Chapter 1
1. Why do you think Scout begins by telling the reader about Jem’s arm injury?
2. Do you think Boo Radley is an unusual name? Why?
3. Who is Atticus?
4. ‘During his first five years in Maycomb, Atticus practiced economy more than anything’ (5). What does this mean?
5. What is Scout’s opinion of Maycomb?
6. ‘Jem and I found our father satisfactory’ (6) Does Scout love her father? Explain.
7. ‘(he) treated us with courteous detachment’ (6) Is this an odd way for a father to treat his children? Discuss.
8. What is the nickname of Charles Baker Harris?
9. Why did the Radley place fascinate Dill?
10. ‘Inside the house lived a malevolent phantom’ (9). What is the connotation of the term ‘malevolent phantom’?
11. Are the Radley’s a kind and loving family based on what we learn in chapter 1?
12. “The more we told Dill … the more he would wonder” (13). What would he wonder about?
13. Do you believe Jem’s description of Boo Radley is likely to be true or not? Explain your opinion.
14. How do you think Jem felt when he touched the Radley house?
Activity
What are the most important things the reader learns about Jem and Scout in the first chapter? What are their most notable characteristics?
Vocabulary
assuaged, argument, apothecary, brethren, taciturn, generosity, synonymous, derived, ambled, optimism, inhabited, puny, revelation, respect, curiosity, contentment, repertoire, nocturnal, mutilated, predilection, beadle, nebulous, transition, farther, honour, hinge, terrain, sneered
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