In To Kill a Mockingbird by harper Lee, despite of him having a public trial, Tom Robinson, an innocent man was proven guilty, also his trial that was completely and utterly unfair, one-sided, and even discriminatory. This novel takes place in Maycomb, Alabama, a made up town. Robinson was working for the Ewell’s and one day Tom was invited into the house to fix a door. Tom Robinson was accused of raping and abusing a white woman, Mayella Ewell, when her father is the one who abused her. The jury had a lack of evidence to prove that Tom was guilty, and also ignored the evidence that proves his innocence.
Not everything in life is fair and sometimes there is nothing that can be done about it. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee there is a case in court that mainly involves four characters; Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson, Bob Ewell and Mayella Ewell. Atticus is defending Tom Robinson who was accused of raping Bob’s daughter, Mayella Ewell. Atticus is known to treat everyone equal and he is very respectful. Tom Robinson is respectful as well but he is also a black man.
Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird suggests that racial prejudice influenced the injustices Tom Robinson and his family experienced. Maycomb’s corrupt legal system contributed to the unfair trial and conviction of Tom Robinson, a black man who was falsely accused of raping a white woman. As the Tom Robinson’s trial began, it was visible that there were no black jury members. During Tom Robinson’s trial, Jem Finch asks his father Atticus “why don’t people like us and Miss Maudie ever sit on juries?
To Kill a Mockingbird In the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, one of the main characters, Atticus Finch, faces a trial that could change his life. He is appointed to defend an innocent African American named Tom Robinson that was accused of assaulting a white man’s daughter. Atticus’s belief is that no matter how hard the task at hand is, or even if you know there’s no chance of winning, you should still give it your all and try to win. Atticus states that “simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try and win” (Lee 101).
Justice was something hard to come by in the 1930’s when the courts were biased to only one side of the society. The author approaches this topic through Tom Robinson when he was accused of raping Mayella Ewell. Even if Tom was innocent, he’s still a colored person, so he was upholded as guilty and died as he attempted to escape. In chapter 23, Atticus said, "There's something in our world that makes men lose their heads—they couldn't be fair if they tried.
In the book, Tom Robinson is on trial in 1930’s Alabama for being accused of raping Mayella Ewell and, in the end; found guilty, sent to jail, and ultimately killed. However, the reason he is found guitty is because the color of skin. Tom Robinson is innocent due to the character of Bob Ewell, the racism of the story and its setting, and the trail and its aftermath. The first feature of Tom’s innocence to examine is the character of the man who accused him, Bob Ewell. On Page 41, Atticus says the following, “ It’s against the law alright, and it’s certainly bad, but when a man spends his relief checks on green whiskey his children have a way from crying from hunger pains” (Lee).
Being falsely accused of rape is devastating enough as it is in today’s society; being a black man falsely accused of raping a white woman during the Great Depression is practically a death sentence. And in To Kill a Mockingbird, it is. Though just sentenced to prison, which Atticus hopes to appeal, Tom could not handle the sentence and fled, which ultimately cost him his life. The case, Atticus knew, would be an uphill battle, because of the deeply held prejudices of the citizens of Maycomb. In his defense of Tom, Atticus says, “...You gentlemen would go along with them on the assumption—the evil assumption—that all Negroes lie, that all Negroes are basically immoral beings, that all Negro men are not to be trusted around our women” (Lee, 273).
During the novel, Atticus is asked to defend a black man, named Tom Robinson, in a case where he has been accused of rape. Throughout the trial, Atticus clearly proves to the court and jury that Tom is innocent and that the truthful reason that Mayella Ewell convicted Tom Robinson of rape was because “she did something that in our society is unspeakable: she kissed a black man.” (pg. 225). He then goes into further explain that “she has committed no crime, has merely broken a rigid and time-honoured code of our society, a code so severe that whoever breaks it is hounded from our midst as unfit to live with” (pg. 224). Due to the severity of prejudice against black people in Maycomb, Atticus knew that Tom Robinson would be named guilty as the jury was made up of twelve white men.
Racism is a major and prevalent theme that is apparent in To Kill A Mockingbird. From Calpurnia being subsidized to racial prejudice, to Tom Robinson’s court case, there are many examples that pertain to racism and how it subsidizes bias in the judicial court system. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Atticus, a lawyer, is appointed to proving the innocence of Tom Robinson, a black man who is accused of the rape of Mayella Ewell. As the court scene proceeds, Atticus provides substantial evidence proving of Tom Robinson’s innocence but fails to succeed in doing so.
Essay In the novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee, there are many important messages shown throughout the book. However the primary focus was set on racial prejudice that existed in the 1930s-1940’s in the fictional town of Maycomb County. The racism in the novel was very much a reality in 1930s-1940s America. A very good example of the racial prejudice that existed was in the courtroom during Tom Robinson’s trial, an innocent Negro man held against his will for a crime he did not commit.
In To Kill a Mockingbird there are many sections in the book that really stand out as to what was important to characters in the book during that time. One of times was during the court case of Tom Robinson, a black man wrongfully being accused of rape by a white woman named Mayella Ewells. Atticus, his lawyer and father of the main character Scout, was stating his closing statement to all of juries and people who had come to watch the case. Atticus brings up a lot of good points about equality. “Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some Negro men are not to be trusted around women-black or white.
Tom Robinson is a young African-American who's been accused of raping and abusing Mayella Ewell, a young and closeted white woman. Racial discrimination is hinted throughout Tom’s trial as Atticus Finch explains to Jem that a white man’s word will always win over that of a black man’s - "... In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins. They're ugly, but those are the facts of life" (220). Atticus explains to Jem that in the courts of Maycomb, a black man’s state of innocence or guilt is truly determined by a white man’s testimony.
Atticus is a lawyer who was appointed by Judge John Taylor to defend Tom Robinson, a black man who allegedly raped Mayella Ewell. The people in the town expected Atticus to spend as little time as possible defending Robinson. However, to their surprise, Atticus goes out of his way to try his best as a lawyer even though he already knows that the case is going to be lost. The trial would be Tom Robinson’s (a black man) word against the Ewell’s (a white family) word. Atticus says, “In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always win” (295).
In To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper lee, a book taking place in the 1900’s-an era where racism was a matter of the utmost importance. Atticus Finch-A white folk, father of Jem and Scout, raising two children on his own due to the loss of their mother is known to his family and the town of Maycomb County, an inheritably racist county as a niger-lover is taking the role of being Tom Robinson- a black male being accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a nineteen year old white female. She states-Tom Robinson broke into her house and took utmost advantage of her; raped her. This leads to a trial in which Atticus acts as Tom’s lawyer and defends his client from what he has been accused of; rape. Atticus becomes very assiduous in order to prove his client innocent, despite the fact that Atticus is told no black human has proven right over a white human.
Scout’s father, Atticus Finch, is appointed by the state to defend an African American falsely accused of rape. Because of the widespread disease of racism in Maycomb, Alabama, Atticus knows he has lost the trial before it has begun, yet he still believes, “Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win” (Lee 101). Atticus fights fiercely for justice and the acquittal of Tom Robinson, but Maycomb’s jury cannot see past their stuffy prejudice. The jury unanimously condemns Tom Robinson as guilty, ignoring the truth but not the color of his skin.
