In the opening chapters of
To Kill A Mockingbird, what information do we learn about the Radley family? How much of this information is fact? Gossip? Speculation? What is the role of gossip in this town? Why might this reliance on gossip be significant to the story?
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In Chapters 1-4 in our book, we learn about the mysterious Radley family. They are known to keep to themselves, and are very mysterious. People see Mr. Radley outside for a half hour every morning, picking up what is said to be groceries in a little brown bag. His two sons were mischievous, as one was sent to industrial school after being caught by the authorities. Ever since Mr. Radley died and the house was abandoned, it is rumored to be haunted, and that bad things will happen to those who go any farther than the Radley house gate. The Radley mystery still goes around in stories and rumors around children.
Gossip is very important in the town. The families of the town have certain reputations, which really categorizes people. All members of the Ewell family have a reputation for being dirty and mean, which most are. It makes me think about other possibilities with the family, as not all of them could be dirty and mean. I guess I'll just have to read to find out!
Gossip of families within the town is important because it helps people get a basic idea of what people will be like based on their family reputation. It also lets you know what to expect of people,, and get to know them deeply without even actually talking to them. This categorization process really made me think, and I'm eager to see what happens next!
In the beginning of “To Kill A Mockingbird” we hear lots of rumors about the Radley family. We learn that the son Boo got involved with the “wrong crowd” and was supposed to go to jail. Mr. Radley promised that he would keep Boo out of trouble if he didn’t have go to jail. Those are the facts we learn. After that all we hear is rumors. We hear the Boo goes outside only at night and the rest of the day he is chained up inside. We hear that Boo has tried to kill his family many times. We hear all sorts of stories about how the Radley house is dangerous and about how some people walk all the way around town to avoid walking past the house.
The role of gossip seems in the town seems to be bonding and entertainment. From the story we hear about almost everyone in the town has at some point shared their (usually false) opinion about the Radleys. In the book I think the gossip plays a bad role. Already the kids are terrified of the Radleys because of all the gossip they have heard throughout the town. Overall at the end of the first four chapters you can tell that the Radleys are going to have an important role in the book and that most of the town is terrified of them.
In the first chapters of "To Kill A Mockingbird" we learn about the Radleys. The Radleys are a subject of gossip and a family at which rumors have been targeted for a long time. Mr. Radley was seen very little before he died and his sons used to get in trouble often.
Many rumors circulate around the Radleys. According to some, Boo tried to kill his family, eating pecans off their tree is fatal and their house should be avoided by all means.
Gossip is obviously very important to this town. Every family has a reputation, something that they are famous (or infamous) for. The last name of a person in this town is crucial to how people view them. The Radleys have a reputation of deadliness. The Ewells have a reputations as filth and bullies. This town relies on gossip as it's main source of news.
we learn that the Radley family is very creepy and mysterious everybody in town keeps away from them.the sons are supposed to be crazy,one of them almost got sent to industrial school but Mr. Radley convinced the judged that nothing would happen again. the Radlys have a reputation of being crazy so everybody assumes that there that way even though they don't know them. the Radley family is not the only ones who have a reputation for example the Ewells are supposed to be horrible filthy people who come to school one day a year and then come back the next first day of the following year.gossip in the town is really important because i feel if the topic of disscusion was not something about gossip the people in the town would have nothing to talk about.i think when these people talk about other families it tells you what these families expect of everyone else.i cant wait to read the following chapters.
In the chapters the Finches start to talk about that Radley family. The Radley family is known around the town because they do not socialize with other people and rarely ever come out of their house. The house that the Radley's lived in is said to be haunted, and those who go in and past the Radley gate will be in danger.
The gossip in the town is how people learn who is doing what and where some one is or anything like that. The gossip provided rumors about the Radley family. Each family is categorized for their looks, wealth, position, and personality. I have to agree with about everything that Ecafeca119 said about the Radley family.
Gossip is the way people communicate with one another, telling rumors and telling important news that is going on with other people's families. The town is a place where news are exchanged. The Radley's are the main topic that have a lot of rumors going on because of how the way they acted and because they never socialized with other people.
I can not wait till the next time we get to read more of the book!
we learn that the Radley family never comes out of their little shell. They only see Mr. Radley for a half an hour each morning picking up something that is said to be groceries every morning. His two sons are very big trouble makers. One of his sons were sent to a industrial school after being caught by the authoriites. When Mr. Radley died and the family abandoned the house stories have been told that the house is haunted and terrible things would happen to anyone that went further than the Radleys gate.
Gossip is very important in their town thats how people stay up to date with everything that happens. I think that the people in that town live for the gossip and thrive on it. The families in their town have certian reps and gossip is how they keep up with them.
In the opening chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird, we hear allot about the Radley’s family. We hear things like; Boo walks around at night eating rats and squirrels, bit of the finger of his mother and stabbed his father with a pair of scissors. It is probably true that his mother and father walk around with their heads down and that they don’t say much, but they probably do not keep their sun chained to the bed in the day…..
I think Gossip is an important part of people’s lives because in the book, we hear so much about how it’s a very small place where they live, and that there’s not much there to do! If I lived there, I would probably make up things too or let my imagination wander a little bit father then it usually would. I would need something to entertain me in my free time just like these characters do. I think this is why Gossip is significant to the story.
