Misused Abilities in Literature

Paper Summary:

This paper compares protagonists, Franny in J.D. Salinger's "Franny and Zooey", Miss Price in Richard Yates' "Doctor Jack-o'-Lantern" and Jem and Scout in Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird". The paper relates that each of these characters are similarly challenged not to take their uniqueness for granted by believing they are able to do something with their talents that they are not necessarily supposed to do. The paper concludes that, through these characters, it is evident that with exceptionality, humility is also necessary in order not to display one's abilities in a disproportionate manner.

From the Paper:

"Their mission proceeds when "Jem was merely going to put the note on the end of a fishing pole and stick it through the shutters," among other carefully thought out details to fulfill their scheme of inviting Boo out for an ice cream. Scout's suggestion of knocking on the front door is quickly declined, for it is much too simple a task to complete. Throughout the novel, Jem and Scout repeatedly demonstrate inappropriate use of their creative abilities in constantly turning everything they encounter into a higher mission."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird: 40th Anniversary Edition. New York: HarperCollins, 1999.
• Salinger, J.D. Franny and Zooey. New York: Back Ray Books/Little, Brown and Company, 2001.
• Wood, James. "Like Men Betrayed." The New Yorker. 15 Dec. 2008: 88.
• Yates, Richard. "Doctor Jack-o'-Lantern." Eleven Kinds of Loneliness. 1954.

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