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Post by andrewklein on Jul 18, 2016 4:59:45 GMT
Why does Boo Radley come out of hiding to save children that had only pestered him? It seems odd that a shut-in would come out to save a few pesky children, when he could have just watched them die and not been bugged anymore. What were his motives of saving the children? And why now, of all times, when it was near the end of the book? |
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isaacthompson
New Member
“Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.” ― Harper Lee
Posts: 11 
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Post by isaacthompson on Jul 20, 2016 14:26:21 GMT
Boo Radley isn't annoyed by the kids. He loved the kids, as shown by his gifts of soap carvings, chewing gum, and et cetera. Harper Lee has him save the children at the end to show to the reader that he isn't actually a crazy psychopath. While he may or may not have done things in the past, this shows the Finch children that you can't judge a book by its cover.
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Post by angelinablanco on Jul 20, 2016 19:15:53 GMT
I think Boo Radley came out of hiding to help the kids because they were the only ones who cared about him. Jem, Scout, and Dill showed interest in Boo when everybody else had brushed him off as some sort of crazy guy. Boo Radley felt loved for the first time and that's why he gave the kids gifts and saved them.
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Post by shanarabrinkman on Jul 21, 2016 5:40:44 GMT
I Agree with Angeline. The kids showed sympathy and care towards Boo even from the beginning of the book. They nerved believed that he was crazy and harmful, like the adults portrayed him to be.
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Post by jennasalvat on Jul 21, 2016 17:46:05 GMT
Boo Radley, in his isolation, had developed strong attachments to Scout and Jem. These two children were the first to take interest in Boo, and even tried to communicate with him several times throughout Harper Lee's work. Boo, in response, felt that he had a mutual connection with the children as well. Boo wishes that he could have had a childhood like Jem and Scout, but he was instead locked inside of his house in solitude. He sees the value in being young and getting to experience the world. That is why he wants to protect Jem and Scout. He is living vicariously through their lives. He is experiencing the world through their eyes in a sense. Boo wants to see Jem and Scout enjoy their childhood, he does not want them to end up like he is. Boo also wants to redeem himself, for he is not full of evil intent, like everyone perceives him to be. Boo wants to fill the great void in his childhood by letting these children enjoy their childhood to the fullest. A good example of this is the objects that he leaves in the knothole of the tree for Jem and Scout. He purposefully picks items that he knows that the children would enjoy or find interest in. He leaves gum for them, because he knows that they would enjoy chewing it. He leaves a gold pocket watch because he knows about Jem's fascination with pocket watches. He admires their youth so much that he carves the two children out of soap and leaves the carvings for them. In a way, he is simultaneously living the childhood that he never had and acting as the loving father that he never had. He does not want to fully isolate himself from the world, but that is what the world has done to him, and now he knows nothing except isolation. Jem and Scout were the first people to want to interact with Boo, instead of isolate him, which is why he feels a need to protect them.
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Post by dianadelvalle on Jul 21, 2016 17:57:46 GMT
I agree with Angelina. The children showed interest in Arthur unlike most of the other people in the neighborhood. The neighbors kept their distance despite knowing the abuse that Boo went through from his father and his own mental issues. When Jem, Scout, and Dill heard the stories, I don't think they ever really thought that Boo was completely evil even if their games painted him that colour. Their outlook on him was that of innocent children looking for adventure, so to Boo it must have been a relief. His life they portrayed in their plays may not be accurate, but it showed him that kids are imaginative, happy, and interested in him of all people. Thus he helped them on multiple occations: with Jem's pants, the fire, the presents, and Mr. Ewell. He was always there for them because they were there for him; no matter what Boo's father did to him, he knew that there was good in the world.
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Post by jennasalvat on Jul 21, 2016 18:21:28 GMT
In response to Diana, I think that Boo was trying to act as a second father figure for Scout and Jem. I think that Boo felt that he never really had a father who loved and protected him. Now, Boo decides that he wants to be the father that he never had by protecting and watching over the children. Harper Lee provides great imagery for this at the end of the book when Scout "steps into Boo's shoes" while standing on the Radley's porch.