The Radleys were a family who lived in a town called Maycomb. The y never went to church but they worshiped at home. If Mrs. Radley were ever to go outside she would be going for coffee with neighbors. Mr. Radley would walk to town every morning without saying a word to anyone. Mr. and Mrs. Radley lived with their two sons for a long time.
People in the book assume without knowing the whole story. Some families are more than others and people say so that they can’t do as many things as others can.
From what it sounds like, the life of the Radleys family is pretty realistic. There was a part in the book where in the book that said there was a malevolent phantom inside the house. I think that it’s just another myth that people choose to believe is true or not.
Maycomb is a small town so a lot of messages and rumors should get around much easier. A lot of talk goes around about the Radleys from what I can tell. I think gossip is something that happens in life that just cannot be stopped. Since the town is so small it can be harder for things to stay n one place.
Without all the talk about Boo Radley Dill would have never thought the idea of getting Boo Radley out of his house. At school everybody knows about everybody without gossip that would not have happened either.
I agree with Sophie. I think that since the Radley's live in a small town, rumors are easy to start. Like Sophie, I don't think that The Radley's house is haunted, but I do understand why people would have thought that. I would have wondered what was going on in the Radley's house. I think that the rumors had started when people weren't sure of the family living in Maycomb, because since Maycomb is a small town, everyone basically knows everyone. When people are unsure of something, they usually take their best guess and leave that as an answer to the problem. I also agree with Sophie when she said that Maycomb relied on Gossip, because in small town it is hard to find things to do. People gossip to keep their lives a little more interesting, and the Gossip effects other people's lives in the story. The Gossip could have been on how little money a family has, and eve nif they aren't the richest people in town, the gossip could had made their money problem much more worse than it already was. Gossip seems to play a big role in the character's lives in "To Kill A Mockingbird" and I think that more Gossip sill show up later on in the book.
Sorry I meant to say will, I accidentally said sill... sorry.
Hi everyone, its Stef.
In the first 4 chapters of "To Kill a Mockingbird," we learn about a town with many different families. Each family has a reputation, though some are not as popular as others. The way each family seems to gain a reputation, by doing something, and then the town will most likely gossip about them. The family that seems to have the biggest reputation is the Radley family. In the book, we learn that the Radleys reputation is not a good one. We learn that The Radleys are a very mean family, because we hear gossip saying that when ms.Radley married Mr.Radley, she was beautiful, but then she started getting ugly, and sad, and she lost all of her money, because Mr.Radley was so mean. Another thing we hear is that their son, Bo Radley, is like a Zombie, or beast. He supposedly has only a few yellow teeth, and other then that, no other teeth, that he is covered in blood, that he is always drooling, and that he eats squirrels, cats, and once ate one of his moms fingers. We learn that, all together, the Radley family is the meanest family alive. Though the book shares this information with us, as I read, I realized that no one had ever actually seen all of this, and that gossip was the only thing that made their reputation. The facts that they know is that no one leaves the Radley house, exept for Mr. Radley, who leaves and returns once a day. Other then that, people just avoid the house, and are scared of the house because of what other people say, not what they see.
In the town that the book takes place in, gossip seems to be what keeps it running. The reputations of all of the families rely on gossip. Gossip categorizes people into categorize such as the Cunninghams, who are farmers who only take what they can pay back, and pay whatever they have to, even if they don't have any money. In the town, some of the gossip is true, and some of it is not true. But one of the most important roles of gossip in the town is that it really sculpts and forms the town, and creates roles for people that they have to follow. The gossip is significant to the story because the gossip sort of sculpts the story, and controls how it will turn out, and it seems to enforce what the story says, and makes everything that happens seem so real, even though nothing actually happens, like when Scout crashes into the Radley's house, and everyone goes into a panic, nothing actually happens, Bo Radley doesn't come out and eat her, but the fact that the gossip in the story says that you will have horrible luck, or that someone will eat you, if you go past the Radley's front gate, you really think something bad is going to happen.
Over all, i think that this is an amazing book, and i can't wait to find out what happens next.
bradley here
in ch1-4 we learn about the Radley family who people gossip about a lot. People tell rumors that if you go into their yard you will die. People used to see Mr.Radley every morning walking home with a brown paper bag but no one has seen him for a long time. His son Boo is known to live in the house as well. Boo used to be in a gang and was arrested once. Every one tells a different story about them. I can't wait to learn more about them
Also Mr.Radley died and when he died his oldest son move in and he was a lot friendlier then his father. People also think that Boo stabbed his father in the leg. Not every thing people say about the family is gossip. For example, Mr.Radley is dead and his oldest son moved in. Thats all true. Gossip is used in the story because then you don't know what is true or not inless you keep reading
In chapters 1-4, we learn a lot about some of the characters in this book. We learn that gossip spreads very fast since it is a small town, and we learn that their is a mystery involving Scout's neighbors (the Radley family.) all of these families have a different effect on the community, and there is a different reputation for each person. It is obvious that gossip spreads around quickly, and gossip would not be able to be hidden from a specific person if wanted. We learn that Scout's family is not a rich family, but they are not as bad off as they could be, their family is kind (for as far as we know) and they have a African-American house keeper. This town is in a rural setting, and I think it is in the South of America, but I am not positive on that fact. Mockingbird seems to be an interesting book and i look forward to reading it.
