To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a fascinating story that has captured the hearts of many readers. The main character and narrator Scout Finch, otherwise known as Jean Louise Finch, speaks the voice of a young girl growing up in a small town called Maycomb County in the 1930s. His father, Atticus Finch, is a non-racist lawyer in a town full of prejudice. Throughout the novel, Harper Lee includes many themes, but one of the most important explains the loss of innocence and growth. Even if one loses their childhood innocence, they eventually gain more consciousness and understand more about themselves and the world around them. The first example in To Kill a Mockingbird of when Scout and her brother Jem lose their innocence has to do with a game they made based on Arthur Radley. Mr. Radley, also known as Boo, never leaves the house, at least not for anyone to see. The citizens of Maycomb County believe he is a monster, and because of the rumors the children have an accurate description of him: “There was a long jagged scar running across his face; the teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes bulged and he drooled most of the time” (Law 16). Atticus Finch sees the children playing one day. He asks them if it has anything to do with the Radley family; the children lie to their father and say that the game is not based on Boo. Once he leaves, they continue playing. Surprisingly, later in the story, they learn that Arthur Radley is indeed a benevolent man. From time to time he leaves presents for children in a small hole in a tree; however he suddenly stops doing so because his brother fills the hole in the tree with concrete and blocks him from the outside world. Scout and Jem r...... middle of paper ......To Kill a Mockingbird: Themes | LitCharts.com." LitCharts.com | LitCharts Study Guides | The fastest, most downloadable alternative to SparkNotes. Web. September 8, 2011. . "Growing Up." Growing Up or Losing Innocence? Web. September 8, 2011. ." Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird: A Literary Analysis." Prose Portfolio Online. Web. September 8, 2011. "Journal #3- Loss of Innocence." To Kill a Mockingbird. January 3, 2011. Web. September 8, 2011. Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird New York: Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2006. Print.