In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee conveys that prejudice divides communities and that persecution of innocent people is evil; furthermore; these two minor themes reinforce the major thematic idea that a simple assumption can divide people. When Tom Robinson is put on trial for supposedly raped Mayella Ewell, the racism in Maycomb surfaces and creates conflict. In the novel, a stranger says, “You know what we want,” ‘another man said.’ “Get aside from the door, Mr. Finch.”(172). Some drunken men want to harm Tom Robinson for the wrong that he did.
Throughout these five chapters surrounding Tom Robinson’s trial, it is apparent that the characters are victims of prejudice due to Maycomb’s race relations. Harper Lee introduces three characters that drives the main plot of To Kill a Mockingbird: Tom Robinson, Mayella Ewell, and Bob Ewell. Atticus Finch and Homer Gilmer pursued questions regarding the witnesses’ lives that are relevant to what occurred during the said incident. The questioning covered important points such as Bob Ewell being left-handed, Mayella’s inconclusive testimonies, and Tom Robinson’s reason for running away. It also included Mayella Ewell’s personal suffering that is caused by the known prejudice: “She was as sad, I thought as what Jem called a mixed child:
Prejudice; a preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience (https://www.google.com/search). The book, To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, portrays examples of racial and social prejudice. It is relevant to the issues we face in present times as well as the time the book was published in 1960 during the great depression. Some elements observed in To Kill A Mockingbird were characters, tone, and setting. These elements helped the reader connect to the book in a special way and give understanding.
Prejudice in To Kill a Mockingbird “Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future and renders the present inaccessible” by Maya Angelou. When racism, sexism, and classism exist in society people are harmed by prejudice. In “to kill a Mockingbird” Harper Lee shows how education, family values, and independent thoughts can overcome those obstacles. “It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences” by Audre Lorde in Our Dead Behind Us: Poems.
Throughout TKAM, prejudice is prevalent towards characters such as Tom Robinson and the Cunninghams. Bob Ewell is the antagonist of the novel as Lee portrays people who are racist as “evil” and depicts figures like Atticus who are against racism as “good”. Bob Ewell’s hatred towards African-American people in Maycomb is extreme, which resulted in the death of Tom Robinson after successfully forcing Mayella through abuse to accuse Tom of rape. Prejudice results in social inequality especially between the whites and blacks, this is displayed in dialogue between Atticus and Jem in which he states “In our courts, when it’s a white man vs a black man. The white man always wins”, Lee uses juxtaposition to compare “a white mans word” symbolising privilege
The story, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is about prejudice, which reveals that prejudice can cause wrongful imprisonment. The character Tom Robinson represents the struggles and injustices faced by African Americans in the 1930s South. Prejudice was just one of the many things they tolerated during this period, and Tom shows this as he is judged on his skin and imprisoned unlawfully. Not only this, but Maycomb is a predominantly racist town, which helps develop the motif. When Harper Lee made Maycomb set in the South, it showed an aspect of life that African Americans who lived in southern areas could associate with.
Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird has a recurring theme of prejudice. Throughout the novel the narrator Scout Finch, Arthur “Boo” Radley and colored people are faced with prejudice. Prejudice is an assumption about someone based solely on what they believe is true or on what they were told or taught. Scout experiences prejudice because of her age, Boo because he is seldom seen and colored people because of the color of their skin.
To Kill a Mockingbird (TKAMB) was written by Harper Lee in 1960 taking place in 1930s Maycomb County, Alabama. TKAMB is a recount of Lee (Scout)’s childhood, during which her father (Atticus) defended Tom Robinson who was charged with raping Mayella Ewell. Other characters include Calpurnia (their colored housekeeper) and Jem (Scout’s brother). As a result, TKAMB runs deep with gender, racial and social prejudices. These prejudices surrounded the people of Maycomb every day and influenced their outlook of the world, thus giving them such wayward views on the world.
There were many examples of prejudice in “To Kill a Mockingbird”, but a few of them were much more noticeable than others. There was a great deal of prejudice against black people, specifically Tom Robinson, in this book, this was largely because of the time era this book was set in and, because this book was set in a predominantly slave state after the slavery abolition act. There was also an abundance of prejudice against Boo Radley just because they didn’t know who he was and as a community they deemed it necessary for some explanation of him staying inside all the time. Both of these men faced the consequences of rejection from society just because there was prejudice against them.
Prejudice is preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience. So how would that be represented in the book to kill a mockingbird? Well the main character Scout learns about different types of prejudice that are illustrated by the actions of the towns people towards Boo Radley, the Ewells and Tom Robinson. Scout learns that they way Dyl, Jem, and herself look at and judge Boo Radley is very prejudice because they do not know how Boo Radley really is.
In the novel “To Kill a Mocking Bird”, there is a variety amount of complications and situations going around. The novel shows how prejudice and racism is such a huge problem. There are so many different ways that it is portrayed and shows how many of the characters deal with this situation. However, there are three characters whom do not show prejudice or racism throughout the book. Atticus Finch, Scout, and Tom Robinson are three characters that do not show prejudice.
Prejudice is an inevitable aspect of society that has affected people in negative lights. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout demonstrates her growth in understanding social issues that occur in the typical American society of Maycomb, where discrimination occurs towards both the lower-income population and racial minority. Calpurnia acts like a parental figure to inspire Scout of the invisible yet existing prejudice towards the economically disadvantaged people. When Jem invites Walter Cunningham to dine at his house, Scout disappoints Calpurnia by disrespecting Walter at the dinner table. Due to the sense of responsibility in the family, Calpurnia calls her out to educate her that, “‘[no] matter who they are, anybody sets foot in this
The central idea that develops throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird is racism because throughout the book many people had prejudice, scared, and peer pressured into being racist towards the black people who lived in Maycomb. To Kill a Mockingbird showed what living with racism back then was like and it also showed the reader that many people had prejudice. Prejudice is shown all throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird and is one of the main themes that develops throughout the book. Prejudice is when someone judge others by how they look before getting to know the person personally.
Prejudice has existed in many forms around the world for many years, be it in the form of racism, classism, or sexism. In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird prejudice can be seen everywhere in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, where the protagonist Scout lives with her brother Jem. The types of prejudice found in Maycomb include: sexism against women, classism against the poor, and racism against colored people. Although prejudice has these many forms, it can be overcome through personal relationships. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the characters of Arthur “Boo" Radley, Mr. Dolphus, and Mrs. Dubose to reveal the novel’s theme of how prejudice can be overcome.
“If the civil and political rights of both races be equal, one cannot be inferior to the other civilly or politically. If one race be inferior to the other socially, the Constitution of the United States cannot put them upon the same plane.” (Justice Henry Brown of Michigan) This sentence was the stated reason on why separate but equal was confirmed as constitutional. This verdict, especially where it states, “If one race is inferior to the other socially, the Constitution of the United States cannot put them upon the same plane.”
