The Lady Herself - Alexandra
Profile ;
Alexandra Finch
Family relations
Married to Jimmy
Brothers: Atticus and Jack
Son: Henry
Grandson: Francis Hancock
Nephews and nieces: Jeremy (Jem) & Jean (Scout)
I'm a great cook and i'm proud to be the Secretary of the Maycomb Ammanuensis Club.
blog creator:
Sarah Leong,3 truth.
Talk of the town ;
Maycomb county ;
Calpurnia (Sharmala)
Mrs Dubose (Eileen)
Archives:
August 2009 September 2009
Layout: vehemency
Icon: reruntherace
Mrs Dubose (Eileen)
Archives:
August 2009 September 2009
Layout: vehemency
Icon: reruntherace
Monday, September 21, 2009, 7:59 PM
I'm very worried about Atticus taking on this Tom Robinson trial, i just feel that it's too much.Chapter 24
I was having tea and refreshments for my hostess circle with a few ladies i invited over like Miss Stephanie, Miss Maudie, Miss Rachel and miss Merriweather. Jean had also joined us and she was quite adorable.
We were having a discussion on the Tom Robbinson's trial and Miss Merriweather was not being pleasant and I thank Miss Maudie for interrupting her.
Soon after Atticus arrived home exceptionally early and called for me in the kitchen.
I couldn't believe what i heard, Tom was dead, he had been shot without warning while he was trying to escape. I felt shakened and I needed to sit down. I felt a deep sense overwhelm me, when will this end for my brother? This town has drained Atticus, won't this town just leave him alone. Miss Maudie comforted me and soon we returned to the circle of ladies, I got my act together and returned to the meeting as if all was fine.
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Analysis:
From this we can tell that Aunt Alexandra actually cared deeply for Atticus and she did not want Atticus to go through all the trauma and judgement that came from this case. She was also good friends with Miss Maudie and it was as if Miss Maudie was the one who she could really talk to. When she had returned back to the meeting, notice that she held her head up again which meant she acted proper in front of others and always put up an image of being a lady.
5:39 PM
Aunt Alexandra's feelings on Calpurnia
Chapter 14Today Jean mentioned about going to Calpurnia's church and even wanting to go to her house?! Jean and Jeremy had actually gone to a black church, who knows what these people could have done. Why does Calpurnia place these children in such dangerous situations? I was shocked that Scout would even ask and she actually snapped back at me, she raised an utterly rude tone with me.
I discussed with Atticus later on that we don't need Calpurnia, the children are growing up, what kind of influence are they getting? However, my efforts were naught as he was stern and said that she was to stay and that she was family.
Chapter 16
We were having a sumptious breakfast but I was angered as children who went out at night were a disgrace to the family. We had a conversation of the previous night's events and Atticus openly that Mr Underwood despises negros right in front of Calpurnia, this encourages the blacks to talk among themselves, couldn't he be more careful with his words?
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Conclusion:
Aunt Alexandra clearly did not see Calpurnis as family and also often ephasised the fact that she was a black woman and did not really trust her. This could be due to society's impression of black people and how they are generalised as untrustable people. Aunt Alexandra is someone who believes in a social caste system and therefore have such feelings towards Calpurnia.
Sunday, September 20, 2009, 5:13 PM
Chapter 13
Well, I've spoken to Atticus and he obviously agreed with me. Therefore, the following week i made my way over but apparently no one was at home so I decided to wait on the porch. I released my bag down onto the floor and i sat in the rocking chair waiting.Soon after, Jeremy, Jean and Calpurnia returned home and i got up promptly, my work has started, they need me here to set things right, that Atticus can never do a woman's job.
(A extract from chapt. 12: "I looked down the street. Enamoured, upright, uncompromising, Aunt Alexandra was sitting in a rocking chair exactly as if she had sat there every day of her life")
I adore the company of certain folk here in Maycomb, darling Miss Maudie baked a cake for me, we should definately exchange recipes. I have also been talking with Miss Stephanie Crawford and my, she filled my with all the gossip around. Miss Rachel is also a dear, just a cuppa nice coffee and long afternoons.
One fine afternoon i was sipping tea with a few Maycomb ladies and I called for Jean to come interact with us. To be a true young lady of grace and poise, what better way than to be in the pressence on a group of ladies? When she appeared i was filled with disapproval upon seeing her in her present state, she was so untidy and unpresentable, she was covered in mud !
