"To Kill a Mockingbird" comparisons with ..., "Lord of the Flies", "Animal Farm" others? |
 Aug 8 2008, 06:37 AM
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One Half of the DDD  Posts: 8,493 Joined: 5:31pm August 30, 2006 Location: Siriusly Dreaming Somewhere   |
Someone said to me recently that To Kill a Mockingbird had been compared with Lord of the Flies and Animal Farm as being similar, in a "if you liked those two books you'd love this one" way, which had put them off reading Mockingbird, until now, because they really didn't like those two books.
My first thought was that I couldn't really see how they were similar but, now that I think more about it, I can see some linked themes about man's inhumanity to man and the fragility of equality, how the authors seem to be saying that it's almost inevitable that in any society some people will see some others as "superior" or "inferior" due to skin colour, body shape, age, religion, education, ability, wealth etc. For instance, in Mockingbird black people are no longer slaves, but they're not seen as equal to white people, those with a poor education are also looked down upon but not as much as black people, which is why the Ewells are believed above Tom Robinson, so there's a hierarchy and prejudice. In Animal Farm/Lord of the Flies, after the revolution/plane crash, all the animals/boys are supposed to be equal and yet a hierarchy gradually emerges which has consequences, just as the assumption of Tom Robinson's guilt is a consequence of the perceived hierarchy and resulting prejudice in Mockingbird. If you've read Animal Farm and Lord of the Flies what do you think of the comparisons? Do you agree or disagree that their themes are linked with To Kill a Mockingbird? If you agree can you see other linked themes between those books? Are there other books that you think share a theme with this one? What do you think of putting books into categories? Does it encourage or discourage you to read a book? Have you ever read a book simply because it was said to be similar to something you enjoyed? If so what was the book and its comparison and were you glad you read it? Don't feel that you need to answer all of these questions, you don't need to answer any specifically, but we'd love to hear your views on putting books into categories based on themes. This post has been edited by Dreamteam: Aug 8 2008, 06:40 AM --------------------  November's Book Nook discussion is The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger "THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" roared Black. "DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!" |
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