In the opening chapters of “To Kill a Mockingbird” we learn that the Radleys are a reclusive, tight-knit group which prefers solitude rather then sociality. We also learn of “Arthur Radley’s checkered past in Maycomb as he was in “the nearest thing to a gang ever seen in Maycomb.”
Much of the information about the Radley family is tainted with slander and wild speculation. However it is true that Arthur Radley is indeed “crazy” due to the abuse he experienced from his parents. When Radley was an adolescent, he was mentally sound as he was a typical explorative boy. But after the gang incident Radley no longer exhibited the vivaciousness he had in the past. It can therefore be inferred that Radley experienced some form of mental trauma that causes him exhibit many idiosyncracies. The people of Maycomb fail to fully understand what has happened to Arthur and therefore view him as, in a sense a sort of “malevolent phantom”
The concept of gossip in “To Kill a Mockingbird” is essentially the struggle between good and evil. Gossip of course, often negatively redounds upon a person’s image. Arthur Radley still is a human being but is treated as an object of curiosity due to the gossip surrounding him. Scout is viewed as a quick-tempered girl because she too has gossip circulating about her. And seeing as though the book’s plot is driven forward by the concept of gossip, it can therefore be assumed that a form (person, an event etc.) of gossip (or evil) will be one of the main protagonists in the book. Gossip also, as Louisa stated, acts as a communal connection which strengthens (or weakens) bonds between the people of Maycomb.
In To Kill A Mockingbird many mysteries revolve around the Radley family. You don’t quite know which rumors are true about the Radleys. It seems like Mr. Radley was a difficult man, who Boo Radley tried to escape from. The stories about Boo make him sound scary, but in reality the father seems to be the one who is insane. He locks his son in a house for fifteen years; “The doors of the Radley house were closed on weekdays as well as Sundays, and Mr. Radley’s boy was not seen again for fifteen years.” Boo’s time with the gang was trying to find space away from his father, but he found himself even closer to the person he was trying to escape. Mr. Radley’s eyes reflect how cold a person he is. “He was a thin leathery man with colorless eyes, so colorless they did not reflect light”. Color brings joy to our lives, and his lack of color in his eyes show he doesn’t love anyone. I thought it was interesting when Calpunrnia commented on Mr. Radley. “At last the saw horses were taken away, and we stood watching from the front porch when Mr. Radley made his final journey past our house. ‘'There goes the meanest man ever God blew breath into,' murmured Calpurnia, and she spat meditatively into the yard. We looked at her in surprise, for Calpurnia rarely commented on the ways of white people.” Calpurnia is someone with a lot of knowledge. She is very polite and told Scout not to comment on Walter Cunningham’s eating habits. Her comment on Mr. Radley tells you that he must be a horribly mean person for her to comment on him.
Rumors and stories are important in Maycomb life because Maycomb is a small peaceful town. These rumors are used to make people’s lives more exciting. It’s their way of entertainment. As the rumors are passed, they seem to change and get wilder. It seems that the story of Boo becoming a crazy murderer is more exciting then the story of Mr. Radley being a difficult father. It seems more exiting if you make Boo the mad man and not his father. These rumors alter opinions of people. When Boo committed a crime as a teenager, he did this because he could not express himself at home. Hanging out with the gang was his way of releasing his bottled up anger. In some sense Mr. Radley was responsible for Boo’s actions.
In the first few chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird, we learn about the Radley family, and their troubles. They try and keep themselves isolated from society because of all these troubles.
Boo Radley got himself involved with the "wrong crowd," which was a gang that traveled from town to town. Him and his fellow gang members were accused of disturbing the peace, and cussing so loud that women could hear it (In this time, it was despicable to cuss around a female.) Mr. Radley pleads that he would keep his son out of trouble if they didn't lock him up.
There was speculation that Boo was chained up each day, and freed during the night. There is fear throughout Maycomb County, that Boo Radley would "commit" most of his crimes during the night, and the children were very fearful of what he was accused of.
I feel that gossip in Maycomb Country symbolizes uniqueness in a family. Each family in the county is known, and each family is being gossiped about. These people feel gossip is fact. Examples of gossip of families are the Cunninghams, who do not accept anything unless they can pay back. The Ewells are a family that has a tradition to only go the first day of school and then not come back for the rest of the year (They have to go the first day since they're threatened by people who say they will call the sheriff). Although the Ewells aren't the best example of gossip, there's little or no fact in all of these theories of these families. I feel that these theories make each family so special since each family has its own "trait"
The beginning of this book reminds me of the Monster House by Steven Spielberg, which is a story about 3 kids who think the house next store is haunted, (and so does the rest of the neighborhood) and they end up actually going inside the house.
To end my post, I feel that gossip can be significant to the story since its how the town runs, and later hopefully we find out how gossip plays out, and to solve the Radley mystery.
In the opening chapters of To Kill A Mockingbird, what information do we learn about the Radley family? How much of this information is fact? Gossip? Speculation? What is the role of gossip in this town? Why might this reliance on gossip be significant to the story?
