Prejudice & Racism
Prejudice is defined in the Merriam-Webster dictionary as a “preconceived judgement or opinion”, while racism according to Oxford Languages is defined as a “prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism by an individual, community, or institution against a person or people on the basis of their membership in a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority or marginalized”. In one US survey, 15.8% of students reported experiencing race-based bullying or harassment. To Kill a Mockingbird illustrates the effects of prejudice and racism. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee portraits the themes racism and prejudice using Tom Robinson and Calpurnia.
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When Aunt Alexandra is talking to Atticus about Calpurnia, she says, “You’ve got to do something about her, Atticus […] And don’t try to get around it. You’ve to face it sooner or later and it might well be tonight. We don’t need her now.” (Lee, 155-156) Aunt Alexandra shows racism and prejudice because she wants to get rid of Calpurnia just because she’s an African American, and even before, Scout asked Atticus for permission to go to Cal’s house, but Aunt Alexandra almost instantly said “no”.
Harper Lee also uses Tom Robinson to portrait prejudice and racism. In the trial, Tom says, “Yes suh. I felt sorry for her (Mayella), she seemed to try more’n the rest of ‘em”, and Mr. Gilmer responds, “You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her…?” (Lee, 225) and even Scout mentions that the audience didn’t like Tom’s response. This is because, in those times, African Americans couldn’t judge white people, so this shows he racism and prejudice the town