In the narrative of "To Kill A Mockingbird", one character suffers a great deal - in silence.
You will see that chapters 4-6 do a great deal to establish Boo Radley as a human-being. At the moment, Boo is just a diversion for the children. A closer look at Boo reveals that he is actually very integral to the plot, but it is unclear to the reader what his contribution will be.
When presents start to appear in the tree, Scout does not realize who has been putting them there. However, it isn't hard for the reader to guess that it is Boo.
In fact, the emergence of Boo also ushers in a very powerful female character - Miss Maudie. She goes a long way to make sure they children understand their superstitious view of Boo have dehumanized him. She also makes sure the children understand that Boo was a nice boy who suffered at the hands of a tyrannically religious family. Shaping his character this way, Lee suggests that Boo is one of many victims populating a book whose title, To Kill a Mockingbird, suggests the destruction of someone childlike and innocent.
This is a benchmark moment in the book for Jem, Scout, and Dill. Where they had previously viewed Boo Radley as a symbol of childhood superstition and an object of ridicule, they are beginning to view him as a human being. Because of this, we can see their gradual development as more sympathetic and mature.
This is a critical plot-point that foreshadows what is to come when book moves to Tom Robinson's trial.
My question for your journals is the following:
Have you ever misjudged someone? What did it take for you to see that you were wrong? Were you able to make it right? What did your hasty judgment teach you about yourself?
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