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Write About the ways in which Harper Lee creates tension, drama and humour in chapter 15 of To Kill A Mockingbird.

The atmosphere created in chapter 15 is tense and dramatic from the first paragraph. The introductory paragraph to chapter 15 ends with "A nightmare was upon us." This obviously tells us that an event of an unpleasant nature is yet to occur. The second paragraph starts with "It began one evening." This tells us that the nightmare is beginning, and builds us up for the chapter. Harper Lee uses various methods to create drama, tension and humour in chapter 15, many of which are discussed below.

The chapter begins by setting a normal scene. Harper Lee perhaps does this to contrast the abnormalities of the days following. Harper Lee has knows that the week may have been normal to Scout, but to the reader it is not, so the setting is described in much detail in order to bring the scene alive and present a vivid contrast. This builds us up for the drama to come, and also encourages us to connect with the characters of the book, and their habits. Harper Lee does this by presenting us with the children's familiarities, showing us that they were average children who occupied their time with typical activities such as building a ladder for the tree house. She donates humour to the paragraph by describing to us Dill's idea of placing a trail of lemon drops outside Boo Radley's house, causing him to emerge and follow the trail like an ant. Scout describes this as a 'foolproof plan' which may be sincere through Scout's eyes, but we know that Harper Lee is being ironic, and using the children's innocent and naïve perspectives of the world to bring humour. The children's lack of understanding often adds humour in To Kill A Mockingbird, but their observations and understandings of Maycomb society present a strong contrast to this.

There follows a knock at the door which shatters the normality of the evening, and life, and things never really return to the placid state described at the start of the chapter. Scout's understanding of Maycomb society is then presented with "In Maycomb, grown men stood outside in the front yard for two reasons death and politics." This observation is both humorous and extraordinary, for she is only young. What is humorous is about Scout's comment is not the observation itself, but Maycomb's ritualistic behaviour. This also tells us about the simple way of life in Maycomb and the bizarre formalities of Maycomb society. The arrival of the men in Scout's front yard informs us that we are at the start of the 'nightmare.' It also creates tension as we are told the men could only be there for two bad reasons as it would seem that politics doesn't mean they are there to discuss political parties, but to debate and argue, both of which are naturally very dramatic. Even Aunt Alexander with her formal ideas on the way the family should behave doesn't maintain her protest at Jem being hunched up at the window straining to hear. She is also inquisitive, she's a natural born gossip and wants in on the drama. Naturally, with life being so simplistic, and basically, boring in Maycomb, it is no wonder the community choose to cling so strongly to every ounce of drama.

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Tension is built up as the men describe what another group of men is planning to do after Tom Robinson's transfer to Maycomb County Jail. Atticus's dangerous question, "Do you really think so?" puts the adult situation into the child's perspective as Scout familiarises the comment, drawing it into her own world. This is yet another example of Scout's observation skills, and also her understanding of her father. The phrase 'dangerous' is used to creates tension, but then Scout connects it with chess and suddenly the word looses its power.

On departure the men jump when Jem yells which shows they are tense, and this feeling is passed through to the reader. They laugh it off, which is yet another sign of tension. Tense reactions create tension within the scene. Jem is also clearly nervous because he reacts so dramatically to the phone ringing. Later Jem says he is scared, which contradicts his attempts at being manly and mature describer earlier in the book "Jem in his old age had taken to his room with a stack of football magazines." Perhaps he also feels he is questioning his masculinity by saying he is scared, which is why he is not prepared to comment on his emotion. He also is clearly worried about Atticus who has remained calm throughout the drama of the evening. This reduces tension in the scene but also tells us about Atticus's character.

On page 15 tension builds up as Scout describes the odd behaviour of the locals of Maycomb, and their reaction to the latest drama "Something must have been up to haul Mr Underwood out." Scout goes on to describe the 'fake peace' of Sunday afternoon as everyone pretends to be normal. The adults attempts to behave normal and cover the tension simply add to it.

On page 154, Scout, so used to the rigid daily routines of life in Maycomb, comments on the many abnormalities in Atticus's behaviour. Many would seem quite normal to the reader were it not for the fact that Scout conveys how surprised she is by Atticus's actions by describing the norm. These abnormalities include Atticus taking the car, and a light bulb. Tension rises as we begin to wonder what he could do with such objects. Scout's observation and sense of routine is also shown when she comments on Jem's abnormal behaviour; "his go-to-bed noises were so familiar to me that I knocked on his door." The peculiar behaviour described to use builds up both anticipation and curiosity.

