Coming of Age and Morality in To Kill a Mockingbird

Introduction: Innocence and Hope in a Fallen World

To Kill a Mockingbird is a coming-of-age tale told from the perspective of a young girl in the Deep South. The novel's perspective provides the reader with a fresh, innocent view of a world that is eventually stripped of its gloss: the innocent eyes see a world riddled with injustice, lies, hatred, and evil — yet, in spite of the fallen nature that opens up before the girl, a hidden goodness emerges to give the reader enough hope to carry on. This is perhaps the most interesting dimension of the novel: it begins in a state of innocence, watches as wickedness unfolds, and yet does not end on a cynical or despondent note.

On the contrary, the story remains bathed in the moral light of Atticus Finch, the noble man whose efforts to save Tom Robinson — the falsely accused — from conviction earn him the ire of the town, but not the ire of the few good souls who appreciate the beauty of transcendent values. The novel is deeply touching in this regard, closing with a scene viewed through a child's eyes: Scout witnessing her father tending to her injured brother, keeping vigil over him through the night, and standing there like a guardian angel in the morning. There is a touch of the miraculous in such an ending, especially when so many stories of the modern era are filled with despair. To Kill a Mockingbird is uplifting even as it reveals the depths to which humankind can stoop; it is reaffirming of life even as it depicts tragic death.

The Theme of Maturation and Growing Awareness

The theme of maturation is central to the novel. It is important for Scout, who narrates from the vantage point of later life as she reflects on her childhood and the events that shaped her, and it is equally important for Jem, who is a few years older than Scout and therefore more aware of what is happening in the neighborhood during the period in which the novel is set. There is the gradual awareness of the ugly side of human nature revealing itself to the young girl, but there is also the awareness of goodness in the face of the bad — particularly in the form of Scout's father Atticus, and also in the form of Boo Radley, who remains hidden for much of the novel yet leaves gifts for the children and even comes to their aid late in the book when they are attacked.

The theme of maturation is thus linked to the idea of gradually understanding the terms of life as they present themselves in this Deep South town. And even as the story is told by Scout looking back on her childhood, there remains a sense that a still deeper maturation process is at work, prompted by years of reflection.

Works Cited

Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. NY: McIntosh and Otis, 1988.