Nathan Radley Quotes

Then I saw the shadow. It was the shadow of a man with a hat on. At first I thought it was a tree, but there was no wind blowing, and tree trunks never walked. The back porch was bathed in moonlight, And the shadow, crisp and toast, moved across the porch towards Jem.
Dill saw it next. He put his hands to his face.
When it crossed Jem, Jem saw it. He put his arms over his head and went rigid.

– Harper Lee

To Kill a Mockingbird, Chapter 6. Scout joins Jem and Dill to invade the Radley yard at night and get a sneak look at Boo Radley through a window. When the shadow of a man walks past they get the fright of their lives and flee. Not a minute too soon, as Nathan Radley then fires off his shotgun into the air.

“Mr. Radley, ah – did you put cement in that hole in that tree down yonder?”
“Yes,” he said. “I filled it up.”
“Why’d you do it, sir?”
“Tree’s dying. You plug ’em with cement when they’re sick. You ought to know that, Jem.”

– Harper Lee

To Kill a Mockingbird, Chapter 7. When the Radley tree is filled with cement by Nathan, it symbolizes the end of Boo Radley’s attempts to communicate with Scout and Jem. He does this through the gifts he leaves in the tree for them. They represent the friendship he has towards the children. Nathan filled the knot hole with cement because he caught Boo leaving presents there for the children. Atticus told them the tree didn’t seem sick.

“Come on in, Jem,” I said.
“After while.”
He stood there until nightfall, and I waited for him. When we went in the house I saw he had been crying; his face was dirty in the right places, but I thought it odd that I had not heard him.

– Harper Lee

To Kill a Mockingbird, Chapter 7. Scout describes how Jem reacts when he discovers the hole in the Radley tree has been filled with cement by Nathan Radley and therefore no more gifts can be left. Jem was unable to thank Boo for the gifts that he left them in the tree.
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