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Examples Of Social Inequality In To Kill A Mockingbird

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Elise Moore Mrs. Gagnon English H Period 6 March 7, 2023 Social Inequality within To Kill A Mockingbird “‘Prejudice, a dirty word, and faith, a clean one, have something in common: they both begin where reason ends’”(Lee 1048). The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is an intriguing, realistic fiction story. Set in a small town in Alabama during the 1930s, Maycomb is made up of multitudinous social classes. Due to the majority of the county being white, several people of color undergo bias. However, the penurious and females are viewed as inferior in Maycomb and subject to such bias. Social inequality is discrimination against individuals in a society due to countless attributes. Human prejudice and divisions within society due to …show more content…

After almost getting caught by Atticus playing a game in which the children pretend as if they are the Radleys, a secretive neighborhood family, Dill, Jem, and Scout quarrel quietly regarding whether or not their father knows whom the game is based. Scout believes her father is informed of whom they were pretending to be, yet Jem is frustrated and denies he does. Jem snaps at Scout, which did not change her mind: “I was not sure, but Jem told me I was being a girl, that girls always imagined things, that’s why other people hated them so, and if I started behaving like one, I could just go off and find some to play with” (Lee 45). Jem uses the fact that Scout is a girl to exclude her, Jem believes that as Scout is his little sister, Scout is inferior. Jem Finch excludes Scout Finch from activities with Dill, arguing Scout is too girly and will get scared or hurt. Scout has grown up with boys, yet the older Scout gets, the more the idea of femininity is forced upon her. Members of her community constantly make utterances regarding the fact that growing up without a respectable female role model has left Scout without the prowess needed to act as a proper young lady. Scout believes that she can do and wear what she pleases, yet Jem tells her Scout is wrong, he states Scout is a girl and needs to act like one. The remarks of Jem Finch illustrate gender …show more content…

After the legal proceedings of Tom Robinson, Scout realizes that she may have misjudged Walter before. She decides that by inviting Walter over to play and for lunch, Scout could mend their friendship. However, Alexandra dismisses the idea. Not comprehending why, Scout starts an argument, during which Aunt Alexandra repeats herself, “‘Because-he-is-trash, that’s why you can’t play with him. I’ll not have you around him, picking up his habits and learning, Lord-knows-what’” (Lee 256). Aunt Alexandra believes as she is a Finch Aunt Alexandra will always be superior to any Cunningham, due to the fact they are trash. The Cunninghams can not afford luxurious clothes, or to consume food at every meal, like a multitude of other farmers during the Great Depression. If Scout Finch spends time with Walter, it is believed that Finch's name will be ruined. This has never been shown to Scout prior, as Atticus has always encouraged the children to become friends with whomever they please. Nevertheless, Aunt Alexandra states the Finches must not ruin their genetics by playing with low-class citizens. Aunt Alexandra’s statements regarding the Cunninghams cause Scout to endure social class

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755 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout Finch intellectually develops from youth into maturity after a specific pivotal moment. Scout is a young tomboy from Maycomb, Alabama living during the Great Depression. Scout, having always punched and reacted violently to those who she does not agree with, develops into a mature lady and learns to thinks before she acts after seeing her Aunt Alexandra’s reaction to the death of Tom Robinson. The pivotal moment in which Scout Finch intellectually matures into a woman comes after seeing her aunt’s reaction to the death of Tom Robinson during a missionary circle meeting between the ladies of Maycomb.

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424 Words | 2 Pages

In the book “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Harper Lee uses negative connotation and vivid symbolism to persuade that being judged by an outward appearance or backstory can affect a person negatively and make the judgers feel superior. Lee uses an outstanding amount of characters to persuade this but some distinctive characters that she uses is Aunt Alexandra and the Cunningham’s. Lee also uses the Ewells and Tom Robinson to persuade her meaning. In chapter twenty-three Scout asks Aunt Alexandra if she can play with Walter Cunningham but Aunt Alexandra declines the request and does not give Scout permission to play with Walter. She explains why plus starts to judge Walter.

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561 Words | 3 Pages

Though Scout is only a young child, she smashes these stereotypes to pieces, and she does not even realize it due to her innocence. All Scout knows is that she is a person just like everyone else around her. She plays with Jem and Dill outside all summer long and takes part in their games even though she is a girl. Females were seen as soft spoken as well, but the readers can clearly see that Scout is not afraid to say whatever she is thinking. At one point, Jem and Dill try to shoo Scout away from the yard while they were playing a game, but Scout replied to Jem and said, “will not.

