16. The kids decide to go see the trial.
There are no seats on the floor, so they go and sit in the colored balcony with Rev. Sykes.

In chapter 17, Scout sees the Ewells sitting in the courtroom. Mr. Tate is on the witness stand. The
second person to take the stand was Mr. Ewell. Atticus made a fool of Mr. Ewell on the stand.
Questioning such things as to why there was no medical attention or inspection of bruises or other
injuries.

Mayella takes the stand at the beginning of chapter 18. Mayella spent most of her time crying on the
witness stand. She felt that Atticus was insulting her because she thinks he is mocking her. We
discover that her mother is dead and has been living with her father as a only parent for a long time.
She explains that she had called on Tom to come and do a few handy jobs throughout the years.
Near the end of her testimony, she seems to be ripping her story apart herself. She can't remember
things like if he hit her or any violence.We do find out that apparently, she was not raped by Tom,
but abused by her father.

In chapter 19, we finally get to hear Tom take the stand. We discover that due to an accident with a
cotton gin, his left arm is completely useless. Tom agreed with Mayella on the part of him doing odd
jobs, however, when it comes to the time of the alleged rape, he said that she came on to him very
strongly. We hear that when Mr. Ewell walked in, he cursed his daughter.

At the beginning of chapter 20, Mr. Dolphus Raymond, who has a reputation of being a drunk,
invites them onto his property for a "drink". They find out that he is not obsessed with drinking
alcohol, but Cokes instead.

After their drink, the run back to the courthouse. They come in just as Atticus is giving his closing
arguments. They ask Jem what's going on. Jem, not understanding all of the prejudice, innocently
believes that they will win the case. Of course, all of the adults know that they won't. Atticus makes
the point that the whole reason that they are there is because the Ewells must put Tom away. They
have to get him out of site and out of mind. He is just a reminder that Mayella tempted a Negro. At
the end of the chapter, we see Cal making her way up the Isle.

Cal hands Atticus a note in the opening of chapter 21. It turns out to be a note from Alexandra. It
says that the kids are gone. Mr. Underwood spoke up and told Atticus that they were in the
colored balcony. He called them down. He tells them to go home, but they want to stay. They make
a deal that they are to go home and eat, and then they may return to the courthouse.

They finish eating and return. The Reverend had saved their seats. Jem is still talking about them
winning the trial. The Rev. tells Jem not to be so sure. Near the end, Mr. Tate announces that the
trial will be re-starting. The verdict is read. It was guilty all the way. Jem, most of all was
disappointed. At the close of the chapter, the Rev. tells Scout and Jem to stand. He says, "your
father's passin'", a key phrase in the book.
Jem was really upset. He, more than anyone, believed that they would win the trial. He cried for a
while then became engulfed with anger. Alexandra was waiting up for them when they arrived home
in chapter 22. She seemed confused as to why Jem was so upset.

Calpurnia told Atticus that lots of people had left food for the family on the back steps. Atticus was
grateful, but felt that they shouldn't have done that. He said that times were to tough for them to be
spending valuable food on the Finches.

There was a lot of anger involved in chapter 22, but even more in chapter 23. Bob Ewell had
vowed to get Atticus back. He had threatened to kill him. Atticus tried to explain to Jem why Mr.
Ewell was so mad. He told him to stand in his shoes. Atticus had destroyed the last shred of dignity
left in that man and now his reputation was ruined.

At the end of this chapter, the kids are coming to understand more things than they did. At the very
end, Jem makes the comment, "I thins I'm beginning to understand why Boo Radley's stayed shut up
in the house all this time...it's because he wants to stay inside."

In chapter 24, Scout is made to help Alexandra in giving a ladies party. She realizes and is told
more now than ever, that it is time that she started acting more like a girl. During the party, Atticus
enters the house to get Cal. Tom had been killed. He had been shot 17 times while trying to escape.
Atticus and Cal decide to go see Tom's wife and tell her the news.

In chapter 25, the main theme of the book is reinstated. Jem is trying to explain to Scout why she
shouldn't kill the bug. This is an example of the To Kill A Mockingbird theory. Throughout the
remainder of the chapter, there is just talk about Tom's death. This was a very interesting topic to all
of Maycomb.

In chapter 26,the kids are returning to school for the first time since chapter 11. Jem was now in the
seventh grade and Scout in the third. Scout is returning interest in the Boo Radley saga. Atticus
became angered. He thought she had gotten over it, but had started it again. Scout tries to
understand the Hitler situation from one of her teachers.

Scout tells us in chapter 27, that Mr. Ewell had lost his job. Ruth Jones said that Mr. Ewell was
constantly threatening Atticus. At the end of the chapter, we hear about the school play. Scout's
costume is a ham.

At the beginning of chapter 28, Cecil Jacobs decides it is a good time to jump out and scare them.
They are not amused by that. They were later attacked from behind. Scout's costume was totally
ruined. They fought and ran and kicked all they could. A man had come up behind the attacker and
pulled him off of Scout. Then they heard a heavy breathing sound. Atticus and the mysterious man
take the injured Jem in the house. Scout begins to describe what happened.
In chapter 29, Scout begins to tell everyone what happened. We learn that it was Boo who saved
them. Also, we find out that it was Mr. Ewell that attacked them, but he "fell on his knife" and was
dead.

In chapter 30 and 31, Scout and Jem get to meet Boo Radly face to face. They learn that they need
to keep quite about what he did. He just wants to be left alone and giving him all that publicity
would hurt him, just like the mocking bird.

The End

Good, although some of the things were not true. Like, just as an example, Jem never actually meets Boo, because he's sleeping (he's just broken his arm and been knocked out) when Scout meets him.

Pretty good though (: