To Kill a Mocking Bird - Importance of Setting

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How effective is the setting in revealing information about Maycomb? Settings in a novel is essential for the use the plot of a story and assists in depicting themes found in a novel through the use of characters and descriptive language in the novel. The effectiveness of this, helps a reader sense and determine a character's emotions and behaviours that link back to the theme/s of the novel. Harper Lee's prize winning novel: To Kill A Mockingbird, reveals the setting of Maycomb society around the concerns of ignorance, discrimination and hypocrisy. Maycomb society and it's setting is situated around the concerns of ignorance. In chapter one of To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee is expressing to the reader through the perspective of Scout that Maycomb County is an aged town where people moved slowly and that there was "nothing to buy and no money to buy it with, nothing to see outside the boundaries of Maycomb County.." (pg.5-6) This quote emphasises to the reader that Maycomb County is a small yet congested town that also reveals the widespread poverty of the town, implying that the setting of Maycomb County is in the midst of the Great Depression. It also reveals the town's lack of knowledge beyond the boundaries of Maycomb County, suggesting that the town itself is the only town in Alabama suffering from the unfortunate event of the Great Depression, publicising the fact that the town is in a state where they are unable to find hope or a sense of closure for the town. Thus, reinforcing the town's ignorance. Alongside of Maycomb society and its ignorance, the town also situates around the concern of discrimination - most particularly, towards the Radley Family. In chapter one, Harper Lee continues to use Scout and her perspective in articulating to the reader about the Radley Family and the discrepancies that were scandalised by the town's people. It
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