T.I My Life Your Entertainment (21-25)

I chose this song because it perfectly represents Tom Robinson’s situation. The people who live in Maycomb, do not even care that Tom is a real person, and they just think that his life is for their entertainment, hence the title. Tom Robinson is in a very serious predicament, that may end in his death, and the only people who care about him are his “adoring fans”, aka the black population of the town, Atticus and his family (not counting Alexandria), and Miss Maudie. I believe that if the town’s people began to view Tom Robinson as a person rather than an object for them to observe then he might have survived this predicament.

Racial Progression (21-25)

There are many signs of racial progression in Maycomb at the end of To Kill a Mocking Bird. Some of the main signs are that a Judge was willing to appoint a very good lawyer to Tom Robinson’s case in order to give him a good chance at winning. Another sign was that Atticus accepted the Judges offer, and proceeded to try to give Tom Robinson the best chance possible. Yet another sign of progression was the length of time that the jury was out, previously the jury would have only been out for a very short time, however this time one of the jurors even wanted to vote the other way, until the other jurors convinced him, either way the jury was out for quite a long time when it was a back man’s word against a white man’s word. The final major sign that Racial Relations were improving in the south was that Mr. Underwood was able to write a long article about the injustice in the death of Tom Robinson without facing serious repercussions, including his own murder. I believe that the fact that these things have happened in Maycomb is proof that not just a few people have changed in Maycomb, but proof that the majority of the town is becoming more tolerant, and that if Maycomb is an accurate representation of the South, then the whole South may be going through these same changes.

Wrong Way -Sublime (17-20)

I chose this song becuase it is about a young girl, who takes care of her father (who is a drunk) and her siblings. While in the book Mayella is abused physically, in the song her father abuses her sexually, by forcing her to become a prostitute. Then along comes a man who can help to get her out of this situation, who in the book is Atticus, but she then refuses, or can not get away from her situation for some reason, and goes back to her previous predicament. All in all i believe these songs are very similar because they are about young girls trapped in a predicament that they should never have been trapped in.

The Trial (17-20)

One thing that struck me about the trial was the fact that Atticus is accusing Bob Ewell of the crime. From what Atticus has presented in court it is almost 100% clear that Bob Ewell was the one who beat Mayella and not Tom Robinson. At first I wondered how any sane jury could ignore this evidence, and then I realized that this jury was not completely sane, and that it was likely that everyone on the Jury had been blinded and brainwashed there whole life with white supremest beliefs. I also found it very strange that a white man, just because he was white could blame a black man for a crime he committed, and then make it much more serious, just so that he would not get in trouble for beating his daughter, and depending upon her age he may not have even got in trouble for the beating. It is my sincere hope that through Atticus’ superior debating, and the production of convincing evidence that Tom Robinson will be cleared of this crime, and that Bob Ewell will be charged, although I know my hopes to be false and that this will not happen, and that Tom Robinson will be convicted and subsequently sentenced to electrocution via The Chair.

The Confrontation 13-16

In the confrontation, Atticus is sitting in front of the Maycomb Jail reading his newspaper, his children are spying on him and 4 cars pull up. The group from the car is presumebly there to lynch Tom Robinson, they tell Atticus to move, but he refuses, the situation starts to get tense, until Scout comes and diffuses the situation. Atticus did not know it but the whole time he had a friend with a shotgun above them. The confrontation in front of the Maycomb Jail says a few things about everyone involved. It says that Scout and Jem care greatly for their father, it also shows Scout’s inquisitive nature, and Jem’s Stubbornness. It reveals that Atticus is not one to be bullied, and that he is willing to defend the rights of others at great personal risk. It shows that Watler Cunningham is willing to do anything to get his way, but he still has certain limits, such as involving children. It also says that Atticus still has people on his side in the city, and that not everyone is against him, such as the newspaper editor. The main things The Confrontation shows you is that while the south is potrayed as negative, everyone there isnt, and that although some people may be negative in some aspects they still have positive parts to them.

