Editing To Kill a Mockingbird (section)

=== Genres ===
Scholars have characterized ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' as both a [[Southern Gothic]] and a ''[[Bildungsroman]]''. The grotesque and near-supernatural qualities of Boo Radley and his house, and the element of racial injustice involving Tom Robinson, contribute to the aura of the [[Gothic fiction|Gothic]] in the novel.<ref>Johnson, ''Boundaries'', pp. 40–41.</ref><ref name="blackall"/> Lee used the term "Gothic" to describe the [[Gothic architecture|architecture]] of Maycomb's courthouse and in regard to Dill's exaggeratedly morbid performances as Boo Radley.<ref>Johnson, ''Boundaries'' pp. 39–45.</ref> Outsiders are also an important element of Southern Gothic texts and Scout and Jem's questions about the hierarchy in the town cause scholars to compare the novel to ''[[Catcher in the Rye]]'' and ''[[Adventures of Huckleberry Finn]]''.<ref>Murphy, pp. x, 96, 149.</ref> Despite challenging the town's systems, Scout reveres Atticus as an authority above all others, because he believes that following one's conscience is the highest priority, even when the result is social [[ostracism]].<ref name="fine">Fine, Laura "Structuring the Narrator's Rebellion in To Kill a Mockingbird" in ''On Harper Lee: Essays and Reflections'' Alice Petry (ed.), University of Tennessee Press (2007). {{ISBN|978-1-57233-578-3}}</ref> However, scholars debate about the Southern Gothic classification, noting that Boo Radley is, in fact, human, protective, and benevolent. Furthermore, in addressing themes such as alcoholism, [[incest]], rape, and racial violence, Lee wrote about her small town [[Literary realism|realistically]] rather than melodramatically. She portrays the problems of individual characters as universal underlying issues in every society.<ref name="blackall"/>

As children coming of age, Scout and Jem face hard realities and learn from them. Lee seems to examine Jem's sense of loss about how his neighbors have disappointed him more than Scout's. Jem says to their neighbor Miss Maudie the day after the trial, "It's like bein' a caterpillar wrapped in a cocoon&nbsp;... I always thought Maycomb folks were the best folks in the world, least that's what they seemed like".<ref>Lee, p. 246.</ref> This leads him to struggle with understanding the separations of race and class. Just as the novel is an illustration of the changes Jem faces, it is also an exploration of the realities Scout must face as an atypical girl on the verge of womanhood. As one scholar writes, "''To Kill a Mockingbird'' can be read as a feminist Bildungsroman, for Scout emerges from her childhood experiences with a clear sense of her place in her community and an awareness of her potential power as the woman she will one day be."<ref name="ware"/>