Part one Essay

We had to do an essay of the first part of TKM. This was a formative test. We had to do an essay with 3 arguments to defend our tesis statment and we had to do at least 800 hundred words. I developed an essay about the contexts and enviorements of the novel, and compared it with our actual time. I`ve got a 7, helped by good quotes and my arguments.

It`s inoccent, as it comes from Scout, it`s inmature and childish

1. What do you learn in this chapter about Maycomb, Atticus Finch and his family?
We are introduce to this enviorement and this people, we learn that Maycomb is an tired old town.

2. Describe Calpurnia as Scout depicts her in Chapter 1.
More severe to her than to Jem. African American, big handed and slim.

3. What does Dill dare Jem to do?
To go and touch the Radley place.

4. The townspeople of Maycomb have some fears and superstitions about the Radley place. Describe these fears and superstitions.
They think Boo is a ghost and that he is responsible of the dead of some pets

5. How important is bravery to Jem?
Very important to protect her sister.

6. What do you notice about the narrative voice and viewpoint of the story?

1. What is the reason for the author's choice of a young narrator?

Because it gives the book a different point of view, the point of view of an inoccent, young girl

2. How does Jem and Scout's views of Boo Radley change during  part 1 of the book?

They start fearing him, but after the dare of Dill, they start being more curious about him.

3. Atticus tells the children several times that they need to walk in someone else's shoes 

before judging the person. Describe times when Atticus, Scout or Jem walk in someone else's shoes. How does this change how they view the situations? What role does this advice play in sympathy and compassion? 

They do it with Boo Radley as they start growing and realising things, they also do it with people of their street and they can understand them better.

4. How do you think Atticus managed his role as a single parent?

I think he did wuite a great job, he was able to educate them in a good way and provide them with what they needed 

5. Discuss race issues in part 1 of the book.

6. From your reading of part 1, What does To Kill a Mockingbird teach us about how people cope with issues of race and class? Do you classify people in your world as different "folks?" Do you see those sort of distinctions today? 

We still can see distinction, homophobia for example. I think the book teach us that people have a hard time learning to live along with different people.

7. Who is your favorite character from part 1 and why? 

Atticus, because of his serenity and intelligence.

Social context: production and reception

This are the variables affecting our relations with others, like religion, gender, age, group, race, nationality, etc.

Now, in literature we have two types of contexts: The context of production and the context of reception.

The context of production is the context (year, events, etc) when the novel was produced by the author.
The context of reception is the context (year, events, etc) when the novel is read by someone.

Both are important things to consider. For example we couldn`t understand TKM being refered as a text of 2012, but we can as a text refering to the authors events in 1930

1. Comment on Jem's and Scout's visit to First Purchase Church. What does Scout learn about how black people live?

Calpurnia decides to take them to the first purchase church because Atticus ain`t home to take them to the church. They see another reality different from theirs. They hear another type of english and they see they had different ways of doin things, like when they sang the hymns.

2. Explain why Calpurnia speaks differently in the Finch household, and among her neighbours at church.

Because it is a context thing. It`s like a student talking to a friend and to a teacher.

3. Aunt Alexandra thinks Scout is "dull" (not clever). Why does she think this, and is she right?

Because she isn`t like a normal girls of her age, she doesn`t use dresses or do girl things and I think she is wrong.

4. How does Aunt Alexandra involve herself in Macomb's social life?

She was part of an amanuensis club. She also had invitation for drinking tea and those kind of things, she was known by the people in Maycomb.

5. Comment on Aunt Alexandra's ideas about breeding and family, in contrast to Atticus' visions. Who's right, do you think? Why?

They disagree in this. Aunt Alexandra thinks kids should always be behaving well and being an honour to the family. Atticus gives them more of a choice and he lets them learn by their own.

6. Comment on Atticus' definition of rape. How suitable is this definition as an answer to Scout?

Is a very direct definition, is a good definition and I think it was a good answer to Scout`s question.

Chapters 15 to 17

1. What is the Ku Klux Klan? What do you think of Atticus' comment about it?

The KKK is a racist group that is principally against homosexuality, afro-american people and comunism. It was founded in the year 1865. Atticus is probably right saying that the KKK is gone from maycomb and will not return

2. How does Jem react when Atticus tells him to go home, and why?

Jem thought Atticus was in danger and denied to go because of that.

