Theme+Developer

**Loss of Innocence**
In this section of //To Kill A Mockingbird//, Scout and Jem experience a loss of innocence in their discovery of Boo, and the rumors about his behavior and self. Their knowledge of Boo, and of the Radley Place in general, supply Scout and Jem with a glimpse of the horrors in their everyday lives. The stories about Boo, and the wonder that the children have about him lead to an inquiry by the children to try to communicate with Boo, to discover his mysteries. At this point in the novel, Boo does not play an active character, however he is able to influence Scout and Jem to wonder about Boo's mystique and whether these rumors about him are true or not. Their pursuit of Boo show that the children are chasing after an unknown actuality that will quickly become a world of their own.

**Perspective**
"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... until you climb into his skin and walk around in it (39)."

In this section of //To Kill A Mockingbird//, Scout is subjected to her first years of education. Throughout school and her daily life, she is exposed to a variety of people around her. Scout, herself, has a family of higher wealth than some of her other peers in school, and for that reason she must learn to view differently than herself, and to encompass the views of the others around her to access a better understanding of the individual. Scout's open mindedness is stretched to the limit when she meets her school teacher, Miss Caroline Fisher. Miss Caroline views others and situations much differently than Scout does, as Scout soon discovers through their confrontations with Walter Cunningham and Burris Ewell. Scout's simple explanation of Cunningham's situation is to no avail to Miss Caroline, and Scout is in fact, punished because of it. Furthermore, when Miss Caroline learns that Scout can read and write, she tells Scout to stop reading and writing and even tells Scout that she was brought up incorrectly by her parents. Scout is mystified as to why Miss Caroline would be upset with her because of her abilities, and is not sure to what to think of Miss Caroline and the educational system that she will be brought up upon. Scout must learn from her interactions with Miss Caroline and understand the perspective that Miss Caroline faces as a school teacher to better understand Miss Caroline and the adults around her. Scout also has much to learn from her peers as they were all brought up differently than she was, and therefore undergo different situations. Thus, each person is behaviorally constructed differently, giving Scout the opportunity to learn off of the people around her.

-Sitarosaurus