In the opening chapters of To Kill A Mockingbird, the main theme is the role of gossip in a small town. It is common knowledge in the town that the Radley family dwells in mystery and that, for the most part, they keep to themselves. According to town gossip, Mr. Radley’s son, Bo Radley, is a mentally disturbed delinquent. Once the residents of the town had had enough of Bo Radley, they went to his father and Mr. Radley, in turn, took it upon himself to lock his son away in his house—until one day Bo stabbed Mr. Radley with scissors. Bo was then sent to the police station’s basement and when we returned to Mister Radley he was never seen again.
In such a small town, any small event is jumped on. Unfortunately, for the Radley’s, their son is different from everyone else so what might have been small infractions are blown up into big crimes. Because they are so few, interesting topics in the town turn into gossip and then exaggeration plays a role in turning them into big stories. Allowing that there are some facts about the Radley family that are suspicious, the town seems to constantly engage in hyperbole when they talk about Bo. Of course, people who rely on gossip lack credibility. I believe that, as the book progresses, there will be a lot of the “Boy who cried wolf situations” in this town. Can we really trust anything that people say when they make exaggerated stories about kids?
In the first few chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird we learn many different things about the Radley’s. Most is gossip, opinion, or speculation. The main town legend was that Boo Radley, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Radley was a troublemaker. He and his friends would get into bad things. Finally, when the town had had enough of them, the judge sent the boys away to industrial school. Mr. Radley had promised the judge that Boo Radley would stop his misbehaviors if he were given a pardon.
When Jem and Scout had asked Atticus about the Radley’s, he would tell them to mind their own business. So they received most of their information from a neighbor named Miss Stephanie Crawford. She had a lot of gossip and opinionated information about the Radley’s. Overall explaining their erratic and strange behavior and incidents. The Radley’s were abnormal for the town and created much speculation with the events that they created. I think that living in such a small town, things must travel very fast. Even the smallest news could seem big. The town relies on gossip to form excitement in the area. Gossip helps the town feel irregular in a good way. So they don’t seem so normal. In such a tight community, everyone wants to know everything, about every family. Gossip in this book creates the foundation for a community that knows each place each person fits in, for example the poor Ewells have a special place in the community where they are given illegal hunting rights for certain circumstances the whole community just knows about.
Urban legend is a large piece of this town. The Radley family seems to define this aspect, as we hear about the different rumors and stories about them through Jem and Scout. Since Mr. Radley's death, and the abandonment of his house, most children have seen the his home as a haunted place. In the first couple of chapters, we hear the story of Boo Radley. Boo is heard to only be seen at night. During the day, he is chained up. Children in this town see this as a way to play with their fears: they not only are scared of the house, but they also play games, like the one that is played by Jem, Scout, and Dill.
Gossip is a piece of the town is mainly seen as a connection. We see this between Miss Caroline and Scout. As she asks for the lunch count, and she see's Walter, the gossip of his background begin to appear. We hear that she is new to the town, so she does not quite understand each person's background. Walter's inability to pay for lunch, or to accept money that he cannot pay back, is heard through a very "he said-she said" scenario. Gossip and Speculation are ways people are connected to the buzz of the community.
The gossip is also another way of story telling. As scout describes each persons background, a new plotline is unraveled. Ewells entrance seems shocking to Miss Caroline, but is actually quite usual to Scout. He gives background information to why he does this, and how this is annual. Gossip is a way of not only entertainment, but also a way of giving a life story. Even if it's not true, in this town, Background seems to be the way someone is judged. Dill's introduction makes him seem like a tough nine-year-old. Though in New York, this would seem not so great, his presence is wonderful because of his badboy persona. Gossip is the way people are judged in this town. It gives members of the community a sense of who they are dealing with. The story of Boo Radley is only a way to let them know who they are with. Gossip is the way to connect, and make first impressions.
In the opening chapters of “To Kill a Mockingbird” we learn about the Radley family. The Radley family is very gossiped about. They are considered a very sinister family. Pecans from the tree behind their house are poisonous and you have to run when you go in front of their house. We mostly learn about Boo Radley who joined a local gang and committed many crimes at night. Boo even stabbed his father with a pair of scissors, causing his father to run into the street screaming . Even then his father didn’t send him to an asylum. The Rumors about Boo kept escalating until he was soon known as an insane murderer locked inside his own house. Children are scared of the house, but also very fascinated by it. The Radley home is like, as Kira said, a haunted house for the kids in Maycomb county. The house caused a lot of curiosity in the neighborhood.
In Maycomb county, every family has a reputation. A good example is when a boy in the first grade says he forgot his lunch when asked by the teacher, so she gives him a quarter. He knows he can’t pay her back so he declines, but the teacher insists. Scout tells the teacher by way of excuse, “he’s a Cunningham” because to her a reputation is how you learn about other people. Or she points out about the other boy, “he’s an Ewell” and she thinks by saying this the teacher will automatically understand that he is filthy and uneducated. Every family has their own reputation, and thats peoples main source of news in the town.
