Examples Of Stereotypes In To Kill A Mockingbird

Stereotypes influenced the characters in To Kill a Mockingbird by how Scout and the members of the Maycomb community viewed themselves and others, and impact readers by creating a sense of inferiority around the stereotyped group. The stereotypes in the novel influenced the characters and plot, as members of the Finch family felt the impacts of racial, gender, and behavioral stereotypes from Atticus’ court cause and Scout’s tomboyish behavior. To begin, Atticus stated: “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it though no matter what” (149). This quote influenced To Kill a Mockingbird,

When Atticus took on arguing for Tom Robinson, he knew the word of an African American would not win in court against the word of a Caucasian male, and thus his case was doomed. Yet Atticus tried his best to prove his client's innocence. When Atticus saw Mrs. Dubose’s bravery, it may have encouraged him to go against Maycomb County and defend Tom Robinson well. Another example is when Scout narrated: “[Cecil] had announced in the schoolyard the day before that Scout Finch’s daddy defended [derogatory term for African-Americans]” (99). Since Maycomb had racial stereotypes and the Finch children had to bear the town’s anger about the case, Scout violently lashed out against her tormentors. Not only against Cecil Jacobs, Scout also fought her cousin Francis (who spewed similar comments). Scout’s anger led Aunt Alexandra to notice her unruly behavior, which made Aunt Alexandra to chastise her niece for not behaving like a lady should. To conclude, the racial, sexist, and behavioral stereotypes in To Kill a Mockingbird affect how Scout and Atticus act, and thus shape the overall plot of the novel through how the Finch family endured