SettingSetting
Story takes place during the Great Depression: 10/29/1929 – Black Tuesday– stock market
crashed; worst economic disaster in U.S. history; banks failed, money lost value, businesses closed
15 million unemployed – 30 billion dollars lost
President Herbert Hoover underestimated seriousness; said crisis would last 60 days; ridiculed by Americans: “Hooverville” “Hoover cart” “Hoover flag”
SettingSetting
Franklin Delano Roosevelt offers Americans a New Deal & wins Presidency in a landslide victory in 1932
New Deal 4 day bank holiday – helped stabilize banking
system Created legislation to assist those in poverty,
those unemployed, and minorities Brought government involvement into caring for
the needy and regulating the economy “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”
FDR Speech
1930s Maycomb, 1930s Maycomb, AlabamaAlabama
Virtually landlocked – slow to respond to change
So isolated that population’s beliefs and traditions are slow to change
Rural area – poor and undeveloped
Whites – mostly poor farmers; Blacks – mostly field workers and house servants
Segregation – enforced separation of blacks separation of blacks and whites in all aspects of lifeand whites in all aspects of life
Jim Crow LawsJim Crow Laws
Refers to any of the laws that enforced racial segregation in the U.S. South; named after “Jim Crow,” a minstrel routine – it became a derogatory term for blacks and their segregated lives
Jim Crow LawsJim Crow Laws
Examples of Jim Crow Laws-separate waiting rooms at trains and
bus stations-separate toilet facilities-separate schools for children-interracial marriage illegal and not
recognized-separate dining areas-separate entrances at hospitals-no interchanging of books-separate seating in all public arenas
To Kill a MockingbirdTo Kill a Mockingbird ReleasedReleased
Published and released in 1960 at the height of the Civil Rights Movement:
refers to the reform movements in the United States aimed at outlawing racial discrimination against African Americans
Civil Rights MovementCivil Rights Movement
1954 – Brown vs. Board of Education – outlawed racial segregation in schools – overturned “separate but equal” laws
1955 – Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat at the front of a bus – her arrest results in a year-long bus boycott, led by Martin Luther King, Jr.
Civil Rights MovementCivil Rights Movement
1957 – Nine black students prevented
from integrating Central High School in
Little Rock, AK per the governor’s orders
– President Eisenhower orders the
National Guard to intervene on behalf of
the students who become known as The
Little Rock Nine.
Civil Rights MovementCivil Rights Movement
1963 – Martin Luther King arrested for protests in Birmingham, Alabama. He writes his famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail” here – argues that individuals have a moral obligation to disobey unjust laws
1963 – King delivers his “I Have a Dream Speech” to more than 200,000 in Washington, D.C. :
MLK Speech
Civil Rights MovementCivil Rights Movement
1963 – 4 young girls killed at Sunday school when a bomb explodes at their Baptist Church in Alabama, a popular gathering place for civil rights meetings
1964 – President Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act, most sweeping civil rights legislation since Reconstruction - prohibits discrimination of all kinds based on race, color, religion, or national origin. The law also provides the federal government with the powers to enforce desegregation.
Civil Rights MovementCivil Rights Movement
April 4, 1968 - Martin Luther King, at age 39, is shot as he stands on the balcony outside his hotel room. Escaped convict and committed racist James Earl Ray is convicted of the crime.
MLK Tribute
Question:Question:
Considering the time period that this book was published and the time that the story is set, why do you think this book was both a critical and popular success?
Harper Lee vs. Scout Harper Lee vs. Scout FinchFinch
Harper Lee Scout Finch
1930s - Monroeville, AL 1930s – Maycomb, AL
Both fathers were small town lawyers
Both were avid readers – too smart for their own good
Both young girls at time of controversial rape trials involving black men
SymbolismSymbolism
Mockingbird – mainly found in the South, this pale gray and white bird is known for its beautiful song characterized by repeated notes and phrases. Its gift for imitation is how it got its name.
Atticus – from the Greek, meaning Athenian…responsible for instituting democratic laws in Athens
Calpurnia – 3rd wife of Julius Caesar – noted for her faithfulness but had no children of her own
AccoladesAccolades
Won the Pulitzer Prize and sold over 15 million copies
1962 – Film of the novel won Oscar for Best Picture, and Gregory Peck won Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Atticus Finch
Harper Lee never published another novel and became very reclusive, rarely granting interviews. She claims to have told her story.
Was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her cultural contribution to the U.S.
Hey, Boo