1. Themes in To Kill a Mockingbird

2. To Kill a Mockingbird is about racism.
To determine the theme, you have to explain what it teaches about racism.
OK… racism is bad. We knew that already.
GO DEEPER.

3. Getting To Depth = WHAT ELSE?
Where does racism appear?
How does racism affect people?
How does racism affect a community?
How does racism against black people affect white people?
Are there different types of racism?
What is the human cost of racism?

4. Consider Tom Robinson/ Tom Robinson’s death
What Calpurnia says about two languages.
First Purchase Church
Dolphus Raymond and his “mixed” kids
Ms. Merriweather’s comments at the tea party
How Bob Ewell perceives the events
Mayella’s “attraction” to Tom
How Miss Gates is hypocritical

5. Come up with a thematic statement about the theme about racism
in To Kill a Mockingbird.

6. Coming of Age/ Loss of Innocence
Scout and Jem grow up in this novel. We see each of them mature through their behaviors, actions, and the things they say. They lose their innocence. What do we learn about growing up from this novel? What happens as we grow up and get older, as demonstrated in this novel?

7. Courage/Integrity
What are some events that are meant to teach us about courage or integrity?

8. Stepping into someone else’s skin
Write a thematic statement about this topic.

9. Innocence
The mockingbird comes up several times in the novel. It does nothing to hurt anyone or anything, but they make music to enjoy. It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird. It is a symbol of innocence. Boo Radley and Tom Robinson are also innocent. What is the author trying to make us think about innocence from the events of this novel?

10. The Gothic Motif
Harper Lee includes many Gothic elements in To Kill a Mockingbird. Why? What does it do to the story? How does it affect it? What was her purpose in including these elements? Where do we see the ribbon of the gothic throughout this novel?

11. Forebodings Of Evil

12. Imprisonment, including barriers, walls, and veils

13. Ghosts, vampires, witches and ghost houses

14. Home as a dangerous prison

15. Forbidding secrets

16. The prison of stereotypes

17. Insanity

18. Taboos (such as interracial relationships)

19. The influence of the past and degeneracy

20. Violence, especially that which has to do with the attempt to break boundaries

21. Eccentricity

22. The lure of terror