As the children go out in search of Atticus Jem says he's "just got this feeling (that something may be wrong)." 'Gut feelings' in books are usually based on an event yet to come, and a typical way of telling us something is about to happen. This adds tension. The vivid description of Maycomb Jail (page 156) adds drama as we picture it in our imagination. The children make another peculiarly observant discovery; "That's funny jail doesn't have an outside light," again, adding to the tension by suggesting that all is not as it should be. The image created by the description of the men arriving in cars and getting out is also very dramatic, as gangs are naturally threatening and we know that Atticus is in a particularly vulnerable situation. He is obviously expecting them though, and this time we do not need to be told that this is abnormal behaviour for a Sunday night.

Scout sees the comic aspect of the men's attempts to speak in whisper so as not to wake up the man they intend to harm. It is not left to the reader to spot this for themselves, so Harper Lee obviously wants attention to be drawn towards this factor. She has a deep understanding of the way of life in the South, and is commenting on how their morals sometimes ironically clash with one another; they see nothing wrong with lynching Tom Robinson, but a man should never be woken from his sleep. Either that or they just quieten down as a sign of respect for Atticus.

In the situation the chapter has been building up for, Atticus is relying on Heck Tate's presence but the gang tell him that Tate won't be out of the woods till morning. This builds up tension, although we are by now so familiar with Atticus's character that we know he would not be externally reacting to this sensation; "My father's voice was the same." We know that inside he would be starting to panic. We connect with this panic, and feel for his safety, as Atticus is a character we have grown to appreciate through the eyes of Scout. Heck Tate's absence 'changes things' which tells us that the gang are planning to act out of the law, which provides Atticus with another chance to use his slightly patronising 'dangerous question.' We are tense as we are feeling Atticus's fear. He is in a particularly vulnerable situation with gang of aggressive men. This dramatic and tense scene worries the reader as, although assured that Atticus is respected and clearly a lot more intelligent than the gang of men, we are not sure how he is going to escape the confrontation for we know he will not leave Tom Robinson.

As Scout bursts into the circle, Atticus makes his first obvious external display of fear; "a flash of plain fear went though Atticus's eyes." Even Atticus, the most calm and reasonable man in Maycomb, is beginning to crumble. He is described as trembling, but continues to act calmly. We know he is worried but using his confidence and sense of reason to cover it. As we sense the characters we identify with becoming more and more scared, we too feel their fear and grow more tense. Harper Lee's skills as a writer are shown in her ability to make us feel her characters' emotions.

On page 158, the way Scout protects her brother is simply delightful. She has such a pure view of right and wrong, it can be both amusing and heart warming. These 'burly' men are all described as being not local and here simply for trouble. They seem aggressive as they say to Jem (influencing Scout's attack) "'I'll send you home,' the burly man said, and grabbed Jem roughly by the collar." This first act of violence adds to the drama and tension exerted throughout the chapter.

Scout is clearly a character who acts upon what feels right. This is obvious when she says "I was getting a bit tired of (Jem and Atticus arguing) that." She puts things into perspective as how they relate to her. Her self-centred comment reminds us that's he is a child, but is also quite amusing. In a bout of boredom she looks round the crowd who are wearing their clothes as if to let people know they were meaning business (they had their shirt collars up and their cuffs done up). She interprets the way they are dressed as relating to the fact that "they must be cold-natured." This obviously adds humour, which again is brought about by Scout's naïve and innocent beliefs.

In the midst of this highly tense and dramatic situation in which everyone is on edge, Scout pipes up with "Hey Mr Cunningham, how's your entailment going?" This comment seems so totally out of place it is quite humorous, though perfectly displays Scout's lack of understanding of the situation she is the centre of. Scout not disheartened by Mr Cunningham's attempt to ignore her, though made nervous by the silence (silence sometimes representing a nervous or tense atmosphere) persists making idle chit-chat. What follows is again both humorous and heart warming as she gradually draws him out of the group, turning him back into a responsive individual. She effectively rolls up his shirtsleeves. Though Scout is ashamed of what she has done, and embarrassed, Atticus and Jem are amazed for she, a 10 year old girl, has turned a group of aggressive thugs into the individual members of the community who live and work amongst Atticus and his family. She reminds Mr Cunningham of what Atticus has done for him in the past, and I think Mr Cunningham is ashamed of his ungrateful behaviour.

Chapter 15 is full of tension, drama, and humour, largely provided by the unique child's perspective of the world. Harper Lee gets into the mind of Scout to the extent of which every description feels authentic, yet she still manages to reach the reader on a more mature level through the words of Scout. This becomes clear when we begin to read between the lines of Scout's words. Sometimes it is hard to differentiate between what is being said by Scout, and what is being said by Harper Lee, but that just adds to the depth of the book. Scout's perspective of Maycomb is refreshing, entertaining and heart felt, providing the reader with a truly beautifully written chapter, and book.

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