To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel by Harper Lee published in 1960. It was immediately successful, winning the Pulitzer Prize, and has become a classic of modern American literature. The plot and characters are loosely based on the author's observations of her family and neighbors, as well as on an event that occurred near her hometown in 1936, when she was 10 years old.
The novel is renowned for its warmth and humor, despite dealing with the serious issues of rape and racial inequality. The narrator's father, Atticus Finch, has served as a moral hero for many readers and as a model of integrity for lawyers. One critic explains the novel's impact by writing, "In the twentieth century, To Kill a Mockingbird is probably the most widely read book dealing with race in America, and its protagonist, Atticus Finch, the most enduring fictional image of racial heroism."
As a Southern Gothic novel and a Bildungsroman, the primary themes of To Kill a Mockingbird involve racial injustice and the destruction of innocence. Scholars have noted that Lee also addresses issues of class, courage, compassion, and gender roles in the American Deep South. The book is widely taught in schools in the United States with lessons that emphasize tolerance and decry prejudice. Despite its themes, To Kill a Mockingbird has been subject to campaigns for removal from public classrooms, often challenged for its use of racial epithets.
Reaction to the novel varied widely upon publication. Literary analysis of it is sparse, considering the number of copies sold and its widespread use in education. Author Mary McDonough Murphy, who collected individual impressions of the book by several authors and public figures, calls To Kill a Mockingbird "an astonishing phenomenon".In 2006, British librarians ranked the book ahead of the Bible as one "every adult should read before they die".[3] It was adapted into an Oscar-winning film in 1962 by director Robert Mulligan, with a screenplay by Horton Foote. Since 1990, a play based on the novel has been performed annually in Harper Lee's hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. To date this is Lee's only published novel, although Go Set a Watchman is scheduled to be published on July 14, 2015. Lee continues to respond to the book's impact even though she has refused any personal publicity for herself or the novel since 1964.
二、中文简介
《杀死一只知更鸟》（英语：To Kill a Mockingbird），直译应为“杀死一只反舌鸟”，台译“梅冈城故事”，是美国作家哈珀·李于1960年发行的小说，荣获当年度普利策奖。此书刚出版便获得极大成功，并成为美国现代文学的经典。小说的剧情与人物部分取材自作者对其家人与邻居的观察，以及一起发生在作者10岁时（1936年）故乡附近的一起事件。
虽然故事题材涉及种族不平等与强暴等严肃议题，其文风仍温暖风趣。小说以第一人称著成，叙述者的父亲阿提克斯·芬奇在书中为道德端正的角色，亦是正直律师的典范。一名评论家这样解释小说有巨大影响力的原因：“在二十世纪，《杀死一只知更鸟》大概是美国最广为阅读的种族相关书籍，而它的主角阿提克斯·芬奇则塑造了种族正义最不朽的小说形象。”
《杀死一只知更鸟》是一部南方哥德小说与教育小说，主题涉及种族歧视与滥判无辜。学者指出哈珀·李着墨于阶级、勇气、同理心，以及美国南部诸州性别角色议题。在英语系国家，《杀死一只知更鸟》常被纳入学校教材中，传递宽恕和反偏见的信息。《杀死一只知更鸟》也因其种族歧视性语言而被列为文学挑战性书目。
对小说的评价千差万别。虽然对小说的文学评论甚少，但因其销量巨大而在教育界广为使用。作家玛丽·麦克多诺·墨菲从一些作家和出版社那里搜集意见后，认为小说的成功是个“令人吃惊的现象”。[3]1962年，小说被改编为同名奥斯卡获奖电影。自1990年起，由小说改编的戏剧在作者故乡门罗维尔年年上演。至今为止，《杀死一只知更鸟》是李唯一出版的小说；虽然就此李对外界一直有回应，但她自1964年起拒绝对她个人或小说做任何宣传。
