To Kill a Mockingbird: Key Text Quotations
To Kill a Mockingbird: Key quotations
Key Quotations
The examiners’ report notes that candidates do not have to use exact quotations and that “examples can be specific references to specific episodes in the novel studied or paraphrased quotations”. Quotations are also a helpful way to demonstrate a thorough knowledge of events and moments in the text.
Below, you'll find definitions and analyses of some important quotes, grouped according to the following themes:
Difference
Inside and outside
Childhood and adulthood
Justice and injustice
Education
To Kill a Mockingbird: Key quotations: Difference
Difference
Difference is a central theme in To Kill a Mockingbird. Throughout the novel, Lee explores a variety of ways in which people who are perceived as different are marginalised, including due to their race, gender and class.
Paired quotation
Meaning and context
The first quote is spoken by Atticus Finch following his defence of Tom Robinson, expressing his frustration with the prevailing racism
The second quote is spoken by Scout after the trial, setting her apart from most others in her community who see people as segregated
Analysis
In the first quote, Atticus emphasises that good morals are worth more than money:
The fact he likens racist people to trash links to Lee’s presentation of Bob Ewell as living at the dump
The second quote contrasts with the prevalent attitudes in Maycomb county by suggesting that all people are in fact equal
Paired quotation
Meaning and context
The first quote is spoken by Scout to Calpurnia after Jem has invited Walter Cunningham over to the Finch household for food
The second quote is Calpurnia’s response to Scout
Analysis
In these quotes, Calpurnia scolds Scout and reminds her about how she should treat others
Calpurnia suggests that Scout should be ashamed for treating Walter Cunningham differently:
She suggests that Scout should treat everyone with dignity and without prejudice
To Kill a Mockingbird: Key quotations: Inside and outside
Inside and outside
The theme of the inside and the outside enables Lee to explore division and the danger of applying binary thought to complexities of community and human nature. Through the metaphor of walls and spaces, she explores the impact of and the social barriers in Maycomb, including some people choosing to live apart rather than face rejection from an intolerant society. The binary nature of inside and outside may also allude to the dangers of viewing the world through a series of simplistic opposites such as black people and white people, same and other, male and female.
Paired quotation
Meaning and context
The first quote occurs at the start of the novel, in Chapter 1, setting the tone for the mystery surrounding Boo Radley and foreshadowing his importance in the novel:
Narrated by Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, it reveals a childlike fascination with a person who has become a monster in her mind due to the rumours she has heard
The second quote is spoken by Jem after Tom Robinson has been wrongfully convicted of the rape of Mayella Ewell:
In contrast to the Finch siblings’ perception of Boo at the start of the novel, this marks a dramatic change:
Both Jem and Scout understand that the real source of fear is the discrimination around them, not a harmless, reclusive man
Analysis
In the first quote, the metaphor “a malevolent phantom” dehumanises Boo, epitomising how ignorance and hearsay can build unfounded fear and prejudice
By describing Boo as “malevolent”, it reveals that Scout has already decided that Boo is bad, even though she has “never seen him”:
Here, Lee seems to be suggesting that people make value judgements about others without knowing or understanding them
The use of the word “phantom” is also revealing:
A phantom is something that can cause dread and fear, but it also means something “without substance”:
By choosing this term, Lee highlights both the fear surrounding the mysterious Boo, but also the fact that there is no substance to the idea that he is dangerous or evil
The only reason that Scout thinks badly of Boo is because of rumours she has heard
The second quote makes it clear that Jem has matured and understood the intolerance of Maycomb society and why some may prefer to stay outside it:
In Jem’s realisation that people are “all alike” Lee seems to be criticising the absurdity of treating people differently on the basis of their ethnicity, gender, class or age
To Kill a Mockingbird: Key quotations: Childhood and adulthood
Childhood and adulthood
By using a child narrator, Harper Lee is able to present the events of the story from a young person’s viewpoint, highlighting the impact of adults’ prejudices on children and revealing the ridiculousness of racism and other forms of discrimination.
Meaning and context
This quote is from Atticus during a conversation with his brother, Jack Finch, about bringing up Jem and Scout
Analysis
It is clear that Atticus understands how perceptive children are, and the importance of adults being honest with them:
He realises the impact adults can have on children and is determined to bring them up with good values
In referring to intolerance as “Maycomb’s usual disease” Lee presents prejudice as something that spreads and is an ill of society
To Kill a Mockingbird: Key quotations: Justice and injustice
Justice and injustice
Harper Lee explores justice in terms of the literal injustice of Tom Robinson's trial and wrongful conviction; in so doing, she highlights the wrongs of institutional racism. However, the novel also explores how injustice permeates wider society, evidenced here in the classroom and casual conversation.
Meaning and context
The first quote is an exchange between Scout and Miss Gates in the class at school, after the trial of Tom Robinson
In the second quote, Scout talks about what she heard Miss Gates say about African-American people
In the third quote, Atticus talks about the injustice of the Tom Robinson case as a microcosm of racial prejudice on a larger scale
Analysis
In class, Miss Gates espouses the idea of equality for all, implying that it is value upheld in American society
The outward views of Miss Gates contrast with her true beliefs, as evidenced when Scout recalls what she heard her teacher say privately:
This serves to highlight societal hypocrisy; here Lee criticises the idea of segregation, enforced by the Jim Crow laws, suggesting that it is un-American:
Miss Gates's implication that "it's time somebody taught 'em a lesson" hints at violence as a means of control
The third quote highlights the injustice in the courts and the failure of the legal system to provide a fair trial to all, regardless of race:
The fact that the jury convict Tom without looking him in the eye supports this argument:
Through this, Lee exposes the unfairness of Jim Crow Laws and draws attention to the plight of African American people, perhaps to increase support for the Civil Rights Movement
To Kill a Mockingbird: Key quotations: Education
Education
Harper Lee presents education as a way of making society better, but not through formal schooling. Scout and Jem’s intelligence and thoughtfulness are shown to be a result of what they have learned from Atticus, not from their teachers at school. From this point of view, Lee offers a critique of formal education in focusing on following a system rather than teaching good values, morality and fairness.
Meaning and context
In this quote, Scout tells Atticus how she has been told off at school for knowing how to read, as her learning does not comply with the Dewey Decimal System
Analysis
This demonstrates that education and society often stymy individuality:
The fact that students “won't learn to write until … the third grade” further suggests that this system undermines progress and individuality
Teachers often symbolise a society’s values
In this instance, the classroom could be argued to represent society in Maycomb, Alabama where conformity wins over individuality and intolerance wins over tolerance
Sources:
Lee, H. (2010). To Kill a Mockingbird. Arrow Books.