How does Scout diffuse the situation in front of the jail in To Kill a Mockingbird?

In chapter 15, Jem, Scout and Dill sneak over to the jail to see what Atticus is up to. When a lynch mob shows up and starts talking to him, Scout hears her father say something that catches her attention: "Do you really think so?" (152). She thinks that "somebody's man would get jumped," so she runs across the square, through the crowd of stinky men, and up to her father to check things out. She says that she thought Atticus would find it a fun surprise to see her there, "but his face killed my joy." 

Scout happens upon this serious situation with a child's heart. She knows that something intense might happen, but she doesn't understand the gravity of the situation that she charges into. Her childlike sense and innocence guides her to take an awkward situation and use it as an opportunity to practice what her Aunt Alexandra has been teaching her to do—be a lady and talk politely. That's exactly what she does as she singles out her classmate's father, Walter Cunningham. She reminds him that he brought her family hickory nuts and that she's friends with his son. She talks about a boy he loves and reminds him of the innocence and sweetness in life.

Finally, after Scout yammers on for a little bit longer about Cunningham's legal entailments, things get more awkward. It isn't until Mr. Cunningham's guard is finally dropped that he says, "I'll tell him you said hey, little lady. . . Let's clear out. . . Let's get going, boys" (154). Atticus later says:

". . . it took an eight-year-old child to bring 'em to their senses, didn't it? . . . That proves something that a gang of wild animals can be stopped, simply because they're still human" (157).

How does Scout disperse the mob in To Kill a Mockingbird?

In Chapter 15, a mob of townspeople has assembled at the jailhouse, presumably to lynch Tom. They are trying to work their way inside past Atticus when Scout shows up, talks to one of the men politely, and (even though she doesn't realize it) essentially reminds them that they are humans and individuals, that they don't have to be a bloodthirsty mob. The men leave.

Let's take a closer look at the scene. Here's how the mob arrives. Notice how frightening and threatening the men are acting, yet Atticus is trying to treat them with courtesy:

In ones and twos, men got out of the cars. Shadows became substance as lights revealed solid shapes moving toward the jail door. Atticus remained where he was. The men hid him from view.

“He in there, Mr. Finch?” a man said.

“He is,” we heard Atticus answer, “and he’s asleep. Don’t wake him up.”

In obedience to my father, there followed what I later realized was a sickeningly comic aspect of an unfunny situation: the men talked in near-whispers. “You know what we want,” another man said. “Get aside from the door, Mr. Finch.”

 We find out that these men have made sure to keep the sheriff away by sending him off on a fake errand. So the men clearly are planning to do something violent here to Tom. The kids (Scout, Jem, and Dill) have been watching the scene up until this point, but Scout bursts onto the scene. Notice the details about how smelly (like animals) the men are, and how she enters a "circle of light," which probably represents human reason as opposed to the "dark" of the bodies in the unreasonable mob:

I pushed my way through dark smelly bodies and burst into the circle of light.

Atticus tries to get his kids to go home, knowing the situation is dangerous, but they refuse. One of the men nearly attacks Jem, and Scout quickly retaliates:

“Don’t you touch him!” I kicked the man swiftly. Barefooted, I was surprised to see him fall back in real pain. I intended to kick his shin, but aimed too high.

Scout's actions, as you can see, are sloppy and emotional. But then she notices Mr. Cunningham, a man she knows, in the crowd. Feeling awkward but sensing that it's a good time to make polite conversation, Scout tries to talk to Mr. Cunningham about his son:

“He’s in my grade,” I said, “and he does right well. He’s a good boy,” I added, “a real nice boy. We brought him home for dinner one time. Maybe he told you about me, I beat him up one time but he was real nice about it. Tell him hey for me, won’t you?”

She doesn't get much of a response from Mr. Cunningham, who's probably reeling from the shock of this reminder of his humanity. Scout is basically talking to him as if he's a friend and a good father, and it's probably unnerving for Mr. Cunningham, who's there with his compatriots to commit murder. She tries talking to him about his entailments, also (a legal issue he's going through, which Scout knows about thanks to Atticus).

Mr. Cunningham eventually responds to Scout, then commands the other men to disperse:

I looked around and up at Mr. Cunningham, whose face was equally impassive. Then he did a peculiar thing. He squatted down and took me by both shoulders.

“I’ll tell him you said hey, little lady,” he said.

Then he straightened up and waved a big paw. “Let’s clear out,” he called. “Let’s get going, boys.”

As they had come, in ones and twos the men shuffled back to their ramshackle cars. Doors slammed, engines coughed, and they were gone.

Some readers have criticized this scene, saying how it's pretty unlikely that, for one, little innocent Scout could change these men's minds, and two, that she could do it without realizing what was happening. She can't be THAT naive, can she? Other people really love this scene for the power that Scout's innocence exerts against the forces of violence and the thirst for revenge.

What is the mob's intention in To Kill a Mockingbird, and how does Scout diffuse the situation?

The mob consists of a group of white men who share very negative racist views. They are apparently not the pinnacle of Maycomb's society. This is made clear when Scout comments:

There was a smell of stale whiskey and pigpen about,

The men were either farm laborers or small-time subsistence farmers who tended to drink or who have now drunk to give them courage for what they intend doing. Mr Cunningham's presence, as well as the reference to the decrepit condition of the men's vehicles, support the idea that they are definitely not the best Maycomb society has to offer. 