In the beggining of "To Kill A Mokingbird" we learn things about the Radley family. The Radley family had a son named Boo, and he was in a gang. He did really bad stuff. So one day he stabbed his father in the leg. So his parents had to choose whether he would go to a schoool where he cannot do bad things, or go to jail with "Negroes". Mr. Radley choose neither, he loocked his son in a basement cellar. Then Mr.Radley tied him to a bed and killed him. From then on people thought he became a phantom.His father started to go out of town and "pick cotton" (they say). Then his other so went to "pick cotton", then they were gone. Every thinks Boo is a phantom and the family is all still there as ghosts.
The part about Boo being a phantom isn' true, and no one is still living as ghosts, everything else is true/is a fact.
The gossip and speculation of the town is about the Radley family and if they are still living as ghosts. The radley family is what the whole town is questioning. The Gossip of the story might be signifigant to the story because maybe the Radley family has something to do with the life of them and the only way to actually kill Boo Radley the "phantom" is to kill his mockingbird.
The Radley house is a family that lives in a creepy house and they tend to not interact with others. This family does not go to church but they do worship at home. It seems as though because this family does not go to church, the town does not respect them because church is something the town goes to a lot. The family seems to also have a stringent routine, every day at 11:30, Mr. Radley goes shopping and arrives back at 12 with brown paper bags which were assumed to be groceries. Another legend or rumor is that Mr. Radley's son was making bad choices as a teenager and almost got arrested. When the son, Boo came back home 15 years later, the rumor has it that he was cutting up a magazine to paste in his scrapbook and when his father walked into the room he stabbed him in the leg, and went on with scrapbooking. The Radley house is also a house that it is known to be haunted with a ghost who wishes to do much evil. The phantom will go out at night and cause any crimes that he can. We don't know if these rumors about the Radley house are true or not but we know that people go out of their way to avoid it because it is such a scary topic.
The role of gossip in this town is what keeps this town going. Why do people gossip? People gossip for many reasons like boredom, self esteem, and reputations. There is no real reason for people to be talking about the Radley house but they still talk about it and keep it in their heads. The town seems like it gossips a lot and it seems like a very boring town. To the people in this town, gossip seems very necessary.
In what we've read so far in "To Kill a Mockingbird" we've learned a lot about the Radleys. That's one of the major things going on in the book. How does the town know about the Radleys? It's because of the gossip. Jem tells Dill the Radley's whole story, why they're so well known and why it's-lets say haunted to enter the Radley house. True, Jem was alive to actually talk to the Radleys, so was Scout, but it was rumored that Boo Radley had died and been stuffed up a chimney. However, Scout did not believe this and she wanted to know more, but she was scared to find out. Who wouldn't be though. Gossip is something that goes around that can either be made up or not meant to be told to anyone. This town seems like a small town so if someone heard a secret, it could be heard by everyone in maybe a little less than a day. Here's a question. Who knows the truth about the Radleys? Is the house really haunted and is Boo Radley really dead? Well I don't think he's dead because this wouldn't be a 281 page book if he wasn't dead and that Boo Radley being dead is the juicist piece of gossip and a mystery waiting to be discovered.
Mikah
The difference between gossip and facts are no longer clearly seperated in this town. What is true about the Radley's, and what is not can not be determined, but out of fear, people believe exactly what they hear. The town knows the Radley's as a quite, non-socail family with complicated sons. After word got out that Boo Radley, one of the Radley brothers, had stabed his father in the leg, people never looked at the house again. People would make sure if they couldn't cross the street to escape walking in front of the Radley house, they would run past it. Miss Stephanie Crawford is the source of all the gossip. She claims to has seen all the things that make the Radley house scary. Gossip isn't only circled around the Radleys. There are many urban legands, like Hot Steams, that give the town a reputation for gossip. It's hard not to beileive in the rumors when everyone else in the town does, and it's most likely to late for the truth, because once it comes out, people will still be stuck beleiving the lie.
"The shutters and doors of the Radley house were closed on Sundays, anotherr thing alien to Maycomb's ways: closed doors meant illness and cold wheather only" (page 9)
As we dive deeper into the story, we see how "superstitious" the Radley family is. One of the sons, as many others have pointed out in their posts, narrowly escapes going to an industrial school, because of his bad reputation in the community with the Cunninghams.
Ian brought this up, but since Mr. Radley died, the house has not only become mysterious, but also somewhat of a daring place to go. You are considered courageous if you go pass the gate, which is disguesed in the part where Dill dares Jem to touch the side of the Radley house.
Gossip seems to be a very important factor in this town. As you read the chapters, there is some sort of talk about new characters such as the Cunninghams or the Ewells. I think that so far, other than the Radley house, gossip may be the most though-provoking things in Maycomb. For example, Burris Ewell enters the room, and there is a blown out explanation of who he and his family are, and everyone in the room, maybe not Scout and Miss Caroline, knows who the Ewell family are.
All-in-all, I don't particularly think that gossip in Maycomb is meant to be disrecpectful as it is today, but just so each family knows the class or standards of another.
