To Kill a Mocking Bird - Calpurnia

A detailed Summary of To Kill a Mocking Bird - Calpurnia

Choose a character out of the novel; describe the character's personality and placement in the novel.

- How does this character relate to the Finch family?

- How does the Finch family feel about this character?

- Why do they respond to the character like this?

Calpurnia is the black maid to the Finch's in Harper Lee's novel "To Kill A Mockingbird." She is treated by the Finch's as if she were a Finch as they see her as a member of their family. She is a friendly person whom is helpful and caring to the entire Finch family. Calpurnia is seen by the reader as almost being a white person, even though her skin is black and she comes from a black family and background.

Calpurnia has spent "all her days working for the Finch's" and she does her work in a happy yet serious way. She is happy to care for and teach the Finch's as she feels they too care and teach her. It appears to the reader that Calpurnia almost lives a double life; a white family member whilst working and a black woman at her home. She is seen by the reader to be clever and well educated, a thing that most black people of that time were not. Calpurnia is also seen to be quite strict and firm with the

Calpurnia is seen as both a "member of the Finch family" and the "mother of the household." She is considered by all Finch's to be a relative; a sister to Atticus and a mother to Scout and Jem. The children obey Calpurnia as they know and respect her decisions. The Finch children will also often consult Calpurnia on their ideas and questions as she listens carefully and offers useful suggestions to them. Calpurnia is cared about like she was truly part of the family as in the Finch's eyes, she is. In return, Calpurnia shows them the same love and respect that they she her.

The Finch family didn't instantly respond to Calpurnia in the way they were seen to in the novel. It took time for them to trust and respect Calpurnia. The reader knows the Finch family have know Calpurnia a long time as she "grew up on Finch landing" and has "spent all [her] days working for the Finch family." Over time, the reader presumes that a strong bond was made between the Finch's and Calpurnia, resulting in an everlasting relationship where she is seen as a "member of the family." The Finch family always try to look through Calpurnia's point of view before judging her. By doing this, the Finch family are able to look past Calpurnia's differences and see that she is like them; a human.

The Finch family see and regard Calpurnia as a "member of the family." The reader knows that Calpurnia grew up with Atticus on Finch landing so it appears obvious why they share such a close bond. This bond is responsible for Calpurni

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Approximate Word count = 1014
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels