ipl-logo

Examples Of Racial Injustice In To Kill A Mockingbird

452 Words2 Pages

To Kill a Mockingbird is a classic American novel by Harper Lee was a book published in 1960 that took place in 1930s, Alabama. This story is narrated by a young girl named Scout Finch who explores themes of racial injustice. Two other important characters are; Tom Robbinson, a black man falsely accused of raping Mayella, a white woman, and Atticus Finch, the lawyer of Tom and Scout’s father.
An example of racial injustice in this book is spoken by Tom as he tries to explain what happened with Mayella, "I ain't ever hurt nobody, Miss Scout. I just try to help folks, but they don't want no help. They're scared of me because of what I look like, not who I am." This explains that Tom is an innocent man but is falsely accused of something he didn’t do just because of his skin color. These assumptions about skin color are wrong but also cause harm to innocent people like Tom. …show more content…

They're ugly, but those are the facts of life.” Atticus is acknowledging the bias in the legal system where white people are always believed against black people. Even though Atticus gave strong arguments and evidence for Tom, the all white court unfairly sided with Mayella. Throughout the trial Harper Lee shows us the clear racism and inequality deeply rooted in the people of Maycomb.
Another important quote that further emphasizes the theme of racial injustice is from To Kill a Mockingbird said by Atticus, “You never really understand a person until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”(Ch 3) This quote explains how important it is to have empathy, he teaches scout that she has to think about the perspective of others, even those who are different from her. By stepping into people who are discriminated against we get an understanding of what they might’ve felt. Only then can people change and overcome

Show More
Related

Atticus Finch Central Idea

453 Words | 2 Pages

The central idea of To Kill a Mockingbird is that people need to see both sides of any story, throughout the story so far it’s been about seeing both sides to every argument, fight, and conflict. One of the main plot lines is that Atticus Finch has to defend a black man who is accused of raping a white girl. In chapter nine of the book Atticus’s brother and him have a late night talk about how Scout hit Francis and how he sided with Francis without seeing Scout’s side of the story and about the Tom Robinson case. Atticus speaks very much about equality and how we need to be in the other person’s skin and body.

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Prejudice Quotes

1119 Words | 5 Pages

(100), here, Atticus knows even if everyone knows Tom is innocent and Tom’s opponent is white trash and ignorant, everyone understand that he will suffer racial discrimination and will be labelled guilty no matter the proof. Racial segregation will be the main factor as to why no one will choose a black man’s side over a white’s. No matter how much evidence there is, the mindset on blacks in Maycomb is nearly impossible to discard. “Atticus had used every tool available to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of men’s hearts Atticus had no case. Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed” (276), it is no surprise when Tom tries to escape the prison and dies doing so, because everyone knew there was no hope for him once a white accuses him.

Read More

How Does Tom Robinson Have A Fair Trial In To Kill A Mockingbird

739 Words | 3 Pages

Tom Robinson, an innocent, black man, is convicted for rape of Mayella Ewell by a jury made up of white men. Tom is setup to fail from the very beginning since it is his word against the word of of a white girl. In any court case, “when it’s a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins” (Lee 295). The jury is able to make their decision about the case just by looking at the color of Tom’s skin. Even his exceptional lawyer, Atticus Finch, is unable to convince the jury that he is not the guilty one.

Read More

How Does Atticus Show Social Justice In To Kill A Mockingbird

1079 Words | 5 Pages

He explains how it is not fair to Tom that just because he is black, he is unjustly accused of something. Atticus understands and tries to point out the fact that if it was a white man in Tom’s position, the jury would have a different opinion on the situation. Atticus displays a prime example of how someone should try to achieve social justice, even when the situation is unfair. Also, while saying his statements, Atticus exclaims how Tom felt sorry for a white woman, Mayella, and that he had been forced to put his own word against two white people. Here, Atticus reinforces the thought of how this jury is unfair to Tom.

Read More

Examples Of Ignorance In To Kill A Mockingbird

764 Words | 4 Pages

society. Lee displays that those who are ignorant will never understand equality between races. For example, when Jem is asking Atticus why did they say Tom Robinson was guilty when he obviously wasn't guilty Atticus replies with. "There's something in our world that makes men lose their heads—they couldn't be fair if they tried. In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins.

Read More

How Does Lee Show Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird

549 Words | 3 Pages

"To Kill a Mockingbird" is a novel by Harper Lee, and was written as an educational novel. It was published in 1960 and in 1961 won the Pulitzer Prize. The plot and characters are based on the observations of the author of her neighbors when she was ten years old. The novel is known for its humor and warmth, despite the serious situations of things like rape and racism. The father of the narrator, Atticus Finch, has become a model of morality for many readers, as well as an example of an honest lawyer.

