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To kill a mockingbird portrayal of blacks
To kill a mockingbird portrayal of blacks
What is prejudice short essay
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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.
According to Google.com “ prejudice is a preconcerned opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience”. This a very important theme in Harper. Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird. Bob Ewell is a major sign of prejudice in the town of maycomb Alabama.
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.
“She was a widow, a chameleon lady who worked in her flower beds in an old straw hat and men's coveralls, but after her five o'clock bath she would appear on the porch and reign over the street in magisterial beauty” (59). Chameleons are distinctive lizards with the ability to turn into bright beautiful colors, yet still blend in and avoid judgment. Miss Maudie, being described as a chameleon lady, was a rare exception to prejudice. She seemed to be the only women in the small town of Maycomb not pre-judged for her clothing choices. In a rural town in 1960 Alabama, prejudice would be a common reaction due to the low exposure of diversity, and characters like aunt Alexandra definitely demonstrated to others like Miss Maudie.
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
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.
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.
All over the world there are victims of prejudice. The most common acts of prejudice are racial, or caused by rumors. Those same prejudices were committed against Boo Radley and Tom Robinson. Reducing them to become outcasts, even though they’re both creatures that cause no harm to others. Therefore Tom Robinson and Boo Radley are alike, because they’re both victims of prejudice, outcasts, and mockingbirds.
In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee shows social, gender and racial prejudice. We see prejudice when Scout says “He ain’t company, Cal, he's just a Cunningham.”(Lee, 1960, p33). This is an example of social prejudice because Scout thinks that since Walter’s family is poorer than her’s that he’s not worthy to be called company. Another example of prejudice is “ I was not so sure, but Jem told me I was being a girl, that girls always imagined things, that's why other people hated them.” (Lee, 1960, 54) This quote is an example of gender prejudice because Jem is saying that girls imagine things too much and that's why no one likes them.
The child is innocent and curious, fluid and thinking, rash and developing. Therefore as time goes on, a child will take on the opinions of others. Throughout To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee, the children of the story, Scout, Jem, Francis, and Dill, are faced with an environment of prejudice towards others. The people of this environment spread their beliefs and change the children’s minds time and time again. Their views are molded by the people who interact with them causing their innocence and perspectives to be in constant flux.
A Fading Preconception Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, the town of Maycomb prejudices Tom Robinson for his skin tone and previous experiences with negro men and women. To Kill a Mockingbird took place during The Great Depression. People were losing their jobs and beloved families. Tom Robinson, a negro man in To Kill a Mockingbird, had to deal with the entire town of Maycomb against him during the Great Depression. In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee shows how the town of Maycomb goes against a black man in the south during times of prejudice and racism.
It is in Harper Lee’s “How To Kill A Mockingbird.” that the issue of Prejudice is shown throughout the novel. It is apparent in the novel which exhibits the unethical idea of individuals, particularly
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