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Jem and Scout Meet Dill
Charles Baker Harris, Dill, moves in with his Aunt Rachel in Maycomb County, the summer of 1933. He is very talkative and sometimes stretches the truth. He quickly becomes Jem and Scout's playmate, and convinces the Finch children to help him lure Arthur Radley, Boo, out of his house. "The Radley Place fascinated Dill," (Lee, 8). When Dill dares Jem to run and touch the mysterious house, he does, but only Scout sees the shutter move as if someone were peeking out. -
Scout Goes To School
Scout goes to school for the first time. Her teacher Miss Caroline is upset that Scout can read and scolds her for being educated. “Miss Caroline told me to tell my father not to teach me any more, it would interfere with my reading,” (Lee, 17). Then the teacher offers Walter Cunningham lunch money so Scout tries to explain that Walter won’t accept it because he can’t pay her back. Then at recess, Scout rubs Walter’s face in the dirt for getting her in trouble on the first day. -
Scout and Jem Find Presents
One day after school, Scout finds two pieces of chewing gum in one of the Radleys’ trees. Jem is horrified and forces Scout to spit it out. Then, on the last day of school Jem and Scout discover two Indian-head pennies in the same knothole. “Jem looked around, reached up, and gingerly pocketed a tiny shiny package,” (Lee, 34). Although the children have not realized who is leaving the presents, the reader can assume it is Boo. This is when the reader starts to see Boo as a human being. -
Miss Maudie's House Burns Down
One night, the children wake up to discover Miss Maudie’s house on fire. The neighbors are able to save most of her furniture, but the house still burns to the ground. In all the confusion someone drapes a blanket over Scout to keep her warm, without her realizing it. “I looked around and found myself clutching a brown woolen blanket I was wearing around my shoulders…”(Lee, 71). Jem is the first to realize it was Boo who placed the blanket on Scout and reveals the presents to Atticus. -
One-Shot Finch
One day a mad dog appears outside the Finch house. Cal informs Atticus who quickly appears with the county sheriff Heck Tate. To the children’s surprise, Heck hands the gun to Atticus who fires one shot and kills the dog. Jem and Scout discover that Atticus is the best shot in Maycomb and realizes that he does have good qualities. “Well now, Miss Jean Louise,” she said, “still think your father can’t do anything?”(Lee, 98) Jem begins to wonder why Atticus didn't want him to know he could shoot. -
Jem Destorys Mrs. Dubose's Flowers
Mrs. Dubose is an old lady who is addicted to morphine. One day, she talks bad about Atticus to Jem and Scout, and Jem loses his temper. He destroys all of her camellia bushes and as punishment has to read to her every day for a month. Shortly after the month was up, Mrs. Dubose died. “She said she meant to break herself of it before she died, and that’s what she did,”(Lee, 111) Jem discovered she was a morphine addict and that reading to her was a distraction from her withdrawals. -
Calpurnia Takes the Children to Church
Atticus is gone on business so Cal takes Jem and Scout to her church. A woman, Lula, criticizes Cal for bringing white children to a colored church. However, Reverend Sykes is welcoming. The children are generous and donate their dimes to a fund for Tom Robinson’s wife. Scout then asks Cal if she can visit her at her house and Cal accepts. “Aunt Alexandra was sitting in a rocking chair exactly as if she had sat there every day of her life,”(Lee, 126) However, Aunt Alexandra did not approve. -
Lynch Mob
Jem, Dill, and Scout sneak out at night to follow Atticus into town. There they discover Atticus and a lynch mob in front of the county jail. Scout being young doesn’t realize the danger they’re in and starts a conversation with Mr. Cunningham. “Atticus had said it was the polite thing to talk to people about what they’re interested in…”(Lee, 154) Mr. Cunningham suddenly ashamed of the situation tells everyone to clear out. Scout unknowingly saves her father and Tom Robinson from the mob. -
"Alcoholic" Exposed
Scout and Dill leave the courtroom because Dill is sickened by the way Tom Robinson is being treated. Then they encounter Mr. Dolphus Raymond, a white man who has children with a colored woman. He is an assumed alcoholic. The kids find out he only pretends to be drunk so people won’t question why he is with a colored woman. “Scout, it’s nothing but Coca-Cola,” (Lee, 200). This is an example of the racism in Maycomb County. A man must pretend to be drunk for people to accept who he loves. -
A Guilty Verdict
Despite evidence Tom Robinson did not rape Mayella Ewell, he is still convicted. The book suggests that a guilty verdict was inevitable. However, only Atticus could keep a jury out as long as they were. “And I thought to myself, well, we’re making a step-it’s just a baby-step, but it’s a step,” (Lee, 216). Atticus is confident he can get an appeal, but Tom tries to escape and is killed. Meanwhile, Mr. Ewell spat in Atticus’ face for ruining his credibility at the trial and threatens to kill him. -
The Attack
Bob Ewell tries to kill Jem and Scout. Jem is unconscious, and Scout, unable to see through her costume, is unable to account for what happened. The sheriff finds Bob Ewell dead, and Atticus thinks Jem killed him. Heck realizes it was Boo who saved the children and declares the death an accident. “One time he said you never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them,”(Lee, 279). Scout finally meets Boo and matures as she sees life from his lonely point of view.
