Examples Of Social Inequality In To Kill A Mockingbird

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

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

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