To Kill A Mockingbird Gender Roles

The roles of men and women in society has changed over the years. A gender role is a way a man or woman is expected to act in society. There were many different expectations that these genders had to follow. In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, all the characters are shaped so they fit into that notion of gender roles. Throughout the novel, Lee successfully and uniquely references the traditional responsibilities of both men and women and juxtaposes these gender roles through the characterization. Firstly, the characterization of Scout, a main character in the novel, represents the notions of traditional gender roles in the 1920s. For example, in the text, Miss Stephanie states forcefully,“Well you won’t get very far until you start wearing …show more content…
For example, in the text, Harper Lee states, “Jem felt his age and gravitated to adults leaving me [Scout] to entertain our cousin [Francis]. Francis was eight and slicked back his hair.” Since Jem has matured and become more of a man, he left Scout to look after their cousin. The action of putting Scout in charge more so shows his maturity. As the novel progresses, Jem matures more and more which also changes his attitude about things. Most men were expected to be mature teach their children to be mature which is what Jem represents. Also, based on an article about American Workers it states, “The 1920 census shows that, among people ages 14 and older, the proportion of the population that was in the total labor force was 85 percent for men and 23 percent for women in January of that year.” Most men during that time period were supposed to work and provide for the family. Most women were supposed to stay home and look after the kids. From the action of Jem leaving Scout to look after their little cousin, it foreshadows Jem’s future. As Jem gets older, he will get a job and provide for his family which shows the traditional male gender role. In addition, the characterization of Jem shows how he has become more of a man and matured. For example, in the text Jem questions, “If there's just one kind of folks, why can't they get along with each other? If they're all alike, why do they go out

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