The Historical and Cultural Context of To Kill a Mockingbird, Blues Ain’t No Mockingbird, and The House On Mango Street

Many stories rely on the reader knowing certain information about their story. Information that is very helpful if known before reading. Doing so gives you a smoother, more entertaining read of the story. Allowing you to follow along with the author as he/she intended for you to read. The Historical and cultural context in the study of literature presents the reader with a great understanding of why certain things occurred in stories like "To kill a mockingbird", "Blues Ain't No Mockingbird”, and “The House on Mango Street”. One example of cultural context is in the story, "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. Aunt Alexandra portrayed a disappointed outlook on Scout's choices and behavior because they did not represent the ways of the ideal female at the time.

Alexandra thought this way because at that time women did not fully fight for the breaking of gender roles until the 1960s. During the Depression, women fought more for wages and voting rights. The women activists at the time were mostly working-class women. Aunt Alexandra is a woman slightly above that class so she did not see the need to fight for rights and acting in a different manner because she feels she is perfectly fine in the situation she is currently in. The use of cultural and historical and context, in this case, helps the reader understand the reasoning behind Aunt Alexandra's disappointment in Scout's tomboyish behavior. Another example the benefits of historical context is through the story, "Blues Ain’t No Mocking Bird” by Toni Cade Bambara.

A film crew arrives at the doorstep of a family where they ask to film them to promote the United States food stamp program. The context behind this is that the Food Stamp Act was passed to help the poor families in need. This context also helps to identify the time period the story takes place which is probably shortly after the passing of the Food Stamp Act. The film crew shows itself to be going into great lengths to get footage, even stepping on the family’s flowerbed without apparent notice. The use of cultural and historical context in "Blues Ain't No Mockin bird" allows the reader to identify the film crew's motive behind trying to film the family and also helps identify the time period the story takes place in. A third example from "The House on Mango Street" by Sandra Cisneros. It tells a tale about a young girl named Esperanza moving into a small and rundown house with her family.

Order custom essay The Historical and Cultural Context of To Kill a Mockingbird, Blues Ain’t No Mockingbird, and The House On Mango Street with free plagiarism report

450+ experts on 30 subjects Starting from 3 hours delivery

Get Essay Help

Although it is better than their previous home, Esperanza still believes that it is not an adequate environment in which to grow up in. The context behind this is that poor families cannot afford a safe place to live in, they are forced to locate themselves in a neighborhood with crime and bad role models. Esperanza confirms this belief in her new bad environment when her father's laundromat is robbed and later she is sexually assaulted after her friend leaves. As a young girl who's in the process of becoming a young woman, with the treat of assault, it can be a very traumatizing time to go through. But, Esperanza uses that to her advantage. She motivates herself to move out and to push herself to make it in life through writing. She wrote her stories in secret only sharing with older women she trusted. She did so hoping that later she could share them to create a better life for herself. The use of cultural and historical context helps the reader to identify the cause of Esperanza's traumatic experiences.

In conclusion, the use of cultural and historical context helps readers identify thing such as Scouts tomboyish behavior in "To Kill a Mockingbird". The film crew's motive behind filming the family in, "Blues Ain't No Mockin Bird”. Lastly, the motivations behind Esperanza's experiences in, "The House on Mango Street”. It allows for the reader to have an extra understanding on the things that the characters in a book, story, or even poem experience. If students don’t learn about the historical or cultural context of a story they cannot fully grasp the meaning of it. After reading they will be left puzzled because they interpreted it the wrong way. The role of cultural and historical context is undoubtedly essential for all literary works no matter what genre and no matter how old.

Don't let plagiarism ruin your grade

Run a free check or have your essay done for you

Check my essay Hire Writer