How Does Lee Present The Theme Of Race And Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird Essay In Harper Lee’s historical fiction novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee pictures the Finch family in Maycomb, Alabama during the Great Depression. The town goes through trials and alarming events, crippled by race and prejudice. The Finch children, Scout and Jem, witness men on trial, stories told, but most of all learn of the “time-honored code of their society” (272). Amid the action, the children's father Atticus is there. He teaches his children that “there’s something in our world that makes men lose their heads” (295), especially around race. Atticus saves the town from Tim Johnson, a “mad dog down the street” (123), and a metaphor for racism. He also takes a disputing case as Tom Robinson’s lawyer, an African-American man accused of raping Mayella Ewell. He knows they will lose, but Atticus takes the case to spread a message and start a change in Maycomb. Through the metaphor of Tim Johnson, conflict, and diction around Atticus, Lee illustrates the theme of race and prejudice.

The sheriff, Heck Tate, says to “take him, Mr. Finch” (126) because Atticus is the only man good enough to shoot the dog and handle the emotions that come with it. Atticus is also the only man good enough to stop racism. He can handle the sensation of Tom Robinson’s trial and make sure to do the right thing. After Atticus takes the “one-shot job” (126), the town is very distraught. They take action without reason, assuming that the deranged dog means danger. As soon as the dog is spotted, the “message [is] received throughout the neighborhood” (124) that something terrible is to come. The dog is shot due to prejudice, much like the town's mentality of judging and racism. Atticus does all he can to transmit his message, and Lee utilizes the metaphor of Tim Johnson, through Atticus, to convey the message of racism in