Harper Lee conveys the idea that poverty does not denote unclassy behavior, but that it is the individual character of the people or groups of people that do in Chapters 1-3 of “To Kill a Mockingbird.” She uses the behavior of certain characters to reveal this concept. The character Walter Cunningham is the main character utilized the express this. It is shown that he and his family is very poor when he has no lunch to bring to school, and will not accept a quarter from Ms. Caroline because he will never be able to pay her back. Scout says, “The Cunninghams never took anything they can’t pay back-no church baskets and scrip stamps. They never took anything off of anybody, they get along on what they have” (26). Her knowledge of this is supported by a conversation she had with her father. Her …show more content…
Cunningham later paid him back but not in money; in firewood, hickory nuts, smilax, holly, and turnip greens. It is in this way that the Cunninghams are shown to be an honest, upright, and as one might say, classy, folk, despite being poor. Further, they dress in a way that is not offensive in its cleanliness or style. The opposite is shown in the Ewell family. They are demonstrated to be in very similar economic straits as the Cunninghams, but behave in the most contrary way to the Cunninghams. They are disrespectful and disobedient, and take no care of themselves. “Burris” Ewell, as he calls himself, as well as the rest of his siblings, attends school for only the first day of the year, to please the truancy officer. He is described as “the filthiest human [Scout] had ever seen,” his skin covered in filth, rust, and grime (35). He had a small clean area on his face. In his hair, there were bugs he referred to as “cooties.” When the teacher tries to make him stay, he insults her in a way violent enough to make her cry. In fact, he stayed just long enough to make sure he had done so. His father is depicted as an uncaring and contentious person who pays no mind to anyone