Chapter 25 by Krishna Sharma

Krishna Sharma
F Block
6/5/10
TKAM Chapter 25

Plot Summary: At the beginning Jem stopped Scout from crushing a bug, showing his maturity. After that, Dil repeats his experience with Jem about how they got into Atticus’s car and drove to the black neighborhood with him and Calpurnia. Atticus told Helen Robinson that Tom was dead. She feinted from it. Afterwards, Scout summarizes how Maycomb felt about his death; interested for at most two days. Mr. Underwood wrote an article about it, saying that is a sin to kill a cripple. After this, Scout cogitates about the situation, and how she hated the Ewells. The chapter ends with Jem telling Scout that Tom’s accuser now claimed he had two more people in this town to kill, and Jem tells Scout not to tell Atticus.

Major Changes and Developments: Jem’s maturity is shown when he scolds Scout for trying to crush a bug. The new character Sam is met, who is a black boy who tells Helen that Atticus was there. A hint that there will be a plot change is Mr. Ewell saying that he will kill two more people.

Significant quotations:
“’Why couldn’t I mash the bug?’ I asked him. ‘Because they don’t bother you’”. This quote shows how Jem is maturing and coming of age.
“Just shows you, that Robinson boy was legally married, they say he kept himself clean, went to church and all that, but when it comes down to the line, the veneer’s mighty thin. Nigger always comes out in ‘em”. This quote shows how the town hardly affected by the case, and how truly racist they are.

Literary Elements: Simile- Dil says that Helen fell as if a giant foot stepped on her, because she fell when Atticus told her about Tom.

Vocab: Veneer (a vocab word that we have had before, but it is a good one)- The appearance, or outside, of someone (usually used to show how someone thinks something different then what they are showing or doing).
Demise- the end of something or someone, especially if it is slow and painful.

Critical thinking-Do you agree with Mr. Underwood that it is a sin to kill cripples, even if they are criminals escaping?
Mr. Underwood related Tom’s death to the sensless slaughter of a songbird by hunters. With this subtle yet obvious reference to the title of the book, do you now think that the title refers to Boo Radley (being ostracized and hated even though he can be kind and help people like Scout) or Tom Robinson? Or both?