Hello!
I am not sure how many of you will check this, but if you are looking for something to do on this snow day, here are our questions for your reading of the novel. You can also obviously keep reading.
ENG 1D Name: ______________________________
To Kill a Mockingbird Discussion Questions
Please answer the following questions on a separate sheet of lined paper. Questions are broad so that you can discuss many aspects of each chapter. All questions should include the following:
• Specific details in answers (including page references, quotations from the novel)
• Explanations in your own words, including your personal opinions
• Links to other area of the novel (especially if you have read ahead or are finished reading the novel)
• Feel free to use sticky notes to mark passages in the novel where answers or supports can be found (this will potentially help for presentations or an essay at the end)
Chapter One
1. Narration: The novel starts with the line, “When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow” (3). This is a significant frame for the novel. Who is telling the story and when? What is this type of narrator and story called? What does it tell us about Scout?
2. Setting: What do we learn about Maycomb in this opening chapter? What is the town like?
3. Who is Boo Radley and why is he significant?
Chapter Two
1. As the story moves forward, there is a definite discussion of what makes a ‘good’ person: moral, just, and has a sense of honour. Discuss what we learn about the Cunninghams in this chapter and how the family is seen as having a sense of honour and good character.
Chapter Three
1. Who is Calpurnia? What is her relationship with Scout and Atticus? What do we learn about Scout and Atticus from their dealings with her?
2. The Ewells become significant later in the novel. They have been mentioned in passing prior to this chapter, but we really get a sense of who they are in this chapter. Discuss what is learned about the Ewells, especially in comparison to the Cunninghams.
3. BONUS (for those who are done reading): Atticus says, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view –“(39). How does this quote come up again at the end of the novel?
Chapter Four
1. This chapter foreshadows events later on in the novel. What examples of foreshadowing do you know, or can suspect, are present in this chapter?
Chapter Five
1. This chapter introduces both a major symbol in the novel as well as prominent themes. Discuss the following:
a. Miss Maudie’s Nut Grass
b. Miss Maudie’s discussion of outer appearances versus private lives
c. The power of rumours and gossip in the town
2. BONUS: (for those done the novel) How does the discussion between Atticus and Jem after Atticus catches Jem and Dill trying to give a letter to Boo foreshadow the symbol of the mockingbird?
