Scout, the protagonist/narrator starts off the story. Scout and her family live in a town known as Maycomb. From the description of Maycomb, it seems very unenergetic and languish. While Harper Lee describes the city of Maycomb, as "Somehow, it was hotter then: a black dog suffered on a summer's day; bony mules hitched to Hoover carts flicked flies in the sweltering shade of the live oaks on the square" (5). These similes creates a vivid image in one's head showing a town almost seeming to be dead or very isolated by tourists.
After the introduction of the town of Maycomb, Scout talks about a phantom and the Rodney's Place through pages 8-9. These struck me as a sign of foreshadowing and questions loomed to my head like who is the phantom? or whats so significant about the Rodney's Place? As i read a little further, the situation on the Rodney Place cleared up, but i was still pondering on the phantom subject. Pages 10-11 talks about the whole situation of Boo and the Rodney Place, but there was nothing about the phantom.
So far from reading this book, there is racism invovled in this book as well as class structure. The word "negroes" and "nigger" is used quite often. Also, people like the Ewell's and Cunningham's are looked towards as the poor class. However, the Ewell's seem to be the lowest family in Maycomb. "They didn't have to go to school, for one thing. Another thing, Mr.Bob Ewell, Burris's father, was permitted to hung and trap out of season" (31)
Daniel :)
ReplyDeleteI was confused about the phantom part also but now that I have read more I'm guessing that Lee is refering to Boo. Since he is kind of creepy and since he seems a little challenged in the head, the people might be scared of him :P