Sunday, January 28, 2018

What is the first quote in To Kill a Mockingbird that mentions Mrs. Dubose?

In chapter 1, Scout gives a brief description of her small town of Maycomb, Alabama, and comments on her summertime boundaries as a child, which is the first time Mrs. Dubose's name is mentioned in the novel. Scout says,

When I was almost six and Jem was nearly ten, our summertime boundaries (within calling distance of Calpurnia) were Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose’s house two doors to the north of us and the Radley Place three doors to the south (Lee 6).

Later in the same paragraph, Scout refers to Mrs. Dubose as "plain hell." As the novel progresses, Scout describes Mrs. Dubose as the "meanest old woman who ever lived," and in chapter 11, the reader learns more information about Scout's mean-spirited neighbor.
In chapter 11, Mrs. Dubose is portrayed as an obnoxious, outspoken racist who goes out of her way to tell Jem and Scout that their father is "no better than the niggers and trash he works for!" (Lee 105). Mrs. Dubose's comment infuriates Jem, who ends up destroying her camellia bush. He is then forced to read to her as punishment. Mrs. Dubose ends up passing away, and Atticus explains to his children that she conquered her morphine addiction before she died. Atticus also describes Mrs. Dubose as the most courageous person he has ever met, and the children learn that even the most despicable racists have admirable character traits.


Mrs. Dubose's looming house was mentioned in the novel before the character herself was mentioned: "...our summertime boundaries (within calling distance of Calpurnia) were Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose's house two doors to the north of us, and the Radley Place three doors to the south"(To Kill a Mockingbird, Chapter 1).  In the same paragraph, Mrs. Dubose was mentioned in a very negative light.  According to Scout, "Mrs. Dubose was plain hell."  Scout found Mrs. Dubose to be a frightening figure in the neighborhood.  She was an elderly lady who frequently sat on her porch and shouted rude comments to Scout and Jem as they walked by.  They thought Mrs. Dubose was a very unkind person.
When Scout greeted Mrs. Dubose one afternoon, the woman angrily corrected her informal greeting.  She also called Scout ugly.  This was one of the reasons why Scout described Mrs. Dubose as being "plain hell."  Mrs. Dubose also insulted Atticus for defending Tom Robinson in court.  This enraged Jem, who took revenge on her by hacking the tops of her camellias off.

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