Daughter of Atticus Finch, Jean Louise, also known as Scout, portrays a very amusing and interesting character in Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird". In the first 8 chapters, Scout appear to be a smart, innocent, tough, and curious little girl who is not like many in the small town of Maycomb. She was brought up to have much individuality and to be herself without following all of the unwritten rules the society of Maycomb has. Not like other girls, Scout is a tomboy that prefers to hang out with her brother and friend Dill over playing dress-up and dolls like most young girls. In being the youngest of the 3, she gets influenced into doing things she would normally not do such as going over to the Radley's house, which suggests that Scout is quite vulnerable in situations.
It is evident from early in the novel that social status is a very important value to many in the community. Clearly from the beginning, the Finch family is positioned at the top of the social pyramid, followed by majority of the population of Maycomb. Below the townspeople, are many lower class families such as the Cunninghams which make a living off of farming, followed by the Ewells. Although it is not explicitly revealed that the Cunninghams and Ewells are near the bottom of the pyramid, it can be inferred by they way characters such as Walter Cunningham presents himself physically as well as with his diction in chapter 2. For example, narrated by Scout, "Walter poured syrup on his vegetables and meat with a generous hand", later followed by Calpurnia saying, "There's some folks who don't eat like us". Social status is important in the society and will most likely continue to be an important theme throughout the rest of the novel.
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