Aunt Alexandra is certainly one of the biggest snobs of
Harper Lee's characters in To Kill a
Mockingbird.
By definition a
snob is "one who blatantly imitates, fawningly admires, or
vulgarly seeks association with those regarded as social superiors; one who tends to
rebuff, avoid, or ignore those regarded as inferior; one who has an offensive air of
superiority in matters of knowledge or taste." Snobbish
behavior, or snobbery, is the act of being a
snob.
Alexandra exhibits these traits several times during
the novel. She holds her family heritage in much too high regard, considering the
Finches one of Maycomb's elite. She feels Walter Cunningham Jr. is "trash" and beneath
associating with Scout or visiting their home. Scout combats her aunt's tendencies by
purposely asking about questionable members of the Finch family--Cousin Joshua, for
example, who was "locked up" for trying to shoot the university president--knowing it
will anger her. In Chapter 23, however, Jem and Scout decide not to argue with Alexandra
when she berates Walter Jr. Jem comforts the sobbing Scout, soothes her with a Tootsie
Roll and then explains that the "Old Family stuff's foolishness" is all that their aunt
has to hang on to since "all we've got's background and not a dime to our
names."
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