When the word parenting is said, what comes to mind? Most people think parenting is with a mother and father working together to raise a child in the best way. In the book “To Kill A Mockingbird” parenting is not what many people think. There is a wide diversity of parenting styles in Maycomb which leads to many children behaving poorly. For Example, Bob Ewell is a bad parent to his kids, this leads his kids to become mean, stubborn, and uneducated. This shows how important parenting impacts a child’s life. Throughout the book Atticus, Calpurnia, and Miss Maudie are parent like figures in Scout and Jems lives.
Atticus Finch is the father of main children Jean Louise and Jem Finch. The children lost their mother at a young age so, Atticus raised them by himself. Jean and Jem both look up to Atticus because he does so much for them. “If you’ll concede the necessity of going to school, we’ll go on reading every night just as we always have. Is it a bargain?” In this quote Atticus is telling Jean to not tell Miss Caroline that he is teaching her how to read and write. The best thing Atticus does is protecting his children. A good example of that is when Atticus saw Jean and Jem outside the jailhouse surrounded by a mob. Atticus told them to go home before they got hurt or in trouble. Atticus is told by Calpurnia that the kids are missing, and Jem and Scout come down from the colored balcony and talk with Atticus and Calpurnia. Atticus says to them, “You’ve been here all afternoon? Go home with Calpurnia and get your supper—and stay home!” (207). He told them to go home because the outcome of the trial wasn’t going Atticus’ way and he knew Tom Robinson would be found guilty. Another way Atticus is good at parenting is that he tries and teaching Jem and Scout life lessons to improve their well-being. Atticus is an important when it comes to being Jem and Scouts only parent.
Calpurnia is the Finches housekeeper, she isn’t related to Jem and Scout at all. But, she is like their motherly figure through the book. She acts as there mother by doing all the housework like cooking and cleaning. During the book, Calpurnia becomes more of a motherly figure when the trial goes on because Atticus spends all of his day down at the jailhouse. She took Jem and Scout to the black church while the trail was going on to give them something else to think on besides the trial. Manners is the main goal Calpurnia tries to teach Jem and Scout throughout the book. For example, when Walter Cunningham is invited over to their house for lunch. Scout makes a rude remark about how Walter pours syrup on everything and eats really messy. Calpurnia gets mad at Scout and tells her, “That boy’s yo comp’ny and if he wants to eat the table cloth you let him, you here” (24)? Calpurnia teaches Scout that everybody is not the same and people eats their food in different ways. Calpurnia believes that manners is valuable life lesson. But no one ever gets taught manners by their housekeeper, they normally get taught them by their mothers. Throughout the book Calpurnia is not the only woman that is a motherly influence in Jem and Scouts lives because Miss Maudie helps them thrive and develop in their lives.
Miss Maudie is also a mother like figure to Jem and Scout even though she’s not related to them. She is Jem and Scout’s favorite adult on there road and they talk to her the most. Miss Maudie is a very positive person that loves attending to her garden. Throughout the book Miss Maudie and Scout’s relationship grew as she’d let Jem and her play in her yard, as she would bake them cakes. She is a caring person to Jem and Scout. She shows how much she cares about Jem and Scout, after her house burnt down, when she’s talking to them. After the fire, she is talking to Jem and Scout about how their doing and Scout says, “With most her possessions gone and her beloved yard in shambles, she still took a lively and cordial interest in Jem’s and my affairs” (73). This demonstrates caring between Miss Maudie and the Finch kids even after she lost everything. Since she cares about Jem and Scout they enjoy being with her. This is why Miss Maudie demonstrates a motherly figure to Jem and Scout since they don’t have a mother.
Atticus, Calpurnia, and Miss Maudie combine to make parental figures during the childhood of Jem and Scout. They all help teach Jem and Scout with: reading, writing, respect, and manners. They have their true father Atticus, but they don’t have their mother, but Miss Maudie and Calpurnia combine to make a good mother like figure. The three adults work together to parent Scout and Jem.
