Examples Of Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

“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. Alexandra is the

Throughout the book, Aunt Alexandra tries to change Scout’s opinion of others by expressing her opinion of how “finch women” should act; when Scout talks about inviting a Cunningham to their home Aunt Alexandra is quick to refute. Scout says,"Soon's school starts I'm gonna ask Walter home to dinner... ‘we'll see about that’, aunt Alexandra said, a declaration that with her was always a threat... Jean Louise there's no doubt in my mind that they are good folks there just not our kind of folks... The thing is, you can scrub Walter Cunningham tell he shines, you can put him in shoes and a new suit, but he'll never be like Jem. Besides, there is a drinking streak in that family a mile wide. Finch women are not interested in that sort of people” (299). In actuality, Walter was a friend of Scout and did not display the hatred of Atticus during the Tom Robinson case that many other kids did, which would be something even aunt Alexandra would respect if she had known. Instead, aunt Alexandra chose to judge Walter on his family’s background over his actual demeanor, displaying prejudice to even a child. When aunt Alexandra first arrives, even Scout seems to understand the prejudice exhibited in aunt Alexandra’s expression. "I never understood her occupation with heredity. Somewhere, I had received the impression that fine folk were people who did the best they could with the sense they had, but aunt

On numerous occasions stated previously, aunt Alexandra appears to push Scout to act like a proper “Finch woman”. When Scout tries to invite Walter Cunningham to her house, aunt Alexandra is quick to end the idea and says Walter is not someone that “Finch women” associate with. Aunt Alexandra also refuses to let the children go to a black church with Calpurnia. Aunt Alexandra also constantly tells Scout that she shouldn't be doing anything that requires wearing pants because “finch women” are lady-like. Many people interpret her harsh behaviors as aunt Alexandra being a genuinely mean and uneducated person, but another way her actions could be seen is that all aunt Alexandra wants is for Scout to succeed in life. Her form of success may be prejudiced to how she succeeds, yet she still shows hope through her conversations, opinions, and tones. Aunt Alexandra wants Scout to grow up and become a great person; even if her definition of “great” is a lot different from Scout’s. Just like Miss Maudie, Scout has a different agenda than most women of Maycomb and hopefully as she matures she will be able to escape the prejudice just as well. This can be tied back to another theme that is exemplified in To Kill A Mockingbird. Although one side of a person may be the only one exhibited, every person has a good and bad side, and aunt Alexandra’s is inevitably one to be