To Kill a Mockingbird
I did not know what to expect when I picked up and started to read To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Going in blind, I was surprised to find a story, written in 1960, that was both touching, beautiful in its ideas and yet easy to approach with a style that felt very natural. So overall, I do recommend the book to my readership - and to everyone else! Here are the Pros and Cons:
Pros
Short to read
Well crafted characters
No fiction - based on real-life events
Historical perspective
Attacks and criticises racism
A lesson in empathy, tolerance, dignity and justice, just to name a few
Original names: Atticus Finch, Boo Radley, etc.
Cons
Did not leave a very strong or lasting impression
Some readers might be offended by the racially derogatory language in the book
Depicts a sad story (but some parts are funny)
Perhaps the innocence I had when I read it, is what makes it feel so unique to me. The novel was also adapted into a movie, which some people prefer to the book. I did not see the movie. As a bonus, after reading this book, you could also improve your notions about law and court proceedings.
I am repeating myself, intentionally, but I appreciated reading this book. I had little memories about it while writing this review and it is both a good and a bad sign. It is good because it means that I was not overly bored. On the other hand, it is bad because it did not leave a very lasting impression.
I was sad to see some online criticism about the novel. Some online reviewers gave the book a score of 1 out of 5 and I find that critique to be too harsh. The author of the review explains why they gave this rating but I think they were overly critical. It is often important to look at the context in which the material was written since times are constantly changing and since we tend to adjust and adapt to our own respective times.
At the time of writing, Harper Lee lived in a society which was much more racist and much less inclusive than today's society. If we had to judge, for instance, the work that Nelson Mandela did in South Africa to stop the apartheid, one could argue that his perspectives were not demanding enough equality and one could thus judge him critically for this. However, I urge my readers to keep in mind that steps must be climbed one at a time. Starting from a climate of total injustice, exploitation and inequality, it follows that some of the first steps must be somewhat conservative in what they ask.
In other terms, when Harper Lee wrote her book, the south of the United States was highly segregated and racism was rampant. As such, her perspective, her vocabulary and demands were relative to her time and context.
An Easy Read
If I find that I have little memories of reading the book, it is because I read it quickly and I usually don't read quickly! I do remember, for the wrong reasons, such books as The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien. I remember it because it was long and painful to finish. Unfinished Tales by the same author was even more boring from my perspective! I would also say the same about Cujo by Stephen King. Both of those books were long and seemed to go on ages. Coming back to "To Kill a Mockingbird", I was not bored and did not find it difficult to read. It felt like a "hot knife through butter". Pages were turned without noticing and I was done reading before feeling any boredom.
The characters are very well fleshed out and seem full of life. Undoubtedly, Harper Lee was inspired by real people in her life to define those characters. They have nicknames, flaws, oddities - like real humans do.
A Difficult Read
I now know that this book is part of many education curriculum. It was not part of mine. I picked up the novel having no idea what it was talking about. I did not make the mistake of judging the book by its cover; Instead, it was the title of the book that picked my curiosity. I vaguely remembered another work of art, probably some cinema, and then again, probably by Alfred Hitchcock (or was the movie called "The Game"?) where a book with the title "To Kill a Mockingbird" was fake, shallow, on a shelf in a library, picked up by a character, opened and it contained a gun... The title fits well with that idea. By the way, if you have not seen this movie, "The Game", it is a movie that I highly appreciated.
So the title made me buy the book. I was expecting a suspense, murder mystery! But I was treated to a story about humans. About racism. The book opened my eyes to the reality of living in the south of the United States in the early 20th century.
The book contains the word "niggers" and "Negroes" multiple times. This is representative of the times when it was written. To pretend that the word did not exist, like in the United States where they now refer to it as the "N-Word" is basically trying to erase the shameful past. Slavery, segregation, exploitation and apartheid is what should be removed from today's society. The words of past times should not be scrubbed from humanity's past as if they had never existed.
An argument often made by proponents of banning this book is that it might encourage pupils (students) to use the word. I disagree. This is where the work of their teachers come into play. Tell the kids how times past were and tell them how slavery was wrong. But do not try to erase an uncomfortable past by thinking that young students cannot handle it. They can and after seeing how the world was at that time, they are less likely to promote slavery and racially discriminatory language in the future.
I titled this section "A Difficult Read" because of the undue criticism and banning it was subjected to. Also, somewhat, it is to express that this novel explores mature ideas of sexuality, the relationship to God, the Great Depression, the history of Africa and, of course, racism. All of which make the book move valuable to my eyes.
"She is the victim of poverty and ignorance..." --Atticus Finch, a character in To Kill a Mockingbird. My advice: Don't be like her.
The Roots of Inequality, Racism and Exploitation
More recently, I finished another book: How Europe Underdeveloped Africa by Walter Rodney. While listening to a podcast, the speaker had mentioned how it was rare to see the verb "To Underdevelop". It is rare indeed. It is appropriate to describe and used to describe the relationship between both Europe and America towards Africa. The continent was voluntarily prevented from developing from many centuries by the European powers first and then by the United States. Slavery led to Colonialism, which all encompassed exploitation and resource extraction. It is said that Money is the Root of all Evil.
I will review How Europe Underdeveloped Africa eventually but my point is that To Kill a Mockingbird provides a much more accessible perspective into the injustices that flowed out of racism.
Unfortunately, roughly since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic (2020), I feel that society is going backwards. The book is now banned, prohibited reading in many libraries and colleges. As someone said: "To ignore racism is no different than to deny its existence". Slavery, racism and racial exploitation are an important, shameful part of humanity's history. Whenever books, authors and other works of art are banned, humanity loses its own history. Should we thus live in a future where no word is said because it might offend others? I think not. As Voltaire said:
"I Disapprove of What You Say, But I Will Defend to the Death Your Right to Say It." --Voltaire
Coming Up Next
In my journey across reviews of books that I have read, along with games I have played and perhaps movies, I continue to explore things chronologically as much as possible. My plan is to get through the older works first and then I can finally be liberated - somewhat - and start to write articles that will be much more interesting as they will look at more recent events and topics.
If you missed my previous series on Castles and Fortifications, please go and take a look here. I like to support my work with a lot of visual elements since I do believe in the old saying that "A picture is worth a thousand words". The next article will be about G.I. Joe and Top Gun! Thanks for reading.