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Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

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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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The citizens of Maycomb criticize Tom Robinson because he differs from society's cultural norm and because he is a different race which affects how society treats him. “You know how they are. Easy come, easy go. Just shows you that Robinson bou was legally married, they say he kept himself clean, went to church and all that, but when it comes down to the line veneer’s mighty thin. Ni**er always come out in ‘em.”

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Peter Alexopoulos Tue Apr 9 G block. Mayella Ewell & Tom Robinson are not who people believe they are on the inside. Firstly, Atticus cross-examines Mayella Ewell, a young white woman who is accusing Tom Robinson, a black man, of raping her, Atticus then points out the self-contradiction of the situation. Mayella's White Privilege protects her but makes whatever she says more believable because this novel takes place post-slavery in Alabama. During Tom Robinson trial, Atticus points out "She is the victim of cruel poverty and ignorance but I cannot pity her because she is white.

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At the beginning of the story, Scout, like many others in Maycomb, holds racial biases influenced by the societal norms of her times. She witnesses the injustice faced by Tom Robinson, a black man wrongly accused of a crime he did not commit, Scout begins to question and challenge the discriminatory beliefs of those around her. “ I think there’s just one kind of folk. Folks." (page 259)

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Maycomb is highly discriminatory and they show it over and over again, and an example of them dividing society is how they treated Tom Robinson’s

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There are many different types of prejudice, such as racial prejudice, prejudice against where people come from and age prejudice. People may judge another person based on their looks, the way they dress or the way they talk. Prejudice is based on ignorance. This is shown in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee when the following characters are judged: Tom Robinson, Atticus Finch, and Boo Radley.

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839 Words | 4 Pages

“‘Well, Dill, after all he’s just a Negro’” (1999). One of the main characters says this, and characters all through the story make racist remarks like this; only because this is how they have grown up. Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, the author, Harper Lee, used prejudice to make the reader think about how unfair society is to people of color. Scout grew up believing that racism is normal since African Americans and white people in her town carry bias towards one another. Many times in this novel, the town of Maycomb exhibits prejudice and it displays how people of color experience unfair treatment.

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Up until Atticus took the case, they were used to the casual racism of Maycomb and participated in it as well, referring to black people as n-words and other racist comments. At that time they didn’t know any better. However, as soon as Atticus takes the case, these beliefs are directly contradicted. When the trial first begins, Scout doesn’t consider the possibility that Tom could be innocent, saying “I know Tom Robinson’s in jail an’ he’s done somethin’ awful..” (40). She isn’t able to comprehend his innocence right away, but as the trial drags on this assumption of guilt changes.

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To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee tells a story of racial prejudice during the Depression and how it is combated. The main development in the novel is that a Atticus, the father of Scout and Jem, has been appointed to defend Tom Robinson, a black man accused of raping a young white woman named Mayella. Many people in the town of Maycomb, particularly people involved with the case of Tom, have a negative attitude towards African Americans. Prejudice was a terrible issue in the South during the Depression, but Atticus Finch shows that racial injustice can be combated in two main ways, each having different levels of effectiveness.

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All due to the fact that the people in Maycomb, the fictional town in which the characters in To Kill a Mockingbird live, are so used to discriminating against Black people that none of them think to question their beliefs, choosing to stay ignorant. A prime example of this is before Tom Robinson’s trial all of Maycomb was rooting against him, hoping that he would be ruled guilty, but no one even considered that he may be innocent. Everyone assumed that since he was Black he must have committed the crime, not taking a minute to learn the facts, or lack thereof, and decide without prejudice whether or not he deserves to be in jail. Even during the trial when all the information was released and every testimony was given, the jury still decided to rule Tom guilty simply because to them, even if it was clear as day that Tom Robinson was innocent, there was no way a Black man had done nothing wrong. Despite Atticus’s attempt to defend Tom in the best possible way he could by stating, “You know the truth, and the truth is this: some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some Negro men are not to be trusted around women.

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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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Imagine running a marathon and certain people possess the advantage of a head start while others are forced to play catch-up. This unfair advantage permeates our society and inhibits access to opportunities given that it is based on prejudice and racial injustice. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee explores the compelling aspects of racial injustice and inequality during the Great Depression, highlighting prejudice's profound impact on the residents of Maycomb. This is evident through the unjust trial of Tom Robinson, the treatment of Calpurnia, and the ostracization of Boo Radley. The trial of Tom Robinson exposes the deeply ingrained racial prejudice in the pursuit of Maycomb’s justice system.

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Overall, in To Kill a Mockingbird, the overwhelming presence of racism in Maycomb led to residents being pressured to conform, this pressure led to citizens blindly attacking those they were taught to hate, viewing those that bear a different skin color not with a lens of humanity and empathy, but with a blindfold stimulating

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994 Words | 4 Pages

Because of society's standards, it is hard for many people to see flaws in their opinions. When people begin to understand and experience new opinions, they begin to see the flaws in society's ideals. This is shown when Link Deas interrupts the court case to give his opinion of the matter and stand up for Tom even when nobody else would. Another reason for Maycomb's racism is that, racism in society has been built through generations. ”There was indeed a caste system in Maycomb, but to my mind it worked this way: the older citizens, the present generation of people who had lived side by side for years and years, were utterly predictable to one another: they took for granted attitudes, character shadings, even gestures, as having been repeated in each generation and refined by time.

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John is a great man; the best, in fact. I've met many people in my line of work: celebrities, heroes, presidents, etc. Many of them have hundreds of thousands of people who look up to them, but still, they are nothing compared to my John Watson. Well, "Mary's" John.. John loves her.

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Persecution comes from people who are prejudiced” (Lee 329). While this may seem like a useful life lesson, Scout realizes the clear hypocrisy in her lesson. Like every other citizen of Maycomb, she is prejudiced against black people. Even though she is teaching her students that prejudice and persecution is wrong, she is participating in those very activities at home. She heard her third grade teacher after Tom Robinson’s trial, she thought “it’s time somebody taught ‘em a lesson, they were gettin’ way above themselves, an’ the next thing they think they can do is marry us” (Lee 331).

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