why is methylbenzene more reactive than benzene?

why is methylbenzene more reactive than benzene?

I know that the methyl group increases the reactivity of the benzene ring, particularly making it more succeptable to electrophilic attack, but why??

Methylbenzene is more reactive because the C atom of the methyl group acts as an "electron pushing" group pushing the delocalised electrons one side leaving it more vunerable to electophilic attack.

I'm doing Higher by the way, not A-level, so im really sorry if anything I say is just SQA info, anyway:


c
c
c c
c c
c

dolocalised electrons 'circling' above and below ring,
(1 hydrogen atom to each carbon - except the methyl group obviously; CH3)
benzene is unreactive because of it's incredibly strong structure,
however the methyl group in toluene has 3 H atoms (making it reactive) and if you think about the structure, the methyl group is alot easier for other substances to 'attack'

Can someone please explain the structure of a benzene ring and how exactly this 'delocalised cloud' of electrons is formed? I know it's got something to do with delocalised electrons in the p-orbitals of the C atoms or something.... Can someone explain?
Also, could someone just go through the whole benzene ring reactions quite briefly please?
Thanks!

Although not strictly true, think of the ring containing alternating single/double C-C bonds. Basically, electrons are just shared between the carbons. Haven't done this for a while, forgot everything

OP - do not lissten to this / ignore it. You will not got any credit for the kekulee structure of benzene.

Listen spelt with one s, Kekule without an extra e; brush up your spelling before you go slating people. I wasn't even answering the OP's question. All I was trying to say, it's easier to visualize and work with when you see it as swapping electrons (for example, when you add a new ion/molecule to the complex then it is goes around benzene ring and is thrown out afterwards but in that time no new compound can take its place).

Hybridisation is the only way you should ever think - no resonance structures.

Although we know the structure of benzene is delocalised we draw kekule's structure at university and rationalise chemistry using resonance structures

Methylbenzene (toluene) is more reactive because the methyl group is electron donating (positive inductive effect) and thus makes the benzene ring more electron rich and so a better nucleophile to attack electrophiles in electrophilic substitution reactions.