Chapters 28-31: What does Heck Tate mean when he says, “Let the dead bury the dead this time” (369)? Explain what is going on here and what he means. (Ava)

While Scout and Jem are walking back from the pageant, they get attacked by Bob Ewell. Thankfully, Arthur Radley comes to their rescue and carries Jem, who was left with a broken arm, back to their house. During Scout's interview Heck Tate mentions that Bob Ewell is dead, then on the porch he says that he fell on his knife and inevitably killed himself. On page 369 Mr. Tate says, "Let the dead bury the dead" when he says this he means that Tom Robinson(who is dead) is burying Bob Ewell(now also dead). When Atticus asks her how she could be so sure that Bob Ewell fell on his knife Scout says, “Well, it’d sort of be like shootin’ a mockingbird, wouldn’t it?” (Lee 370). In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird it's a sin to kill a mockingbird and right there on page 370 of the book Tom Robinson is likened to one. According to the Bible, the payment for sin is eternal death (1John 3:4; 1John 5:17; Ezekiel 18:20; Romans 6:23) and the person that killed Tom Robinson, essentially, was Bob Ewell. This means Bob Ewell had sinned and so him dying was his payment.

Look closely at the description of Boo. Why has Harper Lee included these details and why here?(Alex)

Harper Lee decided to use these details because this is the first time in the book where Boo had been introduced in person. It was also the first time when Scout was able to see and understand what Boo was like face to face outside of the rumors and myths about his appearance. Boo Radley’s description has very darkened and had sad colors in them which matches the overall mood of the current time in the Finches house. “... his gray eyes were so colorless I thought he was blind. His hair was dead and thin, almost feathery on the top of his head” (362). At this point in the book Jem is injured and unconscious and Scout is out of sorts too. Scout and Jem had been through things at such a young age and everybody was a little shocked by the situation. At this point everyone was feeling gray and out of the sorts which is how Boo feels everyday. Boo feels like he is in the ordinary for the first time in the book because everyone was able to empathize with what he feels like.

Chapters 28-31: What really happens under the tree? Be specific in your explanation, and be sure to explain where the knives come from.(Mike)

In the final chapters of To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout and Jem are coming back from the Halloween pageant when they figure out that someone is following them home. First, when Jem and Scout are heading back from the pageant, Jem hears someone’s footsteps and is freaked out, which leaves Scout confused, but they continue walking. When they were almost home, by the tree by the Radley House, someone starts running at them and then pulls Jem down to the tree. Scout is then found by Aunt Alexandra and Atticus, who are calling Dr. Reynolds for help as the mystery person, Bob Ewell, stabbed Jem. Quickly after this, Heck Tate finds the dead body of Bob Ewell by the tree, with a kitchen knife inside him. Atticus, Boo Radley, Heck Tate and Scout go outside on the porch to figure out what happened. At first, Atticus believes that Jem killed Bob, but Heck thinks differently. “‘Mr Finch,’Mr. Tate said stolidly, ‘Bob Ewell fell on his knife. He killed himself’”(Lee 366). Atticus still doesn’t believe Heck, so Heck decides to “reenact” what happened. He pulls out a “long switchblade knife” which Atticus later asks where he got it, and Heck says he, “took it off a drunk man” who could presumably be Mr. Ewell from earlier that night. There is still the question, though, of where the kitchen knife that was still in Mr. Ewell, came from. According to Heck, Mr. Ewell probably just found it in the dump, but Atticus could tell he was lying. That kitchen knife came from someone else andHeck was hiding the real truth. Scout is certain that Heck Tate is right, but just before heading inside, Atticus says to Boo, “Thank you for my children, Arthur,”(Lee 370). Which leads the reader to believe that Atticus knew the real truth and Heck Tate was lying. Boo Radley killed Mr. Ewell to save Scout and Jem.

What else could’ve happened? Was Heck Tate lying or telling the truth? Did Boo Radley kill Mr. Ewell?

"The Radley Place had ceased to terrify me, but it was no less gloomy, no less chilly under its great oaks, and no less uninviting." Explore this with reference to Scout's development.