Read More

Examples Of Racial Equality In To Kill A Mockingbird

679 Words | 3 Pages

These same events happening in the novel are unfortunately events that happen in today’s society. When Tom is wrongfully convicted in the novel based on the color of his skin, I compare this to the rising number of black males that are proven innocent and getting released from prison after their original guilty verdict. With advances in the DNA system, the number of murderers being proven innocent has risen, many black males have been able to walk free because of this fact. This statement means one thing, racially biased convictions. These black men, much like Tom, were wrongfully convicted, and I feel that race had something to do with this.

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Prejudice Quotes

934 Words | 4 Pages

Tom’s trial is set up to fail from the beginning, having an all-white jury and a black man’s words going up against a white man’s. Atticus simply puts it, “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” (Lee 295). The justice system of Maycomb is one built on racism and prejudice. Whatever Atticus proves means nothing to eleven of those twelve jurors.

Read More

Examples Of Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

1914 Words | 8 Pages

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel that show the life of a southern state od Alabama during the “black racism” time period, where majority of the people had the mentality that (quote) with the exception of a few. To chosen to portray it from the eyes of Scout Finch, from a child’s point of view. Living in Maycomb, in the midst of a conservative society of the 1930’s and 20’s Southern America Scout Finch is an extra ordinary child.

Read More

Examples Of Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

860 Words | 4 Pages

The novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” was written in 1960 by Harper Lee in the point of view of a young innocent girl named Scout. One of the main messages that Lee has (need a new word than – indicated or set out) is racism, it plays an important role which strongly impacts many character’s lives unfairly and changes the relationship between two. Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird” shows that it is wrong to hurt someone who does no harm to you, for example, black people are innocent but no way did they have as many rights as white people did. Black people lived hard lives because society was judgemental, irrational and most importantly, racist. As Scout and Jem grow older they learn to cope, take responsibility and are introduced to new aspects of life, one of which is racism.

Read More

Examples Of Racial Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

857 Words | 4 Pages

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.

Read More

Examples Of Justice In To Kill A Mockingbird

693 Words | 3 Pages

This is shown in the case against Tom Robinson, which reveals the society's unjust beliefs and attitudes. Lee conveys the idea that true justice is impossible to achieve in a community that denies the truth as demonstrated by the Jury’s initial acceptance of Mr. Ewell's claims that Tom Robinson was responsible for Mayella's injuries. “A lie as black as Tom Robinson’s skin” Atticus uses a simile to show that the colour of a person’s skin can convey the message of their whole character. As the trial progresses, Atticus presents evidence that reveals Mr. Ewell to be an abuser and the source of Mayella's bruises.

Read More

Examples Of Injustice In To Kill A Mockingbird

490 Words | 2 Pages

Atticus’s admonition to “stand in another person’s shoes” is the antidote to racism, prejudice and injustice. A fine example of this is the character Tom Robinson who is thought to be a lying negro who raped a child. Tom is accused of this by the character Bob Ewell even though he clearly didn’t because he is disabled, but everyone still believes this because Bob is white and Tom is black. Atticus Finch decides to be his lawyer because he wants to set a good example in his children to be fair to everyone, regardless of their color. By doing so Atticus starts to understand Tom and how they're both very similar in that they both have families that they love and care for, even though their different colors.

Read More

Deception In The Premature Burial By Edgar Allan Poe

508 Words | 3 Pages

“Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality.” a quote from the great writer Edgar Allan Poe, a brilliant man with a tarnished path (Edgar Allan Poe). The poet who was also a writer and critic, wrote in a gothic style of gloom, mystery and even death. Death was a common occurrence throughout his stories and poems happening in gruesome and even cruel ways, supposedly brought upon by themselves or even by complete accident. The tortured poet has shown throughout his literature that fear and deceit may both end in the fatality.

Read More

Examples Of Racial Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

476 Words | 2 Pages

Throughout history and throughout life racial prejudice has unfortunately been a thing for centuries. It is an unfortunate thing and can be shown and represented in different ways in many different forms, in the story To Kill a Mockingbird is one of them. Racial Prejudice was something that was not good, people would make decisions on people by looking at their face and their skin tone rather than the actual people. The story To Kill a Mockingbird depicts a family that lives in a small, mainly all white town where we see the two children Jem and Scout and their father Atticus and within the story of these two children we see the racial prejudice that surrounds them. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird the author Harper Lee uses the theme racial prejudice by showing a clear definition of the characters using slurs towards black people, how the people of Maycomb felt towards Tom Robinson and how the people in the town talk and see black people.

Read More

More about Examples Of Racial Injustice In To Kill A Mockingbird

Related Topics

Open Document