It is in Chapter 9 of To Kill a
Mockingbird by Harper Lee that Scout makes the statement that if she
possessed the mystical ideas of lawyers and judges, Aunt Alexandra would have been
analogous to Mount Everest. In contrast to her Uncle Jack, a doctor, who accompanies
Scout and Jem's aunt, Aunt Alexandra, who is merely "cold" and "there," and rather
aloof, while Uncle Jack is humorous and entertaining.
As
Scout talks with her cousin Francis at Christmas, Aunt Alexandra and Atticus are in the
kitchen from where Scout hears a dispute over her wearing
overalls:
Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of
my attire. I could not possibly hope to be a lady if I wore breeches; when I said I
could do nothing in a dress, she said I wasn't supposed to be doing things that required
pants....furthermore, I should be a ray of sunshine in my father's lonely
life....
In addition to
Scout's need to dress appropriately, according to Aunt Alexandra she should be a "ray of
sunshine" in her father's life and not "run wild" and dress in such a tomboy style.
Instead, she should play with small stoves, tea sets, and wear a pearl necklace. On the
contrary, Scout wears jeans and a pretty blouse and argues and fights with her cousin
Francis until she hurts him.
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