3. What persuades the lynching-party to give up their attempt on Tom's life?

Probably after Scout`s words Mr. Cunningham put himself in the shoes of Atticus and left. 

 4. What sort of person is Dolphus Raymond and what is your opinion of him

He pretends to be drunk all the time so that his preferences are not questioned by people, because he prefers african-american people. I think he is a good person, one of the few who actually isn`t racist

5. How does Reverend Sykes help the children see and hear the trial? Is he correct in doing so?

He put`s them in other part of the courtroom so they can continue watching the trial. Maybe he is correct in the way that the kids inosense will not discriminate between black people and white people and they will understand that the racism is stupid and unfair.

6. Choose three quotes from chapter 17. Explain the context of each, the characters involved, and their relevance for the story, themes and overall message of the novel.

Gender Ads

I teamed up with Pablo Romeu to do this activity. The idea was simple, to create two products, one for men and on for women and use 100 words on each product to promote it.We created the poducts, we created a new ad for coke 0 (for men) and a new anti-age cream for women. The classes after we creeated the ads we had to present them, and so each group did. I foun this activity to b a little bit ard, in the creation, but interesting.

Diary: Entry 3

Entry 3:
I saw the Finches boys going towards their school, and the girl was carring a ham costume. I guess they had a play or an activity. I followed them, and stayed in the woods for them not to spot me. I saw a lot of people leave, but the boy was still waiting on the ladder. After some minutes the girl came out dressed with her ham costume. They were walking home and the boy stopped. He seemed to hear something, I heard it too, there was someone more near.When they were close to their home a man attacked them. It was Bob Ewell. I rushed up to stop him, but he had already hit the boy. He was about to attack the girl but I stuck my knife on hi stomach. I carried the boy to his home quickly and I stayed in the room. He had a broken arm. The sheriff had no nterest in arresting me for killing Ewell, and the little girl seemed to like me. I pet the boy for a while and then left.

The Help

1.- I think that the phrase "separated but equeal" is refered in how the african american were treated. It means they had buses, bathrooms, etc, but separated from the white people, so they had the same things (in a way, african americans were in fact treated very poorly), but they didn`t used mixed, one for white people and one for africa american people.

2.- After the civl war most states in the South passed anti-African American legislation. These became known as Jim Crow laws. This included laws that discriminated against African Americans with concern to attendance in public schools and the use of facilities such as restaurants, theaters, hotels, cinemas and public baths. Trains and buses were also segregated and in many states marriage between whites and African American people.

Jim Crow laws were tested in 1896 by Homer Plessey when convicted in Louisiana for riding in a white only railway car. Plessey took his case to the supreme court but the justices voted in favour of the Louisiana Court. William B. Brow established the legality of segregation as long as facilities were kept "separate but equal". Only one of the justices, John Harlan, disagreed with this decision. It was reflected in The Help between the cnditions of african american workers. The were forced to use different bathrooms and buses, they were treated in a bad way, they were easily to believe they were stealing, etc.

3.-"The maids in The Help took a risk by telling their stories. Even though they knew they could be shot to death in their front yards, they went ahead with the project. If people are not willing to take risks...they can`t hope to win and change the ways the live or the ways how things happen."

Diary: Entry 2

Entry 2:

Yesterday was a rough night. The boys, including Dill, tried to see me inside the house. Suddenly my brother shot to the air and the kids, very scared, runned away quickly. They went so quickly tha one of them, the boy, left his pants stuck on the fence. I saw them and I took them to fix them. While I was going to start fixing them, a large crowd of curious people were coming towards our home. My brother went out to talk with them, while I fixed the pants of tht boy. After a while the people went home. I finished fixing the pants and I folded them nd put them in the same spot I found them. Late at night the boy came to pick them up. He seemed quite confused of the fact that they were fixed and folded.

Diary: Entry 1

 Entry 1:
Today I saw the Finches going around, pretty much like every day, only that today they found a dog, not any dog though, this one had rabia. I saw them go back in the house to tell their maid about it. I saw her going with the boys, and when she returned she dialed quickly in the phone. After a while a police car arrived to the house, with Mr. Finch and the sheriff on it. When the dog appeared in the street I saw the sheriff handing the gun to mister Finch, but he didn`t looked like he liked having the gun. He aimed for a while and he shot. He killed the dog with a quit surprinsing aim. Good thing that he came, I wouldn`t like the boys being hurt by a dog wih rabia.