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Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

572 Words3 Pages

The unintentional presence of prejudice within a society was a key component to the discriminatory actions used in the South throughout the 1900s. The racist and unequal beliefs were used so frequently and commonly, it became a normal part of their dialect and cognitive thoughts with no repercussions. Scout begins to make connections after hearing the adults in Maycomb talk, and realizes the persecution of Tom Robinson due to the racial bias, is quite similar to Hitler’s persecution of the Jews during the Holocaust because of their religious beliefs. In To Kill A Mockingbird, if a society does not enable prejudiced beliefs to be articulated, the citizens of Maycomb will see the wrong in persecution based on race, leading to more fair opportunities …show more content…

His persecution of the Jewish community was brought up, as it was a noteworthy topic all around the world, due to no one believing what was happening at first. Scout’s teacher, Miss Gates, mentioned a crucial difference between the government types of Hitler’s Germany, and the United States. She emphasized the key difference, the United States was a democracy and Hitler’s government type was not. At this moment, her words contradict her actions. A democracy promotes equal human rights and fundamental freedoms, but Maycomb follows the complete opposite. There’s different sections in the courtroom for colored people, they live on the more run down side of the town, and the white citizens of Maycomb believe “it’s time somebody taught ‘em a lesson” (p283). If all of these beliefs are apparent within the community, then they aren’t following a democracy, they are following more of Hitler’s ideal world and government. Scout realizes Maycomb’s true flaws, and how Maycomb’s citizens have allowed the discriminatory beliefs to develop. During Tom Robinson’s trial, “We know all men are not created equal,” implying societal and racial bias (p

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In Harper Lee's “To Kill A Mockingbird” there is a recurring theme of bigotry. During the 1930s racial intolerance was at its peak. This is expressed when Tom Robinson is accused of raping Mayella Ewell. Since Tom Robinson was black it would be easier for Bob Ewell to win in court. The people in Maycomb were oblivious to what was right in court.

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