The Mysterious Boo Radley

TKAM Ch. 4-6

DICTION Diction is the author’s choice of words.

Denotation: the dictionary definition of a word

Connotation: the feelings and images associated with a word “Slim” and “Skinny” mean technically the same

thing, but each one has unique associations

Consider: As for me, I knew nothing except what I

gathered from Time magazine and reading everything I could lay my hands on at home, but as I inched sluggishly along the treadmill of the Maycomb County school system, I could not help receiving the impression that I was being cheated out of something. -Harper Lee To Kill a Mockingbird (32-33)

Journal: 1. What do you usually think of when you

hear the word “treadmill”? Why does Lee describe Maycomb’s schools as a treadmill?

2. Why does Lee choose the words “inch sluggishly” to describe Scout’s progress? Why is this an unusual choice of words when describing progress on a treadmill?

Apply: Write two sentences that describe your

experience in school. Both should include a metaphor for the school (such as treadmill) and a verb (such as inching) to describe your progress.

Perspective

“First of all,” he said, “if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view—”

“Sir?”

“—until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”

Rewriting History As a pod, pick one of the following scenes:

Finding Gifts in the Tree The Tire Game “Boo Radley” The Pants Go Missing

Each person in your pod needs to select a character: Atticus Boo Radley Ms. Maudie Mr. Nathan Radley

Rewrite the scene from their perspective. Consider what that character values How he/she acts & thinks How does that change Scout, Jem, and Dill’s ‘innocent’ games?

Literary Questions In Chapter 5, how does the picture of small town

life in Scout and Ms. Maudie’s evenings create tension with the other events that surround these slow evenings? Why does Harper Lee sandwich stories and come back to

stories like she does? (think about how often Boo Radley is mentioned)

How does Harper Lee use light and darkness to create suspense in chapter 6?

How and why does Harper Lee humanize Boo Radley?