To Kill a Mockingbird — Chapter 13

About This Passage

This passage shows Aunt Alexandra's whole way of looking at people. She does not see a young man's suicide as a tragedy with reasons; she sees it as the proof that his family carries a Streak. A girl who laughs in church becomes, to Aunt Alexandra, the family flightiness coming out. Lee makes Maycomb sound, in Aunt Alexandra's mouth, like a town of inherited types — every family stuck with a Streak it cannot escape. The chapter will quietly disagree with this view.

Narration Prompt

Retell Chapter 13 in order: Aunt Alexandra arriving with her suitcase and her ideas, Maycomb welcoming her, her teaching about Streaks and gentle breeding, Atticus coming to Jem's room with the speech Aunt Alexandra asked him to give, Scout crying and burying her head in Atticus's vest, Atticus telling them to forget the speech, and the joke about Cousin Joshua.

Discussion Questions

1. Aunt Alexandra walks into the Finch house and within two sentences has given orders to Calpurnia and to Scout. What in the story shows you that Aunt Alexandra has come to live with the Finches rather than to visit, and how do specific phrases like 'For a while' and 'Have you come for a visit, Aunty?' tell you how she sees her own arrival?
2. Atticus comes into Jem's room to deliver a speech that Aunt Alexandra has asked him to give about gentle breeding and the Finch name. What in the story makes you think Atticus does not believe what he is saying, and how can you tell from Atticus's words and gestures that Scout and Jem can hear the difference between his real voice and the borrowed one?

+ 3 more questions in the complete study guide