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A review by markiereadss
Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee
2.0
I wish I never picked this good up ! I did not give this book 2 stars because it was poorly written or lacked any substance, but because it made me revisit all the opinions I had made up about the characters from the first novel. My opinion of this book is that it did not need to be written. So much of what we have thought of and come to love from the first novel, TKAMB, manages to be undone in the second.
GSAW follows Scout's visit back to Maycomb as a 26 year old living in New York. Scout is reminiscent of her childhood when she sees just how much the town has physically changed, but quickly reminded of the injustice and racism that exists below the surface. This realization has Scout arguing with those around her including Atticus. This fight with Atticus is arguably the climax of the entire book and left me with such a bitter taste in my mouth. From TKAMB, I regarded Atticus as a man of higher moral code and one who stood for what is just, but GSAW left me to see Atticus as no better than the rest of Maycomb. Moreover, Scout starts so passionately about her beliefs when engaging with Atticus and her Uncle Jack, but then recants at the slightest debate back.
Taking a step back to process, I had to ask myself whether of not this was Harper Lee's intent. Granted these ideas came from scribbled drafted documents locked away in a safe, but I think there is also a commentary to be made here. Was is Lee's intent to show us that nothing really can be changed when it comes to race and injustice? Is she pointing out the 50 years of readers, educational institutions, publishers, etc.. putting Atticus on a pedestal when that was never truly his place to begin with? There were a few quotes from the book that stuck out to me in this regard. One of which is when Scout is having her follow up conversation with Uncle Jack over a glass of scotch. Uncle Jack tells Scout that she holds her father too highly, that he is just a man. Another moment mentions how Atticus is a man of the law. His loyalties will always be to the law and the truth the evidence permits.
These quotes from the conversations with Uncle Jack drastically changed my views on how we as a culture have maybe misread Atticus and TKAMB as a whole. Isn't it true? Yes, Atticus defended Tom Robinson all those years ago, but was it because he knew it was the right thing to do or because he couldn't deny taking a case where the evidence was so clearly in favor of his client he thought he couldn't lose?
Ugh, made me really think about what I just read.. Read at your own caution ;)
GSAW follows Scout's visit back to Maycomb as a 26 year old living in New York. Scout is reminiscent of her childhood when she sees just how much the town has physically changed, but quickly reminded of the injustice and racism that exists below the surface. This realization has Scout arguing with those around her including Atticus. This fight with Atticus is arguably the climax of the entire book and left me with such a bitter taste in my mouth. From TKAMB, I regarded Atticus as a man of higher moral code and one who stood for what is just, but GSAW left me to see Atticus as no better than the rest of Maycomb. Moreover, Scout starts so passionately about her beliefs when engaging with Atticus and her Uncle Jack, but then recants at the slightest debate back.
Taking a step back to process, I had to ask myself whether of not this was Harper Lee's intent. Granted these ideas came from scribbled drafted documents locked away in a safe, but I think there is also a commentary to be made here. Was is Lee's intent to show us that nothing really can be changed when it comes to race and injustice? Is she pointing out the 50 years of readers, educational institutions, publishers, etc.. putting Atticus on a pedestal when that was never truly his place to begin with? There were a few quotes from the book that stuck out to me in this regard. One of which is when Scout is having her follow up conversation with Uncle Jack over a glass of scotch. Uncle Jack tells Scout that she holds her father too highly, that he is just a man. Another moment mentions how Atticus is a man of the law. His loyalties will always be to the law and the truth the evidence permits.
These quotes from the conversations with Uncle Jack drastically changed my views on how we as a culture have maybe misread Atticus and TKAMB as a whole. Isn't it true? Yes, Atticus defended Tom Robinson all those years ago, but was it because he knew it was the right thing to do or because he couldn't deny taking a case where the evidence was so clearly in favor of his client he thought he couldn't lose?
Ugh, made me really think about what I just read.. Read at your own caution ;)