vehemently
rejects the conventional Southern femininity of her period. A tomboy, she wears overalls and
does her best to keep up with the lively physical antics of Dill and . During Christmas at
Finch's Landing, her uncle Jack says to her:
You want to
grow up to be a lady, dont you?
Scout responds, "Not
particularly." As if to prove her point, she beats up her male cousin Francis for insulting
.
When Aunt Alexandra comes to stay with Atticus and the children during the
Tom Robinson trial, Scout and her aunt battle over Aunt Alexandra's desire that Scout act like a
proper lady. She wants, for example, for Scout to wear dresses, and pursues this topic in a way
Scout finds "fanatical." According to Scout:
Aunt Alexandras vision of my deportment involved playing with small stoves, tea sets,
and wearing the Add-A-Pearl necklace she gave me when I was born; furthermore, I should be a ray
of sunshine in my fathers lonely life.
Luckily for Scout,
Atticus backs her desire to stay in pants and says he doesn't necessarily need her to become a
ray of sunshine who supplies emotional support to the male. Scout, of course, has no desire to
play with the typically dainty "girly" toys Aunt Alexandra prefers for her. (Mrs.
Dubose also thinks Scout should act like more of a lady, as she remember's Scout's mother doing,
instead of being allowed to run "wild.")
Aunt Alexandra is a
completely conventional woman who enjoys her teas and missionary society events: Scout, in
contrast, is determined to stay feisty, boyish, and independent.
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