The Radleys are a major subject of gossip in the Scout's town. There are many rumors that involve the Radleys. they are seen as the scary mysterious neighbors who never come out of their house. Jem claims that Boo tried to kill his family and that he eats squirrels and other animal. They also say that eating pecans off of his tree is deadly and that Mr. Radley imprisoned Boo in their house because he got in trouble with the law. Gossip is a very important part of Maycomb. every family has a reputation, for example the Ewells are know for being poor, dirty, and uneducated people who only come to school one day out of the year. Maycomb is a small town and gossip circulates through it very quickly and easily.
In these 4 chapters, we learn that the Radely family is a very peculiar, 'secretive' family. They're very mysterious. When reading the first few paragraphs, to me, the family seems like odd outsiders and strangers. In the beginning we learn that Jean is the narrator of this story. We learn about the Radley's past history. We learn about the mischievous sons and how one of them were sent to industrial school.
Ever since Mr. Radley passed away, and the house was left, there's gossip going around that it's supposed to be haunted and rumor has it that anyone who went further than the family's gate would be haunted and would have 'bad luck'.
Gossip, I think plays a big role in this story. I think its important to the town but also individual people and they're families. It seems as though each family has they're own family history. Family history stories seem to get told in different ways. It almost seems like this town is a full of folklore and fables.
I'm excited to read more!
IIn the opening chapters that we read of To Kill a Mockingbird chapters 1 through 4, there is a lot of gossiping. We here things about the Radleys and how Boo stabbed his father with a pair of scissors, and that he walks around at night eating rats. We have certainly learned a lot of information about the Radley family. For starters, Mr. Radley is said to be very mean and quiet. He walks around town with his head down, and when one of the boys says something to him there is little but a cough in reply. Mr and Mrs. Radley's youngest son Boo got in to some trouble and was hanging around with the wrong crowd. He became part of a gang and at one point was sentenced to go to the state industrial school. After Mr. Radley died, the Radley's Eldest son moved in, and he was said to be exactly like Mr. Radley except for the age difference and the fact that he actually gave a real reply when he was greeted in the morning.
Much of the things that were said in the book seem to be gossip or speculations. Boo walking around at night eating squirrels and rats? Not likely. A lot of the gossip and speculations seem to be things that people made up to go along with the things that they actually know about the Radely's. (They're quiet, and keep to themselves ect.) Like Sophie said, there maybe so much gossip happening in the town because, its seems small, the town seems boring, there is nothing very new so starting rumors may make everything just a little bit more interesting.
in ch 1-4 in TKAM we learn about some facts and some rumors and lots of gossip about the Radley family. From what we know about the Radley family, one of the sons got invoved with people that gave him the wrong idea and when those people went to a certain school that people thought would help them but mr.Radley promised that he would keep Boo out of trouble if they let Boo stay.
In the book many rumors would also float around. Most of the rumor was about the Radley family how Boo was locked in the house all day and crept around the town at night. The rumor of the town creeps around to all of the children and adults which leads to gossip in the book.
The gossip in the book really seems like it is going to be a very important topic and theme in the book. Gossip ends up as a negative message in the book. Lots of children in the school have alreadybeen terrified of the radley place and are always trying to avoid it
In the first four chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird we learn a lot of things about the Radleys that are vague and general. We learn that they are not socially active, but often the centre of attention because their ways are odd and unique. The Radley family consists of Mr. Radley, Mrs. Radley, and their two sons. Little information is shared about the Radleys and most of the information that is shared about them, are rumors and assumptions. They live in a dilapidated house. From the descriptions, it is unkempt and frightening. The Radleys are said to have strange rituals such as closing their doors and windows on Sundays. Sundays in Maycomb are apparently the best days of the month. They’re the days when people get all dolled up to go to church.
Boo, one of the Radley’s sons met with some Cunninghams from old Sarum and modestly started a sort of gang. This worsened the Radley’s reputation even more. After a while of commiting minor crimes the gang was brought to justice by a man who sent them to court. All of the boys that were charged were sent to Industrial School, all except for Boo Radley. Mr. Radley didn’t see Industrial School as a positive opportunity for Boo, so he persuaded the judge to let Boo stay if he promised not to get into any trouble. It was said after that, that Boo was never seen for 15 years. They said that he was chained up. They said he tried to kill his parents with scissors. Many things that could possibly be true or false were said about the Radley family.
Maycomb is definitely a very small and somewhat impoverished community. The only entertainment that these people have are their radios, nature, and themselves. If someone is an outsider in that small community, people are going to talk about it. When everybody knows everybody, things spread and that’s when rumors get started. Considering the size of the town, just about everybody is going to be talking about these new rumors.
The rumors aren’t just with the Radleys. They’re with every family in Maycomb. When Scout has her first day of school she and the other students explain to Mrs. Caroline that he or she is a ….. and therefore he can’t repay anything or she never takes a shower. Reputations for family names really seem to stick. If your great, great, grandfather did something horrible the town probably wouldn’t let your family live it down. They’d shame them until the end of time. I think that that’s the main purpose of gossip in Maycomb, to identify who someone is; to differentiate between different families.
