To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee | Teen Ink

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

July 13, 2011
By LeeAlbom SILVER, Ontario, New York
LeeAlbom SILVER, Ontario, New York
7 articles 0 photos 0 comments

In the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, one character that I liked throughout the book is Arthur “Boo” Radley. Boo is a quiet, laid-back character that never steps outside of his house. When he was a teenager, Boo went under a serious trial of which he was threatened of being sent to a mental hospital. Because of this, people in Maycomb made assumptions about Boo Radley that he was a bad person. The sad thing is Boo Radley wasn’t a bad person.
One summer, Jem and Scout Finch made a new friend. His name was Dill. Dill was very fascinated by Boo Radley. He was so fascinated that he wanted to make Boo come out of the house. Although it didn’t work, Dill, Jem, and Scout decided to make a game where they impersonate the Radleys. When Atticus, Jem and Scout’s father, found out, he told them to stop playing the game because they were making fun of Boo. When people make fun of you, you typically don’t respect them. But Boo still did.


Although they made fun of him, Boo Radley was still nice to Jem and Scout. When Jem and Scout would walk to school, they found presents in a tree. Each time they walked by it, there would be a new gift. What they didn’t know is they were from Boo. Over the winter, Maycomb got lots of snow. It was also when Maudie Atkinson’s house burned down. As Jem and Scout stood in the freezing cold while Atticus helped Miss Maudie, Boo came with a blanket and wrapped it around Scout without anyone knowing. Although he maybe soft-spoken, Boo Radley is a true friend.


On top of all of this, Atticus was dealing with a very important case. He was the lawyer of Tom Robinson, an African American living in Maycomb. Tom was accused of raping Mayella Ewell, the 19 year old daughter of Bob Ewell. People didn’t like Bob because he was an abusive drunk. The truth was that no one raped Mayella but Bob abused her. Unfortunately, Tom was still convicted of rape. After being convicted, Tom tried to escape prison but was killed. Now everyone hated Bob Ewell. That fall, Scout played a piece of pork in a Halloween play. When Jem walked Scout home in the pitch black night, they were attacked by Bob Ewell. As he tried to hurt them, Boo Radley came to the rescue and stabbed Bob. He then carried Jem and Scout home to safety. Now that people realized that Boo Radley saved Jem and Scout’s lives, people began to admire him.
Boo Radley is the kind of person with a perfect heart. The quiet, laid-back man who was not respected still helped people out. He would lend a helping hand without a thank you or anything. Boo Radley is a great choice of a person who defines and lives the term ‘hero’.


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