Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

“Racism is man’s greatest threat to man - the maximum of hatred for a minimum of reason.” - Abraham Joshua Heschel. In this american classic that focuses on the social injustices in the deep american south in the 1930’s, readers see how prevalent the topic of racism is through the book. To Kill a Mockingbird is a fictional story said to be based on the experiences of the author, Harper Lee. The book takes place in Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930’s and follows the life of a little girl named Scout. Throughout the book Scout experiences various acts of racism by her fellow townspeople, which gives her this unique view and perspective on the world. Her father, Atticus Finch is lawyer was the defendant of a black man accused of raping Mayella Ewell.

There is one line in his speech that is truly offencive and derogatory is so many ways. “"I seen that black nigger yonder ruttin' on my Mayella!"” (Lee 196) Just in the first few words he clearly dehumanizes Tom, not only is he barely literate he words his sentance to make it seem like Tom Robinson doesn't exist because he refused to use his name and just referred to Tom as “that.” Next, he clearly emphasizes Tom’s race which was completely unnecessary if he was just trying to get his point across. Another discriminatory word he said to refer to Tom was the word “ruttin,” ruttin is a common word associated with animals. He not only insults Tom he also insults his own daughter by referring to her as a passive victim because she is the indirect object in the sentence. Lastly, he asserts dominance over her as if she was property. As Amanda Dominguez-Chio explains the importance of even Bob Ewell’s name in the book. “ After all, Bob Ewell’s full name is Robert E. Lee Ewell, named after the general who commanded the Confederate army. The name plays a significant role considering the Confederate army represented southern slave states and their right to expand slavery, thereby reinforcing Bob Ewell’s racism.” Because of his name it puts to light the meaning and personality of his character throughout the

“"There's something in our world that makes men lose their heads—they couldn't be fair if they tried. In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins. They're ugly, but those are the facts of life."” (Lee 251-252) Not only does this quote show the effects of racism in our society it also shows how corruption of the justice system also ties in with the idea and actions of racism. It shows that law is pure realm free of the prejudices that occur everyday in society. Not only does this passage show the corruption in the justice system between black and whites it also showed Jem insight into what really happens in the real world and in a sense breaks him free his sheltered and innocent