-Kai Marcel
In the opening chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird ,we learn that the Radley family is made up of Mr. and Mrs. Radley and their two sons. They keep to themselves and don’t invite the neighbors in. They also don’t go visiting anyone and they don’t participate in the town’s activities like going to church every Sunday. Mrs. Radley doesn’t even go to drink coffee with the neighbor ladies in the mornings. Mr. Radley leaves the house every day at 11am and returns around noon with a brown bag assumed to be groceries. Their house is three doors down from the Finch’s house. It’s in bad repair but that wasn’t always the case. All of this is fact. But we also hear a lot that could be speculation or gossip or fact. We hear that years ago the younger son, Arthur, formed a gang with some other boys in the area. They played pranks and got in trouble with the law. The boys were all going to be sent to the state school for detention but Mr. Radley thought it was a disgrace and asked to have his son released to him and Mr. Radley would keep him out of trouble. The judge agreed. Then no one saw Boo Radley (the younger son) again for fifteen years. Then, according to Miss Stephanie Crawford (“a neighborhood scold, who said she knew the whole thing.” P.11), Boo stabbed his father in the leg with a knife and was sent to prison for a time and then taken back home for care. Some time went by and Mr. Bradley died. When he died, his older son moved back from Pensacola and took his father’s place keeping Boo hidden in the house.
The whole town seems to blame Boo for everything that might go wrong and be bad in the town. He’s described as a monster (very tall, with bad teeth, drags his feet to walk, has eyes that pop out and a big scar) and they say that his breath kills azaleas in the cold snaps. People also say that he roams the town at night and peeps into windows. It’s like he is the monster of Dr. Frankenstein. The Radley family keeps to itself and it seems that the town gossips fill in stories for what they don’t know. The way small-town living is described, most people know each other and open their doors to each other. There aren’t a lot of people so everyone is everyone else’s business. They also are each other’s constant company at all social events and ritual activities like going to church. A family that doesn’t participate in these functions like the other families open themselves up to much speculation which turns into gossip since there aren’t enough facts to prove other people’s stories wrong. The gossip that gets repeated winds up being accepted as fact. It may be that as the story goes on we won’t know what’s true and what’s made up so it’s hard to judge what’s right or wrong.
In the opening chapters of the book, we learn quite a bit about the Radley family. Some facts include how Mr. Radley being outside their very "dead" house every morning for exactly half an hour to get groceries, and how Boo Radley was to go to industrial school after being caught for doing unlawful activities with a gang. Another fact is that the father of the Radleys is dead, although details are unclear. Things like being anywhere near the Radley's house means death and misfortune is pure gossip. Another example would be how Boo Radley roams around the town and stare into windows at night. The talk about how Boo stabbed a pair of scissors into his father's thigh is speculation, since the was no proof to back this information up.
Like "Ecafeca119" said, gossip categorizes the families, or for some, clans in the town. The town seems to be really diverse, and not at all monotonous. Each family have their own special ways and practices. What "Ecafeca119" said about the categorization of the Ewell family is a solid example of how gossip is used-it gives the family certain privileges based on their characteristics. The Ewells did not have to go to school, because they never really had, and were the disgrace of the town. Another example would be the Cunninghams. They are known to be exceptionally honest with repaying. If they ever borrowed something, they would first make sure that they would be able to repay. If they won't, they would never borrow it, and they usually don't because they are poor and could "get along" with what they have. Gossip about this tradition made the town used to their ways, so they would understand it and cope with it. Finally, for the Radleys, all the facts, gossip and speculation gain the family a title of being "the most feared and the most mysterious". This is achieved by the impact and the number of gossip the family received. The reason for this was how they were the most special; and they don't follow almost all the town's traditions. This amount is so large that it affects everyone-they avoid it, fear it, suspect it, or even explore it to uncover its mysteries.
Radley's are introduced somewhat sharply. It speaks about Dill and his new coming to the group of Jem and Scout. The Radley place is the house of Boo Radley, "a malevolent phantom," of the rotting home. (p. 8)
The town uses the Radley family as their source of distraction. The time of the story takes place in the Great Depression. That could be a reason for Dill moving. The Radley family are used to blame for troubles or crimes because they are just unlucky. The depression was a time for gossip to take the mind away from the problems. The gossip and speculation allows for a new outlet of anger.
On the other hand, during this time, I doubt that the Maycomb community homes is in any better condition than the Radley's home.
Like Vaughn's quote, it talks about how on sundays they close their windows. This is a way an imagination can twist the most simplest things. Gossip usually implies the negative aspect of something. This is the reason that the Maycomb community twist the facts.
The many obvious facts of the Radley family would include the fact that Arthur Radley has not been seen. This is then twisted into total wierdness with, "People said he existed, but Jem and I had never seen him. People said he went out at night when the moon was down, and peeped in windows." (p. 9) When I first read this I asked: Why the use of "People" so much. Then I realized it never happened to Jem or Scout.
Another question was, why did people use the Radley family as a source of distraction? The reason was because of their differences.
1) They did not go to church on sunday.
So the Radley family does not believe in god and are cursed. this does not justify gossip. This is an excuse to use gossip as a distraction.
2) Everything they had or did was 'before i was born.'
It seems that the use of 'before I was born' was to stop children from questioning it. The 'People' said that the Radley family existed. This simple trust of adult to children easily can break the truth as children do not ask questions 'they already have the answer to.'
3)They believe in god.
