To Kill a Mockingbird — Chapter 20

About This Passage

This passage compresses the entire racial logic of Atticus's closing argument: a 'quiet, respectable, humble Negro' is on trial because he had the 'unmitigated temerity' to feel pity for a white woman. Following Quintilian's imitatio, the sentence rewards careful copying — Lee's ironic adjective stack and Atticus's exposure of the 'cynical confidence' of the state's witnesses are the very rhythms a trailblazer should imitate.

Narration Prompt

In your own words, retell the events of this chapter in order: Mr. Dolphus Raymond's revelation, Scout and Dill returning to the courtroom, Atticus's closing speech, and the moment Calpurnia begins walking up the middle aisle.

Discussion Questions

1. Atticus tells the jury, 'this case is as simple as black and white.' What two different meanings does this phrase carry, and how do these meanings reinforce one another in his closing argument to Maycomb?
2. Why does Atticus unbutton his vest, loosen his tie, and remove his coat before speaking to the jury — a gesture Scout says he never makes in public? What does this physical change reveal about Atticus's strategy with the twelve men of Maycomb?

+ 3 more questions in the complete study guide