"It was summer time and the children came closer. A boy trudged down the sidewalk dragging a fishpole behind him. A man stood waiting with his hands on his hips. Summertime, and his children played in the front yard with their friend, enacting a strange little drama of their own invention."
"It was fall, and his children fought on the sidewalk in front of Mrs. Dubose's. The boy helped his sister to her feet, and they made their way home. Fall, and his children trotted to and fro around the corner, the day's woes and triumphs on their faces. They stopped at an oak tree, delighted, puzzled, apprehensive."
"Winter and his children shivered at the front gate, silhouetted against a blazing house. Winter, and a man walked into the street, dropped his glasses, and shot a dog."
"Summer, and he watched his children's heart break. Autumn again, and Boo's children needed him."
"Atticus was right. One time he said you never really knew a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them. Just standing on the Radley porch was enough."(p.374)
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Post by zakpasq on Aug 3, 2016 19:28:11 GMT
I think Bo is just a good guy that if he sees someone in trouble especially when it fears there life and he reacted to help Jem and Scout like anyone would.
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Post by sheaward101 on Aug 10, 2016 7:13:08 GMT
Boo was never really annoyed with the kids. When scout rolled onto his front porch she heard laughing. Boo loved the kids, he left them gum and soap figures in the trees. Also, Boo isn't a terrible person. He couldn't just let them die, even if they did annoy him he wouldn't just let them be murdered.
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Post by kaylagarcia on Aug 10, 2016 21:21:22 GMT
Despite the children's constant pestering, Boo did not dislike them. In his own way, he became attached to them. This was demonstrated through the small gifts he left for the children as well as his heroic acts at the end of the story. As any sane and good-natured human couldn't, he wasn't going to just watch them die. The bond that formed between him and the children made it impossible for him to stand by as they were attacked. Boo is one of the story's mocking birds as he only shows silent kindness and never the savagery the children picture. He grew up in a home that didn't provide the most loving atmosphere but he managed to maintain his innocence and view the world through kinder and more isolated eyes than his abusive father.
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Post by brooke on Aug 10, 2016 22:29:46 GMT
Boo Radley grew fond of scout and Jem even though they were curious about him it made him think why they had such an interest when everyone else thought he was a bad man and then he left them gifts and realized that he liked them and that he was tired of being the bad guy and saw he opportunity to save them and make a difference.
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Post by kailey on Aug 11, 2016 5:21:41 GMT
Boo Radley liked both Scout and Jem. Even though, like Brooke said, the kids were curious about Boo, it made them have such an interest in him while others thought of him as a monster. When the kids became interested in him, Boo felt the need to care for them because this was the closest thing to a relationship in his life. So when the kids were attacked, Boo protected them. If these were any other kids, I do not think Boo would have done the same thing.
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Post by jesselcrum on Aug 11, 2016 17:10:22 GMT
Boo Radley was never a bad guy despite of all of the rumors made up about him. He most likely was able to understand the curiosity of the children instead of seeing it as them pestering him. And even if he was annoyed by them and hated being messed with, he would have still helped them. He wasn't going to let them get hurt just because he was upset with them bothering them. He cared about them.
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Post by benswanson00 on Aug 13, 2016 17:14:30 GMT
I think that Boo Radley came out to save them because he wished to show them, and others, that the opinions and ideas people had about him were wrong. He isn't a bad or mean person, he just enjoys the quiet of his own home, and doesn't wish to interact with others. He saved them because he believed that as annoying as they were, their lives were worth it.
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Post by jennasalvat on Aug 13, 2016 20:39:29 GMT
In response to Ben, I would like to draw a comparison between "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "Brave New World". In both books, there are characters that try to find happiness in solitude. In "Brave New World" Bernard tries to find happiness in being alone. He is unsuccessful because of the way that his society is structured. In "To Kill a Mockingbird" Boo Radley is able to find his solace and happiness in solitude. He is also able to find happiness in making the children happy. He saves the children because he loves them.
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