In chapters 1 through 5 of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, many characters are portrayed as being prejudiced. Some of those are three of the most important characters--Scout Finch, Jem Finch, and Dill Harris--and their prejudices are aimed at their neighbor Arthur (Boo) Radley, which serves to develop Harper Lee's theme concerning prejudices against those who are different.

Arthur Radley behaves differently from the rest of society by refusing to ever leave his house. As a result, the citizens of Maycomb have developed many rumors and myths in an attempt to explain his behavior, such as the notion he is under house arrest for having stabbed his father in the leg with scissors. The reality is that readers and characters, like the children, learn about Arthur through only neighborhood gossips, like Miss Stephanie Crawford; therefore, no only truly knows anything about Arthur. Regardless, the children feel so frightened by Arthur's odd behavior and by the rumors that they develop prejudices against him. Their prejudices are especially exhibited in the fact that they call him Boo Radley, not Arthur Radley.

Jem in particular displays feelings of prejudice against Arthur by making up myths about him. For example, early in the first chapter, Jem tells Dill that Boo Radley goes out at night "when it's pitch dark," and one Miss Stephanie Crawford "woke up in the middle of the night one time and saw him looking straight through the window at her" (Ch. 1). Jem also makes up a physical description of Boo, such as that he is "six-and-a-half feet tall" and has a "long jagged scar" across his face (Ch. 1). All of these rumors and myths show just how prejudiced the children have become against Arthur Radley.