Chapters 9-12
Since Aunt Alexandra has been introduced into our story we've been able to see how much of a foil she is to Atticus. One of the differences that really show how the two are very different is the way they want Scout to grow up. Aunt Alexandra firmly believes that Scout should be acting like and further learning how to act like a lady (like her dearest Aunty). She believes that Scout's behavior is really uncalled for as a girl and future lady, of course. Atticus, however, does not see Alexandra eye-to-eye on the matter. Atticus's form of teaching his children how to be good people is to have them watch him and just sort of learn the right ways from him. He wants them to play out their own lives and let them see for themselves if the actions they've done are either right or wrong. With that, he wants Scout to be her own individual. Does she want to act the more tomboy-ish way she does? Ok. Does she want to play with Jem instead of other girls? Ok. Is she enjoying herself? Yes, so why force her to be someone she doesn't want to be? To put it simply, Atticus wants Scout to be who she wants to be. Alexandra, however, wants to mold Scout into a "proper" Southern lady.
The sibling duo, however, does share a similarity. They both want what's best for their Finch family...they just don't share the same views on what is best. Alexandra thinks that shaping Atticus's kids into gentlemen and ladies is the best road for future Finch generations. If you think about it, she could quite possible be right. From the way she acts and the way Atticus acts, can't we infer that the both of them were raised to be proper ladies and polite gentlemen? Perhaps Aunt Alexandra just wants what she and Atticus have for Jem and Scout. To her, this isn't quite so bad. Jem would be a fine gentlemen like Atticus and Scout would be a fine proper lady like Alexandra (in the South's standards, of course). Atticus, like I said before, also wishes the best for his family. Perhaps it's because he chose to be different from the rest of the Finch family and Maycomb citizens and not become an agricultural-related worker, but he wants his kids to be their own individuals. Do what they want, be who they want to be. He feels this is best for their family and themselves. Atticus chose to be his own individual later on in life and he turned out pretty satisfied so wouldn't that be best for his kids? His family?
Another difference we see between the two is their acceptance. It takes awhile to think about it and to have it come to mind but why does Atticus sort of allow Scout to rebel? We can see from Aunt Alexandra that Scout's behavior is very much not the norm for girls in the South during that time period (and even now). Aunt Alexandra greatly accepts the South's views on women but Atticus seems to simply disregard them. From there, you can go even deeper and question if there was a difference in the way the two were raised. Maybe, Atticus was the Scout growing up. Maybe, as a child, he did not want what was expected of him and he sees that in Scout. If he knows the feeling of not wanting what is forced on you then that could be a reason he chooses to let Scout take the reigns of her life. But, I am quite curious...Why does Aunt Alexandra just accept the boundaries set on women when the person she grew up with doesn't? Now, we can see that children have a greater affect on each other than adults do on them. Adults can yell and bite you, but other children are your pack. If you do not go with the pack, then you'll be left behind. Was that not the same in the South back then?
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