1. To Kill a Mockingbird
By Harper Lee

2. OVERVIEW OF THE NOVEL AUTHOR: Harper Lee PUBLICATION DATE: 1960
SETTING: Maycomb, Alabama
POINT OF VIEW: First person narrative
THEMES: Lack of and need for human compassion Need for individual conscience

3. HARPER LEE (Nellie) Harper Lee BORN: April 28, 1926
PLACE OF BIRTH: Monroe, Alabama
PARENTS: Amasa C. and Frances (Finch) Lee Related to Robert E. Lee

4. AWARDS
1960 Pulitzer Prize for Distinguished Fiction by an American author
National Conference of Christian and Jews Brotherhood Award
Paperback of the Year Award
Book-of-the-Month Club

5. EDUCATION Monroe, Alabama Public School
Huntington College in Montgomery, Alabama (1944)
attended Oxford College one year as a Fullbright scholar

6. AUTHOR’S LINKS TO THE NOVEL’S PLOT AND CHARACTERS
Harper Lee’s father was a Southern lawyer. He served as the prototype for Atticus Finch.
Harper Lee’s age (6 to 8) correlates with Scout’s age during , the time period of the book.
The courtroom in Maycomb is patterned after the one in Monroeville where Harper Lee observed her father in courtroom proceedings.
Tom Robinson’s trial appears to be a composite of many trials in the South, specifically the Scottsboro trials.
Some of the novel’s characters are composites of people Harper Lee knew personally; for example, the author Truman Capote as Dill.

7. CHARACTERS ATTICUS FINCH – lawyer, father of Scout and Jem; widower
JEAN LOUISE “SCOUT” FINCH – adult narrator as story begins; narrates story in retrospect; relates events that begin when she is 6 years old.
JEM FINCH – Scout’s brother, who is 4 years older than she.
CHARLES BAKER “DILL” HARRIS – 7- year-old visitor to Maycomb; acts as a catalyst

8. MORE CHARACTERS ARTHUR “BOO” RADLEY – neighborhood recluse
CALPURNIA – the black housekeeper for the Finch family
AUNT ALEXANDRA – Scout & Jem’s aunt
MAUDE ATKINSON – friend of Finch family

9. MORE CHARACTERS
TOM ROBINSON – black man accused of raping a white girl
MAYELLA EWELL – the girl who accuses Tom of rape
BOB EWELL – Mayella’s father
HECK TATE – sheriff of Maycomb

10. ATTICUS Justice BOB EWELL Innocence JEM SCOUT DILL Bigotry Or
Prejudice
CHARACTERS AS
SYMBOLS
CALPURNIA
&
MAUDIE
TOM
ROBINSON
&
BOO
Helpfulness
Helplessness

11. QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
What was America like during the time of this book?
What is the significance of the title with regards to the plot and symbolism?
What experiences and people did Harper Lee rely on in order to develop her plot and characters?
Is there still prejudice in America today?