I introduced Jean to her Aunt Lily but she ignorantly said that she was unaware that they were related. I forced a smile, Jean had no social skills and i was put in that awkward position.
I even tried recommending to her a book by her Cousin Joshua, show her how she should be proud of our family name and that we were a respected family and i wanted to used the book as an example. However, I was dismayed as Atticus had obviously not spoken to his children and instilled pride for our family name, this was unacceptable. I shall discuss this with him the moment he comes back.
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Aunt alexandra was:
-Domineering
She felt that she knew what was best and Scout had mentioned that she was sure that it was her Aunt herself who asked to live with them. Aunt Alexandra overpowered Atticus in a way that she always made her opinions known to him and he would agree with her.
An example was when she made Atticus talk to Scout and Jem about their family's roots and about their family name.
-Opiniated
She felt that everyone in Maycomb had streaks and she only regarded the Finch Family as higher above the rest and not "run-out-of-the-mill people". She also "never let a chance escape her to point out the shortcomings of other tribal groups to the greater glory of her own" and thus she was judgemental and also snobbish as she saw everyone else below her.
-Traditional
She felt that Scout was to behave like a proper lady and greatly disapproved of Scout's 'tomboy' behaviour. She was also very concerned about having strong views of the family's roots and with heridity. Aunt Alexandra felt that the longer a family had been squatting on one patch of land the finer it was. She had told Atticus to speak to his children about behaving properly.
-Socialble
She was said to fit into Maycomb "like a glove". (but however not with Scout and Jem) She was the secretary of the Maycomb Ammanuensis Club and she also interacted with people in Maycomb such as Miss Maudie, Miss Stephanie, Miss Rachel and even Mr Nathan Radley had come out to greet her. This shows that she knew how to get along with people and comformed very much to Maycomb's society.
Thursday, August 27, 2009, 11:33 PM
I'm very displeased at the thought of my brother, Atticus, defending Tom Robbinson. The Finch family is a name to be upheld and now that he's taking on this case.. what would people think? Atticus should have thought it through but he seems very firm about his decision. I just wish he'd consider the consequences and also our family name.What also worries me is Jean's upbringing, i see her in these overalls running around, this is not acceptable behaviour of a young lady. The girl has no main source of female influence, no wonder she's runnin' off with the boys.
Maybe i should move in with them soon, they sure need somebody like myself to get things back in order. I shall discuss this with Atticus tomorrow. I'm sure i know what's best for them. What would they do without me?
Was that the sound of the oven? My pie is ready, got to go !
Sunday, August 23, 2009, 4:31 PM
evidences of Aunt Alexandra in TKAM in chapt. 9
Chapter 9"The fact that Aunty was a good cook was some compensation for being forced to spend a religious holiday with Fancis Hancock (her grandson)"
Page 85-86
-Scout thought that Aunt Alexandra was a good cook but she did not like her grandson Francis who she fights with later on in the chapter.
"Aunt Alexandra was Atticus's sister, but when Jem told me about changelings and siblings, I decided that she had been swapped at birth, that my grandparents had perhaps recieved a Crawford instead of a Finch. Had i ever haboured the mystical notions about mountains that seem to obsess lawyers and judges, Aunt Alexandra would have been analogous to Mount Everest: throughout my early life, she was cold and there"
"He and Aunty looked alike, but Uncle Jack made better use of his face: we were never wary of his sharp nose and chin."
Page 86
"Aunt Alexandra was a back-porch listener."
Page 93
-Scout was not close to her Aunt Alexandra and felt that her aunt was very much different from Atticus. Scout even mentioned that Aunt Alexandra might have been switched at birth with a crawford which shows that she sees her aunt as someone totally different from her Father and perhaps someone who gossips.
"But the only time i ever heard Atticus speak sharply to anyone was when i heard him say, 'Sister, i do the best i can with them!' It had something to do with my going round in overalls"
"Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of my attire. I could not possibly hope to be a lady if i wore breeches: when i said i could do nothing in a dress, she said i wasen't supposed to be doing things that required pants. Aunt Alexandra's 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; futhermore, I should be a ray of sunshine in my father's lonely life. I suggested that one could be a ray of sunshine in pants just as well, but aunty said that one had to behave like a sunbeam, that i was born good but had grown progressively worse every year."
Page 90
-This shows how Aunt Alexandra wants Scout to comform to a feminine image and it also shows how much she disapproves of Scout's attire and behaviour.
yeah,okay,chapter 9 only for now (: