Examples Of Justice In To Kill A Mockingbird

Although some may think of justice as subjective, the only honorable verdict is one that is reached sans biases. In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, justice fails to be served as a result of people’s strongly held beliefs. However, it is Atticus Finch that proves to be a beacon of light in a dark age for the mockingbirds, or innocents, of this classic novel. Atticus possesses the ability to perceive how things would look from other people’s point of view. He attempts to instill his views of justice onto the people of Maycomb, although it is an uphill battle against prejudiced, and not to mention, ignorant citizens. Atticus doesn't succeed in revolutionizing the jury’s views so much so that Tom is acquitted, but gets them to acknowledge

A majority of those in the town had a strong bias against African-Americans and let it rule their judgment of the case. Tom Robinson was a black man on trial for rape of Mayella Ewell, a white woman. The truth of the case should be simple, no plot twists or deception once you get to the heart of the matter. Robert Evans once said, “There are three sides to every story: yours, mine, and the truth.” The gentlemen of the jury were exposed to two completely different stories, and their duty was to use those anecdotes in conjunction with logic to arrive at the truth. Mayella’s story was that “He hit me agin an’ agin… chunked me on the floor an’ choked me’n took advantage of me.” (241) She told the jury that she called Robinson over to do her a favor, and he simply turned around, ran up to her, and did despicable things to her while she was off to fetch him the money. When Robinson tells his story, however, it is sensational. Tom recounts that Mayella forcibly kissed him (260). Not only sexual assault but a taboo occurrence at this time. Interracial couples are bound to be shunned, not to mention Tom is married and indifferent to her advances. She persisted because she knew she would never experience repercussions for her actions. Mayella may be deserving of pity because of what has been done to her, but never for what she did to an innocent man. Mayella knew what would follow when

A group of men got together before the trial and went to the jail where Tom was being held. Their intentions being, to harm Robinson. In the United states, any person suspected of a crime always has the presumption of innocence on their side. These townspeople made a snap decision of who was the true victim of this case, without being aware of any perspective other than their own, supplied with rumors. The only reason he wasn’t fatally injured at the hands of a prejudiced mob, was Atticus. “In the light from its bare bulb, Atticus was sitting propped against the front door.” (201) Atticus suspected something may be happening behind the scenes and stood guard. To think, if he hadn’t, if his children hadn’t driven the mob out by appealing to their humanity, he would have been dead before he was even determined innocent or guilty. The men that day acted 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,” the same assumption that was acted upon the day the jury decided what the truth of the case would be (273). Atticus didn’t just protect Tom from bodily harm, he did his case justice. He acknowledged “that boy might go to the chair, but he’s not going till