Change

I think that one thing about this book that has changed me is to not really judge people before you know them. Like when Atticus said "You don't really know them until you get into their skin and walk around in it." I think that, that is a really good like lesson that everyone should experience. I also find that important for being a freshman. You walk around a just get impressions of people on how they look or how they talk. I think that it is a good way to make friends too.
I think that it also changed me in the way that you should be respectful towards everyone and not take advantage because it will come back to you. Like in the book how Bob Ewell accused Tom Robinson of raping his daughter and Tom ended up dieing but so did Mr. Ewell. I think that it most definetly taught me to treat people with more respect and not take advantage of them. Mainly because a similar situation happend to me when I was in sixth grade. I traded my brother cell phones thinking his was all better knowing I was giving him an unfair deal but then a week later I droped the phone in the toilet and did not have a phone for about a month.

Life Lessons

In the book, I think that the life lesson that is taught to Scout and Jem is to not take advantage of people who are completely helpless. This occurs when Mr. Ewell accuses Tom Robinson of raping his daughter, Mayella. He knew that it wasn't true but still accused him because he knew that his word over an African Americans word would win a case in Maycomb any day. I think that Atticus taught this lesson to Scout and Jem because he had the same thing happen to him when he was younger. He was the best deadshot of Maycomb but stopped shooting because he knew he was taking a life who had no chance to defend itself. Atticus brought this up when he said, "I have nothing but pity in my heart for the chief witness for the state, but my pity does not extend so far as to her puting a man's life at stake, which she has done in an effort to get rid of her own guilt."
This relates very well to my life lessons growing up. My father has a mentally diasabled brother (my uncle) who was picked on a taken atvantage of when he was young. I was taught that it is wrong to take advantage of anyone who can't help themselves. I think that it is really wrong to take atvantege of people in those kinds of situations.

Mrs. Gilmans English Class

I find Mrs. Gilmans English class to be very fun but although can be boring at times. I think the class is a lot like Winter. During Winter there can be days were it snows and the day is filled with fun and excitment but somedays its really rainy and your stuck inside bored, watching TV re-runs. It is, in my thoughts a lot like class. During class there is somedays were we have fun discussions or reading dialogue from To Kill A Mockingbird. But somedays we will just take journals and take tests which can be very tedious.
I also think that class is alot like being on the chairlift for your first run of the season, your nervous but you know your going to have fun. Wondering what the snow will be like, and hoping you not to sketchy from a whole summer of not riding. It is just like walking into class being slightly nervous about what will be going on that day but knowing it will be fine.

Theme

The theme that I thought was most noticiable in the book is racism. Characters like Mrs. Dubose and Mr. Cunningham were both characters that really revealed this theme. For example, Mrs. Dubose called Atticus no better then the N-words he defended in court. And Mr. Cunningham was with the mob the one night at the jail trying to break out Tom Robinson and beat him down, just becuase he is black and blamed for a crime that there is no evedince he even commited.
Racism has occured many times throughout the novel so far.One time, racism was shown when Scout gets made fun of because a boy at school is calling her father an N-lover. I think the boy said this because he probably heard one of his parents say it about Atticus. Also Aunt Alexandra's son made fun of Scout for the same reason when the Finche's were at there house on Christmas. And Mrs. Dobuse said "Your father's no better than the N's and trash he works for." I think that she means Atticus has stooped down the social level of African Americans in Maycomb.