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What are the significant events that occur in the Radley house in To Kill a Mockingbird?
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The Radley house in To Kill a Mockingbird is shrouded in mystery and fear, especially for Scout and her friends. Key events include Arthur "Boo" Radley stabbing his father with scissors, which contributes to his reclusive reputation. Boo secretly leaves gifts for the children, which hints at his desire for connection. The house, known as Maycomb's haunted residence, symbolizes isolation and the unknown, impacting Scout's perception of Boo as she matures.
Because the novel is told from Scout's perspective, whatever information the reader gets about events inside the Radley's home is filtered through her narrative. One sign of Scout's maturing is her attitude toward the house itself and toward Arthur Radley. At the beginning, Scout and the other children have a macabre fascination with the Radley home because it seems so isolated and lonely. They piece together "facts" about Arthur's troubled youth and elaborate them into fanciful tales. Arthur does not leave his house. He may have a condition called agoraphobia, fear of going outside. Jem decides that his father physically confines him by chaining him to the bed.
Their fascination gets out of hand when they start sneaking onto the property. Jem almost gets shot, but Arthur begins leaving them small gifts. Their attention, though misplaced, helps bring Arthur out of his shell. Having been in trouble as a...
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teen, he apparently empathizes with the boys' behavior.
The most disturbing "fact" the reader learns is that Arthur once stabbed his father, but not why. This establishes the idea that he is capable of violence. This story functions as foreshadowing of the later stabbing of Bob Ewell.
We don't really know much about what goes on inside the Radley house. We do know that Mr. Radley was stabbed by Boo with a pair of scissors one day; and that, like Boo, the Radleys spent most of their time inside. Mrs. Radley was occasionally seen outside watering her flowers, and Mr. Radley made regular trips past the Finch house with a bag of groceries. When Boo's parents died, brother Nathan came from Florida to watch over him, and he proved to be a bit more visible than his parents. Though Boo is never seen, Miss Maudie knew that he's still alive since
"I haven't seen him carried out yet."
The reader also knows that Boo is still kicking, since Scout recalls seeing
... an inside shutter move. Flick. A tiny, almost invisible movement...
And later, she hears a sound coming from the house,
... so low I could not have heard it from the sidewalk. Someone inside the house was laughing.
The Radley Place serves as a place of mystery and foreboding--Maycomb's haunted house--and of sadness. The sense of the unknown that surrounds the house and the mere thought that Boo Radley lives inside frightens children away. As for the inhabitants, they reside in a house where misery existed long before Jem and Scout were born--and a house that died when young Arthur began his confinement inside.