Reading Guide for Ch. 12-21 of To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Reading Guide for Ch. 12-21 of To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Assignment due dates: ~ Ch. 12 & 13 due _Wednesday, 5/20_ ~ Ch. 14 & 15 due _Thursday, 5/21_ ~ Ch. 16 & 17 due _Friday, 5/22_ ~ Ch. 18 & 19 due _Tuesday, 5/26_ ~ Ch. 20 & 21 due _Wednesday, 5/27_

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To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Chapters 12 ? 21

Background Information Did You Know? Chapters twelve through twenty-one focus mainly on Tom Robinson's dramatic courtroom trial. Trials are a cornerstone of the criminal justice system in the United States. Any citizen accused of a crime has the right to a trial by an impartial (unbiased) jury. This right is guaranteed in Article 6 of the Bill of Rights. An important principle of the justice system is that a person accused of a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty. This assumption requires the prosecution (the side arguing that the accused is guilty) to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused person committed the crime. If this is not proven, and the jury members are left with doubts about a person's guilt, they must find the accused innocent. Conflict At the heart of every novel is conflict, the struggle between two opposing forces. In an external conflict, a character struggles against some outside force, such as another person, nature, society, or fate. An internal conflict is a struggle between two opposing thoughts or desires within the mind of a character. As you read chapters twelve through twenty-one, notice how the external and internal conflicts introduced in the first section intensify.

Reading Questions: Answer the following questions in detail. Feel free to read through the questions before reading each section.

Chapters 12 & 13: 1. Describe Jem's and Scout's visit to First Purchase Church.

2. What does Scout learn from Calpurnia's account of Zeebo's education?

3. Explain why Calpurnia speaks differently in the Finch household, and among her neighbors at church.

4. Why does Aunt Alexandra come to stay with Atticus and his family? What is she like?

5. List two other events/details from Chapters 12 & 13 that you feel are significant (important): 1.

2.

Chapters 14 & 15: 1. Why does Alexandra think Atticus should dismiss Calpurnia? How does Atticus respond to this suggestion?

2. Why is Scout pleased when Jem fights her back?

Why is she less pleased when he tells Atticus about Dill?

3. What do we learn from Dill's account of his running away?

4. What is the "nightmare" that now descends upon the children?

5. Where do the children find Atticus at ten o'clock on Sunday? What is the mob's intention? How does Scout manage to diffuse the situation?

Chapters 16 & 17: 1. What "subtle change" does Scout notice in her father?

2. Describe Dolphus Raymond.

3. How does Reverend Sykes help the children see and hear the trial? Is he right to do so?

4. Comment on Judge Taylor's attitude toward his job. Does he take the trial seriously or not?

5. What are the main points in Heck Tate's evidence? What does Atticus show in his cross-examination of Sheriff Tate?

6. What do you learn from Bob Ewell's evidence? Why does Atticus ask Bob Ewell to write out his name?

7. List two other events/details from Chapters 16 & 17 that you feel are significant (important): 1. 2.

Chapters 18 & 19: 1. Is Mayella like her father or different from him? How? Describe Mayella's relationship with her father. 2. What might be the reason for Mayella's crying in the court? 3. What made Tom visit the Ewell's house in the first place? 4. How does Dill react to this part of the trial? Why is this?

Chapters 20 & 21: 1. Why does Mr. Dolphus Raymond hide Coca-Cola in a bag and pretend to be drunk?

2. According to Atticus, what is the thing that Mayella has done wrong?

3. Explain Atticus's view on "all men are created equal."

4. Give examples of evidence that the jury chose to ignore.

5. What is unusual about how long it takes the jury to reach a verdict?

Is the verdict predictable or not? Why?

6. List two other events/details from Chapters 20 & 21 that you feel are significant (important):

1.

2.

Glossary of unusual terms for Chapters 12 ? 21 of To Kill a Mockingbird: Rice Christians: (p. 129) Christian converts from third-world nations, especially those in parts of Asia. "...she did not permit Calpurnia to make the delicacies required to sustain the Society through long reports on Rice Christians..." distaff side of the Executive branch: (p. 205) A reference to Eleanor Roosevelt, the wife of President Franklin D. Roosevelt (the Executive branch is the President, and distaff, in this case, means wife). Eleanor Roosevelt often came in for much criticism, especially in the South, for her views on civil rights. " 'Thomas Jefferson once said that all men are created equal, a phrase that the Yankee and the distaff side of the Executive branch in Washington are fond of hurling at us.' "

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Vocabulary for Chapters 12 ? 21

1. habiliments (p. 117): outfits; clothing; "...that morning it was covered with our Sunday habiliments."

2. contentious (p.119): always ready to argue; " 'Don't pay no 'tention to Lula, she's contentious because Reverend Sykes threatened to church her.' "

3. devoid (p. 130): completely without; "...Winston Swamp, a place totally devoid of interest."

4. infallible (p. 140): never wrong; "...his infallible sense of direction told him he was in Abbott County..."

5. ominous (p. 146): threatening; sinister; "There was a murmur among the group of men, made more ominous when Atticus moved back..."

6. acquiescence (p. 152): agreement without protest; "We were accustomed to prompt, if not always cheerful acquiescence to Atticus's instructions..."

7. affirmed (p. 158): firmly declared or stated; " 'First day Walter comes back to school'll be his last,' I affirmed."

8. dispel (p. 162): drive away; "There were few women and children among them, which seemed to dispel the holiday mood."

9. amiably (p. 169): good-naturedly; "Atticus was proceeding amiably, as if he were involved in a title dispute."

10. genially (p. 175): in a friendly manner; " 'Just a minute, sir,' said Atticus genially."

11. arid (p. 185): dry; without expression; "...he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice."

12. impudent (p. 198): disrespectful; bold; sassy; " 'Are you being impudent to me, boy?' "

13. discreet (p. 200): carefully phrased; cautious; "...and I tried to frame a discreet question..."

14. minute (p. 203): exact; precise; " '...it requires no minute sifting of complicated facts...' "

15. indignant (p. 207): angry; "...we glimpsed Calpurnia's indignant profile..."

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