The school year has come again, so Jem and Scout pass the Radley’s place every day on their way to school. Their views of the Radley’s have changed because of what they learned over the summer. Scout says “The Radley Place had ceased to terrify me, but it was no less gloomy, no less chilly under its great oaks, and no less uninviting.” (Lee 324) Scout is not afraid anymore of simple things she does not understand. She has grown up quickly and learned to respect other people’s space because of the challenges in her life. Over the summer Jem and Scout were forced to mature earlier to understand what is happening around them. Tom Robinson’s trial has showed them the racism in Maycomb and the rest of the Jim Crow South. As a result of this case Scout, who is only 8 years old knows and has experienced how differently people are treated based off of their race. Scout and Jem find this very disturbing but they are learning that this is just the way things are in Maycomb. Scout is not accepting racism, but becoming more aware of how present it is in her life and everyone else's.  She is also beginning to understand why Boo Radley never comes out. As Jem says “... Boo Radley stays shut up in the house all the time… it’s because he wants to stay inside.” (Lee 304) Scout thinks Boo Radley never comes out because he doesn’t want to face the prejudice and racism of Maycomb.

Explore Scout's confusion in class. What is the root of Scout's confusion about Miss Gates? How is Miss Gates being a hypocrite? Why does Harper Lee include this? What is the purpose? (Sophia)

In class Miss Gates is drilling “We are a democracy” into the students’ third grader brains. The poor students barely know what these words mean, yet they are being taught from a young age that if they are racist it will be overlooked. When Miss Gates asked Scout to define the word democracy, Scout said, “Equal rights for all, special privileges for none”(Lee 328). When Miss Gates agrees with Scout, Scout is very confused,  because she is aware of the fact that in their community, whites get special privileges all the time and the black people of the community are never treated as equals to the white community. Miss Gates is being hypocritical by agreeing with Scout’s definition and acting as if the community of Maycomb lives by this definition. Also, as Cecil Jacobs gave a current events presentation about Adolf Hitler and the Jews in Germany, Miss Gates explains how awful it is to mistreat people. Harper Lee found it important to add this because it shows how oblivious the white people of Maycomb are to the fact that they are constantly being racist towards the black people in their town.

Chapter 26/27: Explore Scout's confusion in class. What is the root of Scout's confusion about Miss Gates? How is Miss Gates being a hypocrite? Why does Harper Lee include this? What is the purpose?(Quinn)

Scout is confused by Miss Gates because she demonstrates hypocrisy. During a current events lesson in class Cecil Jacobs gives a presentation on Hitler and Nazi Germany. After the experience, Miss Gates says that it is terrible to mistreat people. After Cecil's presentation, Miss gates takes an opportunity to teach the class what democracy is according to her and scout a democracy means “equal rights for all, special privileges for none”(Lee 328). When Scout gets home, she asks Jem about Miss Gates. Jem states she is a good person, but this further confuses scout. She Is confused because she saw Ms. Gates outside the courthouse being unfair to African Americans. Ms. Gates is an example of a hypocrite. She is a hypocrite when she says, “persecution comes from people who are prejudiced”(Lee 329). I think harper lee includes this because she is trying to teach us a lesson that as humans we have different views of the world and prejudices, and that these can become so much so that we do not even realize we have them. Scouts confusion is rooted in the fact that Ms. Gates has visually displayed that she is racist yet she still believes in democracy. Scout is so confused by this because Ms. Gates does not stand by her beliefs. In conclusion, Mrs gates is a hypocrite because she believes Hitler is wrong for persecuting, but she doesn’t think she is mistaken for persecuting African Americans.  

Ch 26/27: Explain the idea of hypocrisy. In thinking about the tea party and the incident with Miss Gates, how are Miss Gates and Mrs. Merriweather hypocrites? Why does Harper Lee do this? (Emma)

Miss Gates and Mrs. Merriweather are hypocrites because they are judging other cultures for the same type of segregation that they are demonstrating themselves. In Chapter 24, Mrs. Merriweather began bad-mouthing Atticus and talking about how his intentions were pure during the trial but in the end, he only stirred up the African American community. She was not saying Atticus’ name out loud but everyone in the room knew who she was talking about and she continued until Miss Maudie put an end to her snarky comments. In Chapter 26, Scouts class begins discussing current event topics from news paper clippings. Their teacher Miss Gates got really upset about Hitler's reign over the Jews. Scout doesn’t understand how she could be so sympathetic towards the Jewish community and can disregard the African American community in her own town, “I heard her say it’s time someone taught ‘em a lesson… how can you hate Hitler so bad an’ turn around and be ugly about folks right at home-”(Lee 331). Scout has a strong sense of racial justice and equality because of her father's beliefs and how she was raised. However, many people in the community do not believe African American people deserve to have the same privileges that they have. Scout has trouble understanding their point of view due to her young age and minimal exposure to other adult views in her community. Harper Lee includes these incidents to show Scouts development into adulthood and her struggle to comprehend adults and their beliefs. Hypocrisy is judging someone else for something you have done. Miss Gates was being hypocritical because she was judging Hitler for oppressing an entire group of people, while she was doing the same thing right in her own community.