If he believes in god as referenced on page 12, why do they say he does not go to church which leads them to believe that the Radley family is an atheist family.
Those are a couple of gossips that are made on the Radley family.
Chapters 1-4 in To Kill A Mockingbird we hear a lot of interesting things about the Radley family. Mr Radley himself was rarely seen besides when he was going to get what he said was groceries, in a very small and peculiar paper bag. The town revolves around the gossip and rumors that evolve and blossom in to fully grown legends. Mr. Radley had two sons, one of which tried to kill his family and almost got sent to reform school because of it. Everyone in the town knows about the infamous Radley’s. Now Mr. Radley is dead and his house lies deserted. No one dares go into it because of all of the rumors they have heard, some people even say that the house is haunted. On the other hand, no one really knows what the deal is with the Radley family is.
In the beginning chapters of the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, we learned that the Radley family is mysterious and unknown. That family was known to be the most weird and creepy of all in the town because no one knew much about them and if they saw any of the family members on the street, the towns people would stay clear of them. The town is mostly filled with gossip about the Radley family. None of the people in Maycomb know much about the family. They just assume thats why they dont show their faces around the county. Some of the rumors that went on about the Radley family might have been a little too over-exagerated because they say that if you go near the Radley house, Boo Radley would come and hurt you or something like that.
Gossip seems to be all around the town of Maycomb because that is how they know whats going on in people's lives. But since it is gossip and not facts, rumors start. Especially about the Radley family. People in town rely on gossip and rumors because thats all they have to know what everyone is up to those days.
- Brianna <3
IN the beginning chapters of "To Kill a Mockingbird" we meet the mysterious Radley family. We find that the dad only goes out of the house for groceries, one of the brothers went to industrial school and now lives far away, and the other brother is the weirdo who supposedly looks into peoples windows at night.this ties really well into what seems to be the main idea of the story. Gossip, and the power of suggestion or mystery. this is an important player in these chapters. especially when the dares come into play and they run up and touch the haunted scary house of the person who peeps through windows at night. most of the comments talk about the rumors being fake. but what if it is real and the Radley child, maybe not out of craze but of need for attention, goes around house to house and looks in the windows. I am eagar to see what will become of this gossip.
Many rumours about the Radley family have circulated around the small town. The main speculation is that Boo Radley got in trouble with the law and his father imprisoned him in the house as punishment. Many people suggest that Boo was crazy. I think there was also a mention of him possibly being a ghost. Jem, Dill, and Scout (mostly Jem), are fascinated by the run-down Radley house, but don't dare go near it. The surrounding neighbors rely on gossip to make sense of the situation and to provide entertainment among themselves. It being such a small town, rumours go around really fast.
The Radley's are this big scary family that is a symbol of fear for the town of Maycomb, Alabama. We learn that the Radley's have a son who is wrong in the head. We learn that he eats cats, squirrels, and other household pets. The Radley's son is called 'Boo' ironically. We learn that Boo stabbed his father in the leg with a pair of scissors. For some reason Mr. Radley didn't want his son in jail s he just kept him chained to a bed. Boo Radley goes out every night trying to get in to everyone's house. We learned he would kill you as soon as he would look at you. This is what we learned, now we have to figure out what is true and what is just gossip.
I think that the Radley family is odd, that's a fact. Mr. Radley's death is a fact. Boo stabbing his father in the leg with a pair of scissors appears to be true, and that's about it.
I know that Boo's name is not Boo. I also know Boo doesn't eat cats and squirrels. Boo doesn't come out at night and try to break in to your house, he isn't chained to his bed, and he wouldn't kill you as soon as he would look at you. All of this is either gossip, or the mutation of a story told one too many times.
Gossip in the town of Maycomb, Alabama is basically their whole life. What else can the do? Watch a movie yeah, but it's expensive for some. People out in Maycomb have to make something out of nothing because of poverty. So they gossip. You forget about your problems when you gossip and you laugh at some stupid thing this person did, or some scandel happening next door. Adults cannot play 'make believe' as children do, so they have to find other ways of pretending life isn't that bad and this is what they have come up with.
My original post:
IN the beginning chapters of "To Kill a Mockingbird" we meet the mysterious Radley family. We find that the dad only goes out of the house for groceries, one of the brothers went to industrial school and now lives far away, and the other brother is the weirdo who supposedly looks into peoples windows at night.this ties really well into what seems to be the main idea of the story. Gossip, and the power of suggestion or mystery. this is an important player in these chapters. especially when the dares come into play and they run up and touch the haunted scary house of the person who peeps through windows at night. most of the comments talk about the rumors being fake. but what if it is real and the Radley child, maybe not out of craze but of need for attention, goes around house to house and looks in the windows. I am eager to see what will become of this gossip.
Addition:
Gossip is really important in the town because it is a break from the usual monotony that is a farmers town. also it gives the women something to do. In this society women are seen as housemaids. They are suppose to act pretty and dainty, but use gossip as an outlet. the book talks about how on Sundays the women would gather and sip tea after church services and gossip. tying into what Louisa said it is a bonding thing between the women and is important to their lives. So gossip ends up being even more than the typical conversation as it is portrayed commonly it is the very stitches that hold the fabric of Maycomb together. Gossip is their world.
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