Chapter 11
Why do you think Mrs. Dubose treated Jem and Scout the way she did? How would you have reacted to the things she said if they were directed toward you or someone in your family?
Chapter 12
With the exception of Lula, the children got a fairly warm welcome at Calpurnia’s church. Do you think Calpurnia would have received the same type of welcome if she had attended the Finch’s church? Why?
Chapter 13
What do you think Atticus meant when he said, “Get more like Cousin Joshua every day, don’t I? Do you think I’ll end up costing the family five hundred dollars?”
Chapter 14
Do you think Aunt Alexandra has the right to determine whether or not Scout goes to Calpurnia’s house? Why do you think she doesn’t want her to go?
Chapter 15
How do you think Mr. Cunningham felt when Scout was talking to him in front of the crowd of men? What made him lead the people away?
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8 comments:
Chpater 12 response:
I do not think that Calpurnia would have gotton the same kind of welcome at the Finch's church. I think that she would have gotten the same reaction as Scout and Jem got from Lula. This is based on how the people of Maycomb County are reacting to Atticus working as a black man's lawyer. The people of Maycomb do not seem to be accepting of different races.
Chapter 14
No, I do not think that Aunt Alexandra has the right to determine whether or not Scout can go to Calpurnia's house. Though she is Scout's aunt and an adult, Atticus, being Scout's father, should be the person that the decides whether Scout may go to Calpurnia's. Aunt Alexandra does not want Scout to go to Calpurnia's house because she does not think that it is proper behavior for a white girl to visit a black person's home. Also Aunt Alexandra is very involved in the social network in Maycomb and she does not want to be gossiped about for letting her niece visit a black person's home.
Chapter 14
I agree with Sarah that Aunt Alexandra thinks that it would be improper for a white girl to go to a black woman’s house. Also, I agree that Aunt Alexandra should mind her own business. I felt like she was overruling Atticus before he could respond to Scout’s request to visit Calpurnia. Being Scout’s aunt, I think that her opinion should be valued in decisions such as this one, but I do not think it was fair for her to take complete control of the matter without consulting Atticus.
It think another reason that Aunt Alexandra did not want Scout to visit Cal was that she views the African American people as lower than herself and all other white people. I think that she did not want Scout to pick up any bad habits that Aunt Alexandra associates with black people. This unwillingness to let Scout visit Calpurnia is another example of the prejudice and racism in Maycomb County.
Chapter 14- No, I think Aunt Alexandra doesn’t have the right to decide. Although Atticus told Scout to “mind her”, I do not think that she should rule whether Scout gets to do things or not. I agree with Sarah that it would not be right for a white person to go to a black person’s home, but that should be stopping her. Aunt Alexandra still has Maycomb’s usual disease, unlike Scout, Jem, and Atticus. She still has not realized that blacks are just the same as any white person. This scene displays her racial prejudice toward blacks.
Chapter 12:
I do not think that Calpurnia would have gotten the same kind of welcome if she had gone to the Finch's church. She would have gotten the same reaction Lula gave Scout and Jem. This is because we know that people in Maycomb Country are racist and do not like that Atticus is working for a black man.
Chapter 11 response
I think that Mrs. Dubose treated Jem and Scout the way she did because she was sick and was dying. It probably would have been hard to act nice to anyone if you were that sick.
You all have great comments about the chapters in this section!
Evan – You picked up on the fact that Mrs. Dubose was sick and dying – good job! I agree with you that it would be hard to be nice to her, but would you have done what Jem did or would you have handled things differently? Do you think they could have avoided walking past her house and found another way to get to where they were going and should they have done that?
Zoe and Shannon – I completely agree with your comments about chapter 12. I think Calpurnia would have been treated exactly the same as Lula treated the children. Why do you think Lula acted this way? With the racism in Maycomb, the awful way whites treated and thought of blacks, why wouldn’t Lula treat the children the way she would want to be treated? Why is she treating the children the same as the white people in Maycomb treat the blacks?
You all have great comments about chapter 14. I also agree that Aunt Alexandra doesn’t have the right to say whether or not Scout can go to Calpurnia’s house. If I was Atticus, I would have been very angry that she stepped in the way she did. He did tell Scout to “mind her”, but do you think he will continue to let her make these types of decisions? Most likely, Atticus does not have the same prejudice attitude that the rest of Maycomb has. Knowing this, if you were Atticus, what would you do in this situation?
CHAPTER 12
There are many reasons why I believe that if Calpurnia had attended the Finch's church, she would have received a lukewarm(or even cruel) welcome. This is because of social class, age, race, and religion.
My initial reaction to this question was that the town would most likely accept Calpurnia into their church, out of respect for Atticus, he was a popular, respected lawyer in their town. His educated grace is astounding. Though I hate to say it, It is my opinion that the hated Bob Ewell's servant would not be allowed into the church (even if he could afford one). as long as Atticus was not there to defend them. Most of Maycomb likes Atticus, so they would still be harsh, but Calpurnia would be allowed into the church.
There also is the innocence of age. Calpurnia has naturally experienced racism before. Jem and Scout are innocent and young. Obviously they would be welcomed much easier than a grown woman who people have grown up disliking because of their skin.
Race is another issue which would be less readily admitted, the congregation would most likely find some pointless reasons to dislike Cal before she even sits in her pew. Her skin would have been the first thing noticed, and the first thing judged. (now I realize that I am being stereotypical here, Miss Maudie for one would welcome Cal with open arms, Miss Stephanie would not have.) Racism was probably one of the biggest issues that Harper Lee placed in her tiny town.
The fact that the church is considered (and even more so down south in the early 1900s) gods sanctuary on Earth is a huge point. The African American church would most likely respected this more than the forced conservative vibe emanating from the White church. This controversy also shows early signs of segregation. The "black" church has a disappointing amount of funds, shown by the lack of hymn books that was so shocking to young Scout. The question is a complicated one.
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