By Scout's own account, the Boo Radley game played by the children is really just "woven from bits and scraps of gossip" (To Kill a Mockingbird, Chapter 4). Jem is the one who suggests they reenact scenes based on rumors they have heard about Boo and his family. It becomes a favorite game of the children. The three main characters are Mr. and Mrs. Radley and Boo. At this point in the book,...
By Scout's own account, the Boo Radley game played by the children is really just "woven from bits and scraps of gossip" (To Kill a Mockingbird, Chapter 4). Jem is the one who suggests they reenact scenes based on rumors they have heard about Boo and his family. It becomes a favorite game of the children. The three main characters are Mr. and Mrs. Radley and Boo. At this point in the book, Scout, Jem, and Dill know very few solid facts about the Radley family. They do not even know for certain if Boo is dead or alive. Jem insists that he died years before.
As time goes on, the children further develop the storyline of their game. They create a backstory for Mr. and Mrs. Radley:
Mrs. Radley had been beautiful until she married Mr. Radley and lost all her money. She also lost most of her teeth, her hair, and her right forefinger (Dill’s contribution. Boo bit it off one night when he couldn’t find any cats and squirrels to eat.); she sat in the living room and cried most of the time, while Boo slowly whittled away all the furniture in the house (Chapter 4).
The highlight of their game is the most notorious rumor about Boo Radley. It is a reenactment of Boo Radley stabbing his father in the leg with scissors. This is a popular rumor told by Miss Stephanie. To recreate this scene, the children take Calpurnia's sewing scissors. Once they acquire the scissors, Jem, playing Boo, pretends to stab Dill, playing Mr. Radley, in the leg. The game the children play is primarily based on rumors, so it is an inaccurate account of the Radley family history.
No comments:
Post a Comment