To Kill a Mockingbird

Journal Writing/ Character Log

For each chapter in TKAM you will need to write a journal entry. This can either be handwritten in your notebook or typed on separate paper. Either way, the entries should reflect your attempts at understanding the novel. Each entry will probably be approximately ½ of a page. Depending on the content of the chapter, your entry may be shorter of longer. You can begin by summarizing the action, but you should also reflect upon what you read or ask questions about what you read. You can either write in paragraph form or in bullet form. You may choose to write the entries when you are finished with each chapter or write them as you read. Do not plagiarize off the Internet or other sources such as Cliff’s Notes. The entries must be your own writing.

Example

Chapter 1 (please label each entry with the correct chapter number)

The novel begins with the narrator recalling the time her brother broke his arm. She and her brother often discussed the events leading up to the accident. Her brother thinks it began when Dill first came up with the idea to try and get Boo Radley to come out. I am not sure why they want to make Boo Radley come out of his house. The narrator thinks in a broad sense that it began long before that and goes on to give an account of the Finch family history that begins with Simon Finch leaving England. Simon Finch seems like a hypocrite as he left England to escape religious persecution, yet he owned slaves. The narrator’s father is a lawyer and his first two clients were hanged, by no fault of his own. The novel takes place during the Depression in a small Southern town called Maycomb. (then continue with details from the rest of the chapter)

Along with keeping your journals, you will also need to keep a character list. List each new character with a description of what the character does, what happens to the character, etc.

Example

Scout Finch—The narrator. Six when the novel begins. Nine when the novel ends. Tomboy. Likes to read… and then continue this as you read and learn more about Scout.