The men's prejudice leads them to believe that it is an abomination that Tom Robinson should have violated a white girl, Mayella Ewell. In their minds, the mere fact that Mayella is white suggests that she was an innocent victim and could not possibly have been a willing party to what had occurred between her and the accused. In their minds, Tom, being black, must be guilty. These men do not care about justice or a fair trial. Their minds have been made up and they have come to the jailhouse to exact punishment. Their intention is to remove Tom from his cell and execute him.

The fact that the men are in a group empowers them and strengthens each man's resolve to see, what he believes, is justice about to be done. The group is driven driven by a skewed mentality that cannot and will not see reason. Their belief that whites are superior and their hatred for those not of their kind is what drives them.

Scout recognizes Mr Cunningham in the group and starts talking to him. She tells him about his entailment and about knowing his son, Walter, and how she and Jem had invited him over for dinner. Her recognition and familiarity obviously unnerves him and he later responds to her by saying that he will extend her greeting to his son. He then tells the group:

Let's clear out. Let's get going boys.

The men then shuffled back to their dilapidated cars and left.

Scout's intervention resolves the stalemate and probably makes Mr Cunningham realize the foolishness of their purpose. He obviously feels guilty and uncomfortable about wanting to commit a heinous act in the presence of someone as innocent as Scout and the other two children, Jem and Dill. Also, the fact that she recognized him and spoke so freely about her father helping him with his entailment and her association with Walter accentuates his discomfort and essentially pushes him to give up performing what would clearly have been a malicious deed. 

What is the mob's intention in To Kill a Mockingbird, and how does Scout diffuse the situation?

Tom Robinson has been arrested for the alleged rape of Mayella Ewell and is in jail.  Atticus sets up a chair and lamp outside the courthouse jail to protect Tom.  Atticus knows that there is a possibility that a lynch mob will form to forgo a trial, and he is right.  Scout follows Atticus to the courthouse because she, too, feels that something is going on.  When the lynch mob approaches Atticus, he attempts to talk them down.  Scout steps in and asks Atticus what is going on.  She also sees Mr. Cunningham, Walter’s father, in the crowd.  Scout says, “Hey” to Mr. Cunningham and tells him that she goes to school with Walter. 

Scout diffuses the angry mob first because she is an innocent in the situation who reminds the other men of their own children.  Also, by Scout pointing out Mr. Cunningham, she successfully reduces the mob to a group of individuals.  Alone, the individual men would not have been there, but as a mob, they gain power from each other.   Scout successfully puts down the possible lynching without knowledge of what the men are doing, yet she is able to play upon their emotions by being a young, innocent girl who makes them feel ashamed of their actions. 

How did Scout diffuse the mob's anger in To Kill a Mockingbird?

In chapter 15, Atticus leaves the house on the night before Tom Robinson's trial to sit outside of the Maycomb jailhouse to prevent anything from happening to Tom. The children end up following Atticus and watch from nearby. A group of men arrive from the Meridian highway and surround Atticus, who is casually reading his paper outside of the jailhouse. As the children listen to Atticus address the lynch mob, Scout becomes curious and runs out into the group of men. Scout is too naive and young to understand the gravity of the situation and does not realize the dangerous position she is in.

While Scout is standing in the middle of the lynch mob, she recognizes Mr. Cunningham and attempts to have a polite conversation with him. After Scout pleasantly greets Mr. Cunningham, she asks about his entailment and attempts to make small talk with him. Mr. Cunningham initially ignores Scout's questions and maintains his serious demeanor. However, Scout continues to ask him questions and says,

"I go to school with Walter . . . He’s your boy, ain’t he? Ain’t he, sir?" (Lee, 155).

Scout proceeds to discuss Mr. Cunningham's son and entailment until he finally acknowledges her by saying, "I’ll tell him you said hey, little lady" (Lee, 156). Walter Cunningham then tells the Old Sarum bunch to head home, and nobody is harmed during the incident.

Later on, Atticus explains to his children that Scout's presence moved Mr. Cunningham and made him sympathize with his situation. Scout's kind words made Mr. Cunningham realize that Atticus was in a precarious position and enabled him to view the situation from Atticus's point of view. Overall, Scout's words and presence were enough to make Mr. Cunningham sympathize with Atticus and remind him of his duties as a father.

How did Scout diffuse the mob's anger in To Kill a Mockingbird?

In Chapter 15, Mr. Walter Cunningham and a bunch of his friends have all come to the jail to try to lynch Tom Robinson before his trial.  They are starting to threaten Atticus to try to get him out of the way when Jem and Scout get there.  Scout diffuses the passion of the gang without even knowing that she is doing it.

She sees Mr. Cunningham and knows that she should be polite to him so she starts talking to him about his legal issues (his entailment).  Once she starts talking to him about that and his son, she gets him to start relating to her as a person.  He and the rest of the gang sort of wake up to what they're doing and then disperse.  So what she's done is she's made him start to think like a person instead of like mindless member of a mob.