Looking Closely at the Novel

Language

1. Language is a powerful tool in this novel. The language of the children, the eloquence of Atticus, and the language of the townspeople reflect their attitudes and often their prejudices. This language reveals the power of words to establish what (and who) society values most. Language choice and style have the power to confer status and value, to elevate, and to wound. Notice the importance attributed to names and titles in the novel. How does the way the characters in the novel address or nickname the people below reveal status, entitlement, and power?

   	SAMPLE ANSWERS
   Mr. Jem................................	at 12 he is addressed with a title of respect
   Mrs. Dubose............................	married white woman with title
   Miss Maudie............................	unmarried white woman with title
   Atticus Finch - Mr. Finch..............	a white man of title and status in the community
   Calpurnia, Cal.........................	Black woman, no title, no status
   Tom Robinson...........................	Black man, no title, no status
   Mayella Ewell..........................	poor white woman, not title, no status reacts angrily when called "Miss" by Atticus
   Rev. Sykes.............................	Black minister with title of recognition
   Boo Radley (Is "Boo" his real name?)...	simple white man; nick-named by children
   Scout, Miss Jean Louise Finch..........	white child of Atticus; has title at age 6

2. What lessons does Atticus attempt to teach Scout about the use of racial slurs to refer to Tom Robinson and other African Americans in the novel?

3. Harper Lee attempts to portray several kinds of dialect in the novel; such as, the language of the poor whites, poor Blacks, small children, genteel Southern ladies, an educated lawyer, and others. Did her renderings of these different dialects strike you as realistic? If not, which language styles seemed to be less credible?

4. What lesson about language does Calpurnia try to teach to Scout when Calpurnia says that she has one way of talking at home and another way of talking at the Finch household? Do you agree that people often communicate differently in different environments rather than having only a single language style? Why?

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