Throughout the book so far, it has been obvious that Jem and Scout have been very close. They are brother and sister and they spend lots of time together, like when they play games with Dill or talk about the Radleys. When Scout says, "It was then, I suppose, that Jem and I first began to part company." (75), what she means is that she is realizing that her relationship with her brother is growing less close. Even though she knows that they wouldn't always get along, she is now noticing that they disagree on almost everything. One reason for this could be Dill. Jem finally has someone to play with besides Scout and begins to shut her out. She mentions “They spent days together in the treehouse plotting and planning, calling on me only when they needed a third party.” (55) This shows Jem and Dill were only using Scout when they needed her and often excluded her from their games. Another reason Scout and Jem's relationship is growing apart could be Jem wanting to fit in. Although they don’t say it in the book, Jem might think other kids might think he’s weird because Scout is younger or his sister or a girl. He might think excluding her could be his solution to fitting in. Scout hadn't realized how close they had been until they began to drift apart. She is trying to figure out what is happening with her relationship with her brother.
Do you think Jem realizes that he and Scout are growing apart?
The time frame in TKAM is when women were still considered inferior. Although Jem is older than Scout, he would mainly think of himself superior because he is growing up surrounded by segregation toward women. Because of this, he prefers to play with other boys like Dill rather than Scout. However, he still loves and cares for his younger sister allowing her to come with him and Dill to try and spot Boo Radley. Indeed Jem and Scout are growing apart, but the connection they share will always be like no other.
ReplyDeleteUp until this point in the book, Jem and Scout have been almost inseparable, and did everything together. As Jem continues to call Scout a girl, it is starting to be more hurtful for Scout, causing her to spend less time with him. While Dill and Jem are spending time together, Scout mentions, "on pain of being called a girl, I spend most of the remaining twilights that summer sitting with Miss Maudie Atkinson" (55). Jem is making Scout feel hurt around him and left out when he continuously calls her a girl, which isn't a very kind, or brotherly thing to do on his part. Not only are Scout and Jem starting to grow apart, but Jem is chasing Scout away with his mean words.
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