Blog 8: Gifts

One gift in To Kill a Mockingbird that could have a meaning, is the gift that Atticus gives his kids of air rifles. I think that the meaning of this is to bring the subject of the mocking bird into the book. The book is called To Kill a Mockingbird and they haven’t mentioned it once till Atticus gave his kids their air rifles. They started talking about how they can go hunting, but don’t shoot a mockingbird because it is a sin. Another gift that is in the book that cold have a meaning is the gift that boo radley gives the kids in the tree of the pocket watch. He is the most mysterious man in the county and I think by giving the kids the gifts he is trying to make friends with them. The last gift that I’m talking about is the gift Boo Radley gives the kids of the soap carvings. The soap carving could be meant to be a likeness of the kids. He would now that the kids would like it and think they might like him better if he gave them a gift like this. Boo Radley is a mysterious person in the book and he never says much or came out of his house so I think the gifts he gives the kids are gifts to show them that he wants to be their friend.

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In chapter 11, Jem receives a camellia flower from Mrs. Dubose before she dies. This item represents that Mrs. Dubose forgives Jem for ripping up her flower bed. The chapter states,”Jem opened the box. Inside, surrounded by wads of damp cotton, was a white, waxy, perfect camellia. It was a Snow-on-the-Mountain. Jem’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. ‘Old hell-devil, old hell-devil!’ he screamed, flinging it down. ‘Why can’t she leave me alone?’ In a flash Atticus was up and standing over him. Jem buried his face in Atticus’s shirt front. ‘Sh-h,’ he said. ‘I think that was her way of telling you—everything’s all right now, Jem, everything’s all right. You know, she was a great lady.’” This quote shows how Mrs Dubose forgives Jem by giving him the Camellia that tells him everything’s okay.
In Chapter 4, Jem and Scout find 2 pennies in the hollow of the tree. This item helps develop their character because Scout wants to keep them, but Jem tells her they should at least see if it belonged to someone first. The chapter states,” Inside were two scrubbed and polished pennies, one on top of the other. Jem examined them. ‘Indian-heads,’ he said. ‘Nineteen-six and Scout, one of em’s nineteen-hundred. These are real old.’
‘Nineteen-hundred,’ I echoed. ‘Say-‘Hush a minute, I’m thinking‘.’
‘Jem, you reckon that’s somebody’s hiding‘ place?’
‘Na, don’t anybody much but us pass by there, unless it’s some grown person’s.’
‘Grown folks don’t have hiding‘ places. You reckon we ought to keep ’em, Jem?’
‘I don’t know what we could do, Scout. Who’d we give ‘em back to? I know for a fact don’t anybody go by there…’
‘What you reckon we ought a do, Jem?’
‘Tell you what,’ said Jem. ‘We’ll keep ‘em till school starts, then go around and ask everybody if they’re theirs. They’re some bus child’s, maybe—he was too taken up with getting’ out a school today and‘ forgot ’em. These are somebody’s, I know that. See how they’ve been slicked up? They’ve been saved.’” This quote shows that Scout wants to keep the money, but Jem teaches her that it’s wrong to take money before checking with who might have lost it.
In Chapter 10, Jem and Scout receive Air Rifles for Christmas. Atticus then teaches them that killing mockingbirds is a sin. The chapter states, “We decorated the tree until bedtime, and that night I dreamed of the two long packages for Jem and me. Next morning Jem and I dived for them: they were from Atticus, who had written Uncle Jack to get them for us, and they were what we had asked for. ‘Don’t point them in the house,’ said Atticus, when Jem aimed at a picture on the wall… When he gave us our air-rifles Atticus wouldn’t teach us to shoot. Uncle Jack instructed us in the rudiments thereof; he said Atticus wasn’t interested in guns. Atticus said to Jem one day, ‘I’d rather you shoot at tin cans in the backyard, but I know you’ll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ‘em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.’” This quote shows how Atticus teaches them to not kill mockingbirds. This helps develop their character because the mockingbird symbolizes innocence.

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One gift in the novel that plays a role is the pennies found in the tree which helps develop the character. It says in the novel, “ Inside were two scrubbed and polished pennies, one on top of the other. Jem examined them. “Inside were two scrubbed and polished pennies, one on top of the other. Jem examined them.
‘Indian-heads,’ he said. ‘Nineteen-six and Scout, one of em’s nineteen-hundred. These are real old.’
‘Nineteen-hundred,’ I echoed. ‘Say-‘Hush a minute, I’m thinking‘.’
‘Jem, you reckon that’s somebody’s hiding‘ place?’
‘Na, don’t anybody much but us pass by there, unless it’s some grown person’s.’
‘Grown folks don’t have hiding‘ places. You reckon we ought to keep ’em, Jem?’
‘I don’t know what we could do, Scout. Who’d we give ‘em back to? I know for a fact don’t anybody go by there…’
‘What you reckon we ought a do, Jem?’
‘Tell you what,’ said Jem. ‘We’ll keep ‘em till school starts, then go around and ask everybody if they’re theirs. They’re some bus child’s, maybe—he was too taken up with getting’ out a school today and‘ forgot ’em. These are somebody’s, I know that. See how they’ve been slicked up? They’ve been saved.’” In this, the gift helps Scout learn the differences in right and wrong. Scout wants to keep the money for herself rather than give them back to the person who may have put them there. This helps teach Scout how to better distinguish between right and wrong. Another gift that helps bring out the symbolism of the mockingbird is the Air Rifles. It says, “ When he gave us our air-rifles Atticus wouldn’t teach us to shoot. Uncle Jack instructed us in the rudiments thereof; he said Atticus wasn’t interested in guns. Atticus said to Jem one day, ‘I’d rather you shot at tin cans in the back yard, but I know you’ll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ‘em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.’” Previously, throughout the book the mockingbird, despite being part of the title, is never mentioned. The Air Rifles help bring out the ruination of Scout’s innocence as afterwards you can slowly see her lose her innocence. The Air Rifles help bring out the symbolism of the mockingbird as well as develop Scout’s character. The last gift is the carved soaps from the tree that resemble Jem and Scout which could foreshadow the future friendship of Jem, Scout, and Boo Radley. It says, “They were almost perfect miniatures of two children. The boy had on shorts, and a shock of soapy hair fell to his eyebrows. I looked up at Jem. A point of straight brown hair kicked downwards from his part. I had never noticed it before. Jem looked from the girl-doll to me. The girl-doll wore bangs. So did I.” These gifts were one of many found within the tree. Boo Radley has easy access to this tree and these carved soaps could be his way of offering friendship to them.

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