In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, madness shows up as a recurring theme
Lee shows that everyone has some form of madness in them, whether it is mentally ill or sporadic anger. As Jem aged, he had sparks of superiority every so often. One example of this is, “After one altercation when Jem hollered, ‘It’s time you started bein’ a girl and acting right.’” (116). This quotes shows that Jem would sometimes feel superior compared to everyone else and it would get him into some trouble. This happened to Jem because he was growing up and had mood swings sometimes, but for Scout, it was bad times because sometimes he would go as far as to tell he what to do and she would lash out and try to beat Jem up. An example of mental illness is from Arthur “Boo” Radley, “As Mr. Radley passed by, Boo drove the scissors into his parent’s leg, pulled them out, wiped them on his pants, and resumed…show more content… Characters may not seem completely mad, but the thoughts of a character could become corrupted during the book. Characters like Scout are faced with problems and opinions of other characters, and may be influenced by them. “‘I go to school with Walter,’ I began again. ‘He’s your boy, ain’t he? Ain’t he, sir?’ Mr Cunningham was moved to a faint nod. He did know me, after all.
In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee expresses the topic of madness through the threats and conflicts created by the characters in the story, and how it affects their surroundings. In Maycomb County, those who despise the Black community create a madness between those who are the Black community and those who support them.“Why reasonable people go stark raving mad when anything involving a Negro comes up, is something I don’t pretend to understand…” (117). Given their attitude towards negroes, most of Maycomb county has chosen to ignore the fact that their actions and expressions have affected the Black
