As a young and curious child, the small town in which Scout Finch lived seemed like the world. Since the book To Kill a Mockingbird was set in the South during the 1930s, where she lived, there was a lot of prejudice and unruly, opinionated people. In the book, everyone who lived near each other knew each other. The town also included Scout's older brother, Jem, and his father, Atticus. All the characters lived in Maycomb County, Alabama, which was a very small place, full of prejudice and inequality. Author Harper Lee expresses the death of innocence and maturity through the character of Scout and her conflicts with the world and people around her. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Portraying the Death of Innocence through Characters To begin, Harper Lee expresses the death of innocence when Scout experiences an external conflict with her teacher, Miss Caroline. Scout loses her sense of idealism when she feels the need to inform her teacher about the financial situation of one of her classmates, Walter Cunningham, and the teacher punishes her for trying to be beneficial because Scout was already off on the wrong foot. . “You shame him, Miss Caroline. Walter doesn't have a coin to take home for you and you can't use any stovewood. Miss Caroline stood still, then grabbed me by the collar and took me back to her office. “Jean Louise, I’ve had enough of you this morning… reach out your hand. I thought she was going to spit in it...Miss Caroline took her ruler, gave me half a dozen quick taps, then told me to stand in the corner.” Being hit or slapped causes the victim to conclude that they did something they were not supposed to do. This makes the victim think about what they can do to improve, so they don't make the same mistake. In this quote, being hit by Miss Caroline may give the reader a chance to infer that Scout has learned to keep her nose out of other people's affairs or problems. Even though the reader could infer, she still decided to try to beat Walter up for causing her trouble. Overall though, Scout had learned a valuable lesson. Additionally, Lee expresses the death of innocence through Scout alongside the character of Aunt Alexandra. As soon as the additional supporting character, Aunt Alexandra, is introduced, she constantly forces Scout to "act like a lady" and perform acts that are signs of maturity and adulthood. “Aunt Alexandra was fanatical about my dress. I couldn't hope to be a lady if I wore panties; when I said I couldn't do anything in a dress, she said I wasn't supposed to do things that required pants. Aunt Alexandra's vision of my behavior involved playing with little stoves, tea sets, and wearing the Add-A-Pearl necklace she gave me when I was born; besides, I should be a ray of sunshine in my father’s lonely life.” Scout grew up with her older brother and father as influences and although Atticus Finch was a very knowledgeable man, Jem and Scout were wild and dirty. Without the influence of a proper mother, Scout didn't know any better. Scout knew her behavior wasn't normal for a girl her age, but she didn't want to be like the other girls. Aunt Alexandra tried to persuade Scout to act like a "real woman" with proper etiquette. This quote and the way Scout normally acted could lead the reader to infer that Aunt Alexandra was trying to reform the mode.