Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Essay on lynching in america
Lynching during reconstruction era
Conclusion about lynching in the 19th century
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Mayella feels guilty after lying under oath in court. Mayella lied about Tom Robinson raping her because she doesn't want her dad to beat her up if she tells the truth. PARTIES Members of the jury, the state will review the evidence against Mayella Ewell who let her greed influence her decision to lie under oath. While her father Bob Ewell forced her to lie about the case so he wouldn't be
Tom Robinson’s Innocence of Mayella's Rape Gentlemen of the jury. Tom Robinson did not rape mayella; I can proof this. According to Mayella and Bob Ewell, her father, they say that Mayella got raped by Tom Robinson, a black men, and that he took advantage of her. November 21 of last year if when this situation happended.
Because of Mr Ewell’s way of life and his pattern of abusive behaviour, Mayella and her siblings “lived like animals”. This sad living situation is what led to Mayella’s desperate attempt at a relationship with Tom, therefore bringing the blame back to Mr Ewell. Though it is not stated it the text explicitly, it is likely that it was Bob Ewell, rather than Mayella that came up with the plan of accusing Tom of rape, as it would give Mr Ewell a chance to simultaneously publicly denounce a black man and make himself out to be the hero of the story. This is why, despite Tom’s conviction, Mr Ewell is infuriated by the results of the trial, as Atticus was still able to destroy “his last shred of credibility”, the exact opposite of what Bob had planned for the trial. This would suggest that Bob Ewell was willing to have Tom killed, not because he truly believed he had committed a crime, but rather so he could promote his own prejudiced narrative at the trial and restore to himself the power that the social structures of Maycomb had taken away.
This was because Mayella and Bob Ewell claimed that it happened. Also, Tom Robinson said he felt bad for Mayella. This means that he felt as though he was high enough above her to be able to feel pity for her. When, in reality, he was lower down than her in the social system and if anybody was to feel pity on another, it would be her pitying
The Ewell’s seem to have trouble with telling the truth. Mayella is lying about her story in order to hide the fact that her father most likely shouldn’t be taking care of her. Mayella comes in with injuries that she blames on Tom Robinson attacking, but everyone in the room knows that her father gets really angry when he’s drinking. Then, when Mayella is asked if her father has ever mistreated her, she hesitates before answering no. The hesitation was clearly noticeable and had to mean something.
Throughout the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, Mr. Ewell lied because he’s angry with Mayella and Tom Robinson. First, Bob Ewell is angry with Mayella because she is hugging Tom Robinson when he arrived home. In addition, one possible reason is Bob Ewell had obscene Mayella and does not want her to get help from others. Tom Robinson says, “‘Naw suh, another one. Most as tall as the room.
Then some people thought that Tom was innocent but the judge decided to make Tom go to prison. In the book it said that Mayella hugged and kissed Tom on the cheek. From this I can infer that Mayella is desperate and can get away with this because Tom Robinson is a black person. This reminds me of a couple southern movies I’ve watched where black people are always the first to suspect because of their color. Tom Robinson on trial for his life said Bob Ewell yelled “whore I’ll kill you” when he saw Mayella kiss Tom from the window.
Mayella was not favored by the people in Maycomb. She was extremely poor and never spoke on any harassment she suffered from her father. Tom Robinson attempts to get the truth out in the open when he is giving his testimony, “She said what her papa do to her don’t count” (Doc B). Mayella doesn’t fully understand that her father is physically abusive towards her. To her it’s just love.
Tom was accused of raping a white woman who was Mayella Ewell, Mayella said he raped her while he was helping her with chores. She later on tells the readers that it was false allegations. The reason why she didn 't tell the truth at her first trial was because, Mayella was afraid of being embarrassed because she kissed a black male. She rather have an innocent man get charged with a crime than that. “However, Robinson was transferred from the state prison to Maycomb 's county jail on Saturday, two days before he stood trial on Monday, and Atticus had to defend him against a lynch mob”.
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.
Why did Mayella Ewell Lie? In my opinion Mayella could have lied for many reasons. First, I think she lied because she wanted to protect her father. If people found out that her father was the one who raped her; Bob would be seen as a monster in the small town of Maycomb. Bob’s social ranking in the society could have depleted.
Mayella Ewell is a victim. Mayella is a victim of her father, Bob Ewell, because he is an alcoholic that abuses her. During the Tom Robinson trial, Atticus proved Bob Ewell to be left-handed. Based on Bob and Heck Tate’s testimonies, Mayella’s right eye was blackened
When he denies them and Mayella’s father comes into the yard tom runs away because he knows something bad will come from this. After tom is gone Mayella’s father forces her to say that Tom Robinson abused her. Mayella is powerless because of her gender, the class she lives in, and the respect she gets from those around her. Mayella has never really been respected before. When in court she is examined by Atticus and he does nothing but call her “ma’am” and “miss Mayella” and she sees it as him mocking her.
The testimonies reveal how deep-rooted the racism within Maycomb runs, as it is present even in court rulings and how casually present it is. The court is taking place, and the order of prosecutor’s witnesses who are: Mr. Heck Tate, the sheriff; Mr. Bob Ewell, Mayella’s father; and Mayella Ewell, the one who is accusing Tom Robinson of raping her. When it’s Mr. Ewell’s turn to speak, he does so with many racial slurs and slang embedded in his accusations. When relaying what he saw to the jury, he points at Tom and yells “―I seen that black n*gger yonder ruttin’ on my Mayella!” Mr. Ewell, who, although, has never been a part of a court case or viewed one, doesn’t truly care, or notice, that so far into the formal case, not one person has used racial slang to talk about Tom, and uses the term n*gger quite casually.
The saddening thing is, that the whole scenario started because Mayella attempted to seduce Tom, and her father found out. Filled with rage, Mr. Ewell beat his daughter, he found it unacceptable that his daughter fancied a black man. Then, he claimed that Tom raped his daughter to cover everything up. There are even cases such as Tom’s happening to this day, such as the case of Miguel Angel Peña Rodriguez Vs. Colorado. The jury was corrupted by bias thoughts which resulted in an unfair trial.