1932年，大萧条时期的美国南方小镇——阿拉巴马州的梅岗，早年丧妻的父亲阿蒂克斯·芬奇，一位律师，与他的两个小孩，在这里过着平凡而又幸福的生活。无论对子女、还是小镇居民，阿蒂克斯都充满爱，而且这种爱体现在每一个细节当中。他实实在在地帮助穷人赢得诉讼；毫不吝啬自己对邻居老太太的祝福与赞美；他和孩子们平等友好地相处着，孩子们甚至可以直呼他的名字。 一次，阿蒂克斯对孩子们说：“我射过一只知更鸟，但有种负罪感，因为我想，它没做错什么，还为我们唱歌；它不会骚扰民居，真的对我们好，它用心为我们歌唱。”知更鸟成了他自己的人生为之尽责的一个象征，也成为对自由和平等追求的一个标志。 一天，小镇的法官先生请他为一名叫汤姆·罗宾逊的黑人辩护，他被指控殴打并强奸年轻白人女子梅亚拉。阿蒂克斯的命运似乎开始有所改变，因为他的命运就和这种“知更鸟”般的信念联系在一起。实际上，他已经走过的人生都是在实践知更鸟的向往。只不过这一次有些不同，也要艰难得多。 最大的不同就是他似乎在“冒天下之大不韪”。在那个年代，在南方的农村，普遍的“民情”还是白人对黑人有根深蒂固的偏见，虽然距离南北战争结束已经有四分之三世纪，但要消除种族歧视，至少在制度上实现种族平等，还有很长很长的路。这种偏见甚至深深投射在小镇的众多黑人们身上，直接的表现就是他们还没有勇气或者没有办法拿出改变自己命运的行动。他们只能依靠阿蒂克斯这样的律师来说话。所以，阿蒂克斯以一己之力，要想对抗沿袭已久的真实“民情”，注定会失败。 巨大的压力从他一接手案件时就发生了。他受到了原告的父亲，一位经常烂醉如泥的、极端仇视黑人的种族分子辱骂和威胁；他的刚入小学的女儿，斯科特，因为别的孩子的侮辱而和人打架；镇上充满流言蜚语，最后演化为行动。为了防止一群镇民将罗宾逊从拘押所抢出打死，他不得不通宵守在门口。 但是，阿蒂克斯有自己的准则，他是白人，但他更是一名律师、一位父亲、一个每天和黑人们相处的平民。所以，他相信法律可以维护人的尊严，法律赋予他的工作是不可推辞的；因为爱别人和赢得了孩子、镇民们的爱，所以他往往在平淡的话语和行动中践行自己的责任；更关键的是，同样根深蒂固地，在他自己看来，一个人的生命无论如何比他到底是白人还是黑人要重要得多。所以，我们必须理解，原告父亲埃威的辱骂“你是黑人的维护者”，在阿蒂克斯看来，并不丢脸，当然，也没有什么值得荣耀。“平等”是阿蒂克斯看待人事不变的眼光。 是的，这些就是他所认定的尊严。当镇上的谣言试图阻止他为黑人罗宾逊辩护时，他仍然继续向前，他为此的解释一样朴实：“有很多原因，最重要的原因是，如果我不这样做，我在镇上抬不起头。”难道他顶着镇上人的非议这样去做，就已经抬起头了吗？这时我们发现，原来他的“面子”，不是寄予别人的看法，而是出于内在的准则。 这个准则到现在还是统一的。那就是在阿蒂克斯心目中，维护法律、捍卫正义、查明真相三者之间简直就是一回事。他内心深处不相信这三者可能出现的矛盾、冲突与断裂。或者，即使他也清楚地明白，“世上有很多丑恶的事，孩子，我希望能够使它们远离你们，但那是不可能的”，然而，他仍然认为在真相、正义和法律面前，这些丑恶也可以被战胜、被制伏。难怪直到最后，罗宾逊在押往监狱的路上因为试图逃跑而被打死后，他还恋恋不忘如果上诉，还有希望胜诉........
"to kill a mockingbird" belongs to those who are older movies, movies have a sense of reality makes it difficult to imagine. the film is full of the past eranostalgia, we can even from the movie feel the courage and doubt. one handfull of romantic color, on the other hand, but also by the realistic, like a ray of light through the dark forest leads us to seek the truth. the film is based onhubble. li adapted from the novel, gregory. one of the most representativeworks of parker movie career. "to kill a mockingbird" is a pioneer of liberalhollywood in the early 60. that was when the united states domestic black and white conflicts intensified the occasion, film though the great depression when things, is that the domestic status quo innuendo.
《杀死一只知更鸟》属于那种比较老式的电影，影片有一种让人难以想象的真实感。影片中充满了对过去那种时代的缅怀之情，我们甚至能从电影中感受到那个时代的勇气与怀疑。一方面充满了浪漫主义色彩，另一方面又深受当时现实主义的影响，宛若一丝光明穿越黑暗的森林引领我们去寻找真理。影片根据哈伯。李的同名小说改编而成，格里高利。派克电影生涯中最具代表的作品之一。《杀死一只知更鸟》是好莱坞60年代初自由主义的先声。当时正值美国国内黑人与白人矛盾冲突激化之际，电影虽然说的是经济大萧条时的事情，其实正是影射当时国内的现状。
"To kill a Mockingbird" belongs to those who are older movies, movies have a sense of reality makes it difficult to imagine. The film is full of the past eranostalgia, we can even from the movie feel the courage and doubt. One handfull of romantic color, on the other hand, but also by the realistic, like a ray of light through the dark forest leads us to seek the truth. The film is based onhubble. Li adapted from the novel, gregory. One of the most representativeworks of Parker movie career. "To kill a Mockingbird" is a pioneer of liberalHollywood in the early 60. That was when the United States domestic black and white conflicts intensified the occasion, film though the great depression when things, is that the domestic status quo innuendo.
《杀死一只知更鸟》属于那种比较老式的电影，影片有一种让人难以想象的真实感。影片中充满了对过去那种时代的缅怀之情，我们甚至能从电影中感受到那个时代的勇气与怀疑。一方面充满了浪漫主义色彩，另一方面又深受当时现实主义的影响，宛若一丝光明穿越黑暗的森林引领我们去寻找真理。影片根据哈伯。李的同名小说改编而成，格里高利。派克电影生涯中最具代表的作品之一。《杀死一只知更鸟》是好莱坞60年代初自由主义的先声。当时正值美国国内黑人与白人矛盾冲突激化之际，电影虽然说的是经济大萧条时的事情，其实正是影射当时国内的现状。
『此①文为顿格文库②文章，不得自行转载，违者必追究！』
