Whole Novel Summaries
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Chapter Summaries
Chapter 1
Scout, the narrator, introduces the tale by saying it happened long ago. She will be retelling these events from memory. We meet her brother Jem; theur father, Atticus; their cook, Calpurnia; and a new friend, Dill. We learn about the time (1933) and town where they live (Maycomb, Alabama). Scout details their summertime fun as consisting largely of playing in their tree house and reenacting dramas from books they have read. She also describes the mysterious Radley family that lives down the street. Their son, Boo, was a troublesome teenager who became a recluse. Now legends about his deviant behavior abound. Dill finds Boo Radley fascinating and wants to make him come out. The chapter ends with Jem successfully completing a dare to touch the Radley house.
Sparknotes Chapter One: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section1.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter One: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapter-1.html
Sparknotes Chapter One: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section1.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter One: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapter-1.html
Chapter 2
Fall arrives. Dill returns to Meridiam, and Scout begins school. She and her teacher, Miss Caroline, are continually at odds. Scout knows how to read and write, but the teacher says she is doing it wrong. Scout attempts to explain why Walter Cunningham won't take Miss Caroline's quarter for lunch (he can't repay it, and Cunninghams never take anything they can't repay), but Miss Caroline views Scout's behavior as impudent. Scout is terribly disappointed by her first educational experience, particularly because she had been longing to attend school for years.
Sparknotes Chapter Two: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section2.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Two: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-2-3.html
Sparknotes Chapter Two: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section2.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Two: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-2-3.html
Chapter 3
Scout beats up Walter in the schoolyard because she sees him as the source of her problems. Jem stops her and invites Walter home for lunch. In the afternoon, Burris Ewell makes a scene at school and leaves; he only attends the first day of school every year anyway. Scout finds school so boring and burdensome that she wants to run away from home. After dinner, Atticus explains that she must go to school, even though people like the Ewells are exempt, and he strikes a deal with her to continue reading every night if she goes.
Sparknotes Chapter Three: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section2.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Three: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-2-3.html
Sparknotes Chapter Three: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section2.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Three: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-2-3.html
Chapter 4
Scout fins chewing gum in the knothole of a tree on the Radley property. On the last day of school, Jem and Scout find two Indian-head pennies there. They realize it is someone's special hiding place. Dill arrives for the summer, and the three of them create dramas based on the legend of Boo Radley. Scout becomes uneasy and wishes to stop after Atticus begins to suspect the truth behind their game.
Sparknotes Chapter Four: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section3.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Four: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-4-5.html
Sparknotes Chapter Four: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section3.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Four: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-4-5.html
Chapter 5
The children stop playing Boo Radley, and Dill and Jem begin spending time together with the exclusion of Scout. Scout then spends more time with their neighbor across the street, Miss Maudie. Miss Maudie answers some of Scout's questions about the Radleys and corrects some of Scout's incorrect ideas. Jem and Dill devise a plan for sending Boo a note via a fishing pole and a loose shutter. Atticus catches them and lectures them on the necessity of leaving Boo alone.
Sparknotes Chapter Five: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section3.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Five: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-4-5.html
Sparknotes Chapter Five: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section3.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Five: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-4-5.html
Chapter 6
On Dill's last night in Maycomb, Jem and Dill plan to peep into Boo's house. Scout becomes involved, despite her fears, because Jem accuses her of acting like a girl. While the children are on the Radley property, Mr. Nathan Radley hears noises, comes outside, and fires is shotgun in the air. As the children are running away, Jem's pants become stuck on the fence and he must leave them there. The neighbors gather after hearing the gunshot, and the adults quickly become aware of Jem's state of undress. Dill covers for them by saying they were playing strip poker, and he won Jem's pants off him. Atticus tells Jem to retrieve them. In the early hours of the morning, Jem goes back to the Radley property to get his pants.
Sparknotes Chapter Six: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section3.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Six: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-6-7.html
Sparknotes Chapter Six: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mocking/section3.rhtml
Cliffnotes Chapter Six: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/to-kill-a-mockingbird/summary-analysis/part-1/chapters-6-7.html
Chapter 7
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Chapter 8
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Chapter 9
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Chapter 10
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Chapter 11
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PART II
Chapter 12
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Chapter 13
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Chapter 14
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