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563 Words | 3 Pages

When Scout wants to spend time with him, Aunty forbides it, simply given that he is a Cunningham. “The thing is, you can scrub Walter Cunningham till he shines, you can put him in shoes and a new suit, but he’ll never be like Jem.” (Lee 300). Aunt Alexandra stresses the point that despite Walter, a Cunningham, cleaning himself up and presenting himself well, will never be like Jem, a Finch. Merely given his surname, Walter will not be invited into the Finch house while Aunty is present.

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875 Words | 4 Pages

Max Lavrentyev English-09 Miss Chang 12, April 2016 Rough Draft Prejudice and bias Prejudice and Bias are harsh obstacles in the world that separate us, a problem that prevents us from being able to be together. In To kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, this conflict impacts Maycomb's whole society, and once they're made it is hard to break. Prejudice and Bias come from Judgement, Racism, and Fear. It is overcome by getting to know someone better, looking at what is in the inside, and doing what is right even if society is against it.

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1454 Words | 6 Pages

(Lee ). While generally critical of the Finch family, this particular comment of Mrs. Dubose’s highlights the expected roles of girls, even in matters as simple as clothing. Lee uses the dress and camisole that Mrs. Dubose suggests to represent the typical feminine roles that society imposes on girls during the setting of the novel. The overalls which Scout chooses, however, symbolize her individuality and her refusal to let society’s expectations take priority over her personal preferences. In defiance of Mrs. Dubose’s demands, Scout chooses activities deemed inappropriate for girls.

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484 Words | 2 Pages

In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, one of the most significant themes is race and social class cause inequalities. For Example, race was a huge problem in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird which takes place in Maycomb during the 1930’s. Race during this time period caused many inequalities between black and whites in places such as churches, schools, restaurants, and even courts. During this time period “You know the truth, and the truth is this: some negroes lie, some negroes are immoral, some negro men are not to be trusted around women- black or white. But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men” (Lee 109).

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772 Words | 4 Pages

Mrs. Dubose criticized Scout’s clothing and told her she won’t do well in life if she continues her ways. Besides Mrs. Dubose, Jem has also commented on Scout’s ways. When Scout disagreed with Jem, he told her she was acting more like a girl. “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 54). Jem disapproves of Scout’s feminine behavior and comments that being a girl is something negative.

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2092 Words | 9 Pages

Aunt Alexandra comes to Maycomb with the intent to become a matriarch in the Finch family and to lead them to a more traditional way of life. According to Scout, "Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of my

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1253 Words | 6 Pages

To prove this point, Aunt Alexandra even goes as to tell her niece, Scout Finch, that her friend, Walter, “is trash,” based upon that of his family being dirty and poor (Lee 301). Aunt Alexandra, is deeply set upon saying that Walter and his family are below hers, as a result of the classism, caused by the Great Depression. In fact, if it was

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431 Words | 2 Pages

The novel follows Scout Finch as she comes face to face with inequality, which inevitably forces her to grow up too soon. As the trial begins, and Scout is introduced to racism, she also unknowingly experiences sexism. Without understanding why she is excluded, Scout begins to resent herself over something she has no control over. Growing up in a predominantly male household, Scout is a natural tomboy. Her older brother Jem is not only her best friend, but also her role model.

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876 Words | 4 Pages

Aunt Alexandra instructs Scout improperly by telling him he is not allowed to play with Walter Cunningham because he is considered trash to others. She demands, “Because- he is trash, that's why you can't play with him. I'll not have you around him, picking up his habits Lord/Knows/ What…” (Lee 301).

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645 Words | 3 Pages

In the title of the book To Kill a Mockingbird, gender roles play a big part in the time that the book was written. There are many examples of people being told what they could and couldn’t do based on their gender, and insults thrown around that are gender-based. One example of gender roles in the book are Jem’s comments on Scout’s behavior, especially when Jem and Dill are about to break into the radley’s. As they are discussing it, and Scout comes up and starts pestering them about what they are doing, Jem remarks that Scout is “gettin’ more like a girl every day!” pg.

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1067 Words | 5 Pages

How does Harper Lee vividly capture the effects of racism and social inequality on the citizens of Maycomb county in ‘To kill a mockingbird’? In the novel, ‘To kill a mockingbird’, Harper Lee conveys the theme of racism and social inequality by setting up the story in Maycomb, a small community in Alabama, the U.S back in 1930s. Lee presents some of the social issues of 1930s such as segregation and poverty in the novel. These issues are observed and examined through the innocent eyes of a young girl, Scout, the narrator.

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1546 Words | 7 Pages

Enlightenment, according to Kant, is a progressive process makes people to get rid of the self-imposed immaturity. The character of immaturity is the “lack of resolve and courage to use their own understating without guidance from others”. Kant believes two things that can make people immaturity are: laziness and cowardice. They make majorities in the society don’t event to try to become maturity. To Kant, freedom plays an important role to save people from immaturity.

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