Needle and the Damage Done – Neil Young (10-12)

First of all, when i did this Mixpod wasnt working so theres a second player for this song, Imeem only allows 30 second clips of songs, if you want to listen to entire song you can click on the link in the player.

This song is called needle and the damage done, it is about the danger and damage that substance abuse can cause. Morphine is a drug that can be injected through a needle, which is part of the reason i chose this song. In the book Mrs. Dubose is trying to escape her addiction to morphine, and Jem’s punishment is to help her get over this addiction by reading to her, although he only does this grudgingly and is still mad at her when he finds out she was addicted to morphine. In the song some of the people the singer sees dies, and he has damage caused to himself by drugs. I believe that part of the reason Mrs. Dubose is always so angry is because she is addicted to morphine, and if she never became addicted to morphine she would be a much nicer person.

Mrs. Dubose (10-12)

Mrs. Dubose is what is portrayed as a typical southern woman in To Kill a Mocking Bird. Atticus has chosen to defend a black man in court, and action condemned by the majority of his neighbors, and even some of his family has turned against him. Every time Atticus passes by Mrs. Dubose she ridicules him, and declares that he is a horrible person for defending a “nigger” in court, even when Atticus is with Jem and Scout. Despite repeated warnings from Atticus, when Mrs. Dubose says that Atticus and his Children are as bad as “niggers”, Jem flips out, grabs a stick from Scout, and begins to smash all of Mrs. Dubose’s Camelia Bushes. In response to this Atticus decides that Jem must go to Mrs. Dubose’s house every day for a month and read to her. Each time Jem Reads to her he reads to her longer and longer, but at the end of each session Mrs. Dubose acts very strangely. Around a month after Jem’s punishment is over, Mrs. Dubose dies. Atticus tells Jem that the reading was part of Mrs. Dubose’s effort to combat her Morphine Addiction, and effort that ended up successful. Atticus gives Jem a white camlia flower, that was a gift from Mrs. Dubose. It shows a great deal for Atticus that he is willing to aid someone who is very mean and nasty to him and his children, and that he is willing to punish one of his loved ones, so that someone who hates him can have a nice life, however short it may be.

Reverse this Curse Escape the Fate (Ch5-9)

I chose this song because it is a song about stopping a situation. Boo Radley is in quite the situation. He has been trapped in his house by his father, and then his brother almost the entiery of his life. He is trying to reverse all the damage this time has done him, and the opportunities he has missed, mainly making friends, by leavin gifts in the tree. When the children discover the gifts, it as if his “curse’ is beginning to be lifted. I believe that if Boo Radley continues on the path that he is currently on he will be able to make up for his lost time, and begin to have a semblance of a normal life.

Atticus Finch’s Character (Ch5-9)

Atticus Finch lives in Alabama in the great depression. Alabama is located in the south. Even now some of the south holds resentments towards people of other colors. Before the civil war black people were not treated as humans in the south, and were only used for labor. After the civil war, up until the civil rights movement things were not that much better. Atticus takes a very large risk when he agrees to defend a black man in court, especially because the case is against a white woman. In this time period if a white person charged a black person with a crime the case was already decided, and the black person had lost. Even some of Atticus family members believe that he is crazy for trying to defend a black man. I believe it says a great deal about Atticus that he is willing to receive everyones disdain so that he can continue to fell well about himself morally. I believe that Atticus thinks that there is nothing different between people of different colors. I believe that he will instill these values in Scout and Jem. I think that these values will play a very large part in how Scout and Jem turn out.

Pink Floyd’s Another Brick in The Wall (Ch1-4)

Pink Floyd’s Another Brick in The Wall is a song about in inefficient school system. In Another Brick in the wall the School System is described as the enemy, and it makes statements about the ineffectiveness of teachers. Miss Caroline is a perfect example of Another Brick in The Wall teacher. She is ineffective at teaching creatively. She has been taught a way to teach and she does not wish to stray from her current guidelines. When she learns that scout can read, she is angry because it differs from her plan, and forcers her to alter her teaching methods. I believe that Scout and Miss Caroline will continue to have problems, because Scout will continue to force Miss Caroline to change.