Skip to main content

How does Harper Lee build up tension in Chapter 28 of To Kill a Mockingbird, in bullet points?

Tension, or suspense, is built through a series of events that involve Scout and Jem walking home alone at night and Boo Radley saving them from Bob Ewell.  Many little hints are dropped throughout the chapter that foreshadow this event.


  • It is very dark, and there is no moon.

  • Boo Radley, and the fact that the children used to be afraid of him, is mentioned.  The children seem a little scared.


“It is a scary place though, ain’t it?” I said. “Boo doesn’t mean anybody any harm, but I’m right glad you’re along.” “You know Atticus wouldn’t let you go to the schoolhouse by yourself,” Jem said. (Ch. 28)



  • The children laugh at how they were afraid of things in their childhood.

  • It is quiet, but they hear a mockingbird.

  • Scout asks Jem how he knows where they are.  They say they should have brought a flashlight.

  • Cecil Jacobs scares them.

  • Scout misses her cue at the pageant.

  • Scout decides not to take her costume off.

  • The children decline a ride home.

  • Scout realizes she forgot her shoes.

  • Jem tells Scout to be quiet because he thought he heard something.

  • Scout asks Jem if he is afraid.  He says he isn’t, but it is obvious he is.  He thinks someone is following them.  They wonder if it is Cecil Jacobs again.

  • The children realize they do hear someone.


Our company shuffled and dragged his feet, as if wearing heavy shoes. Whoever it was wore thick cotton pants; what I thought were trees rustling was the soft swish of cotton on cotton, wheek, wheek, with every step. (Ch. 28)



  • They realize it is not a child.  Jem screams for Scout to run.

  • Scout feels someone attack her costume.  Jem screams. She can’t see what is happening because of her costume.

  • Jem is “jerked backwards and flung on the ground” and Scout thinks he is dead.

  • Scout hears a violent cough and sobbing.

  • Scout hears a man groan and pull something heavy across the ground.

  • Scout feels someone with prickly stubble and whisky on his breath.

  • Scout realizes that there is a man carrying Jem.

  • Aunt Alexandra calls for Dr. Reynolds.  She looks for Scout and then calls Sheriff Tate.

  • Scout asks Atticus if Jem is dead and is told he is not.  She is unable to tell him what happened.

  • Dr. Reynolds arrives and tells Scout that Jem just has a bump on the head and a broken arm. Scout has a bump on her head too.

  • Scout tries to talk to Jem, but he’s unconscious.

  • Heck Tate tells them he found a little girl’s dress and Bob Ewell lying under a tree, dead.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

etymology - Origin of the greeting "Sweet dreams".

Does anybody know the etymology of the phrase "sweet dreams"? I tried googling but did not find anything satisfying. Is this a relatively new phrase of the modern world or has this been in use for some time? I think it's the latter one. Answer The OED has the interjection as "a farewell to someone going to bed" from the 20th century: 1908 Sears Roebuck Catal. 198/1 Tenor Solos..Good Bye, Sweet Dreams, Good Bye. But it goes back until at least the 19th and possibly 18th centuries. John Wolcot, writing under the pseudonym of Peter Pindar, used it in his poem "Orson and Ellen; A Legendary Tale" published in 1801: Also from 1801 in The infernal Quixote (Page 287) by Charles Lucas: In the March 1776 of The Universal Magazine was published "The Serenade. A Pastoral Tale. From the German of Gesner" , where the shepherd Daphnis watches over his beloved as she sleeps and sings: The same tale appears in 1776's as Idyl XI, " Daphnis ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Is there a word/phrase for "unperformant"?

As a software engineer, I need to sometimes describe a piece of code as something that lacks performance or was not written with performance in mind. Example: This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. Based on my Google searches, this isn't a real word. What is the correct way to describe this? EDIT My usage of "performance" here is in regard to speed and efficiency. For example, the better the performance of code the faster the application runs. My question and example target the negative definition, which is in reference to preventing inefficient coding practices. Answer This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. In my opinion, reads more easily as: This coding style leads to unmaintainable and poorly performing code. The key to well-written documentation and reports lies in ease of understanding. Adding poorly understood words such as performant decreases that ease. In addressing the use of such a poorly ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What are the similarities between the relationships of the characters in The Outsiders and Romeo and Juliet?

At first glance, it might appear as if the characters in  The Outsiders  by S. E. Hinton and  Romeo and Juliet  by William Shakespeare do not have much in common; however, when one isolates the core of the conflicts, it becomes clear that the relationships in both stories are rooted in rivalry and secrecy.  In both  The Outsiders  and  Romeo and Juliet , an overarching theme is rivalry. While   socioeconomic status separates the greasers from the Socs in The Outsiders , last names separates the Montagues from the Capulets, who appear to be relatively equal in terms of socioeconomic status. Due to these rivalries, there are instances of deadly interactions in both stories. In  The Outsiders , Johnny kills Bob (whether his actions were justified or not is debatable). In  Romeo and Juliet , Romeo kills Tybalt and Paris, and Tybalt kills Mercutio. These deaths have profound effects on the main characters. In Ponyboy's case, the Johnny's death and other events in the novel inspire h...
Post a Comment
Read more