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Stereotypes In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

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Why are people biased against others? In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows the stereotypes created by the different people in Maycomb County and Scout's perspective of these stereotypes. Scout doesn't understand why people discriminate against each other, and refers to Atticus, her father, to understand the discrimination in Maycomb County. People have many stereotypes about, social status, religion, and women. The people of Maycomb are judged wrongly by these stereotypes because the hate towards others and the lack of respect they have for each other. Throughout the novel, racism in Maycomb gets worse and worse, because of the county's hate towards black people. Scout first encounters racism at school, when kids call Atticus a nigger …show more content…

Atticus believes words can't hurt him, because he is following his morals., which would be to defend who is right. Although, Atticus thinks that it won't hurt him, Scout knows that everyone in the town hates Atticus, for defending a Negro, and realizes how hard it is for Atticus to defend a black man. Scout learns more about the racism in Maycomb during the trial. Atticus knows why he lost and explains it to Scout how "people have a way of carrying their resentments right into a jury box"(220). The opinions of the white men in the jury box, are hateful for black people, and jurors won't listen to Tom Robinson's story one bit. Atticus had the disadvantage …show more content…

Maudie Atkinson is the Finch's neighbor who doesn't go to church on Sundays, and gardens her flowers instead. Scout discovers the truth about Maudie Atkinson as Maudie explains to Scout when "[foot-washing Baptists] came out of the woods one Saturday and passed by [her] place and told [Maudie that her] and [her] flowers were going to hell"(44). Maudie accepts the punishment that the Baptists gave her for not going to church. Maudie's house burned down with her flowers on a snowy morning. Atticus also believes that religion is important, and he believes that taking the case would be moral and ethical. Atticus "couldn’t go to church and worship God" if he didn't help defend Tom Robinson(104). Atticus's morals and ethics Almost everyone in Maycomb goes to church and uses God as a symbol of power because of how important religion is to them, and if someone disrespects God, they will have consequences. Besides non-believers being hated upon, women are also treated

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In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee one of the essential questions is: how do our own personal stereotypes help shape how we experience the world. The stereotypes in this novel had affected the people of Maycomb’s thought process. Stereotyping is the process of generalizing people and broadly categorizing them based on narrow minded observations of characteristics that they have. Most people are stereotyped due to their race, gender, age, unknown identity, or social class.

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Atticus tells Scout after she was told by a fellow schoolmate he was defence a black man he replied with “...if I didn’t I couldn’t hold up my head in town, I couldn’t represent this country in the legislature, I couldn’t even tell you or Jem not to do something” (pg 100) This displays that he believes if he doesn’t do his job just because he is defending a black man he isn’t anyone anymore. He failed to prove he isn’t prejudice on the job. He failed to show that he can empathize for a fellow human being. Also, he explains to Scout minutes later that he know he can’t relinquish just yet just because of others prejudices because: “Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win.”

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Our whole lives growing up we are told to follow the “Golden Rule”. This rule is defined as to treat someone the way you want to be treated. In the book To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch a lawyer in a town called Maycomb in Alabama tries his best to be a role model for his two children. In the quiet town of Maycomb Atticus is given the job to defend a black man named Tom Robinson. Atticus wants to teach his kids Jem and Scout life lessons at an early age so they grow up as respectable people.

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In “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, the main character is Jean Louise Finch and she goes by Scout. She lives in Maycomb, Alabama. A small town where everyone knows everyone. Scout's father is the lawyer in Maycomb and is well respected around town, his name is Atticus Finch. Scout has an older brother who is very protective, his name is Jeremy Finch.

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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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To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is the story of a small town named Maycomb Located in Alabama, highlighting the adventures of the finch children and many other people in the small town. The people in this town are very judgemental and of each other and it often leads to people being labeled with stereotypes and people think they know everything about that person however that is not reality. It is not possible to know the reality of a person 's life by placing a stereotype without seeing it through their own eyes and experiencing the things they experience. This happens often throughout the story with many people in the town. People are labeled as many things such a “monster” a “nigger” and many other things that seem to put them in their

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Atticus tells Scout “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view, until you climb into his skin and walk around in it,” (p. 39). because he wants her to know that to understand the things Miss Caroline does, Scout must try and look at it from their perspective. Scout does this when she remarks, “She had learned not to hand something to a Cunningham, for one thing, but if Walter and I had put ourselves in her shoes we’d have seen it as an honest mistake on her part.” (p. 40). Atticus is attempting to make Scout realize Miss Caroline won’t know everything about Maycomb in a day.

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Atticus has very proper and true experiences with racism, due to how Tom’s case went and was examined by the judge and jury. By Atticus saying this to the courthouse he is giving the jury a better idea and opinion of how racism is alive and awake in Maycomb. Atticus is speaking the accuracy of how adversity is unleashing awful discrimination upon the people of

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The people of Maycomb County during the 1930s were very closed-minded and judgmental about Atticus's choices in defending an African American, however, his real courage and perseverance allowed for him to not let strenuous times like these prevent him from doing the right thing. Throughout the novel, it was greatly emphasized how African Americans are not accepted or treated fairly in Maycomb County. Shortly after agreeing to help Tom, Atticus discovers that, "[...] there's been some high talk around town to the effect that I [Atticus] shouldn't do much about defending this man" (75). Despite these negative judgements Atticus's courageousness allows him to not give in nor change his stance on how he feels about defending Tom. He strongly values

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Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper E. Lee

1070 Words | 5 Pages

Before you judge someone, make sure you see it from their point of view. Those are the wise words of Atticus Finch, a white lawyer who is assigned to defend a black man who is accused of sexually assaulting a white woman. Atticus is a father of two and teaches his children how to be good people in their racist community. In Harper E. Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, the author develops the theme of prejudice through gender roles, age, and ethnicity to show how prejudice can negatively impact the people in Maycomb by causing division in Scout, Jem, and the community. Harper E. Lee writes a lot about how Scout is discriminated against and made fun of because of her gender.

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Examples Of Stereotypes In To Kill A Mockingbird

720 Words | 3 Pages

Stereotypes help form the society in which we live. They affect the outcome of our courts, of how people are treated and what one can and cannot do. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch was likely trying to stop his children from judging people based off of stereotypes or what society expects, specifically the stereotypes of Arthur Radley whom they believed to be some sort of monster because he doesn't bend to society's opinions of socializing. Atticus’ attempts are displayed when he quotes “you never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them.” Through the use of Scout’s childlike views and imagery, Harper Lee shows readers that it can be misleading to believe in stereotypes.

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Social prejudice is shown throughout Harper Lee’s award winning book, To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper Lee powerfully analyses the theme social prejudice, and its effect on people. Such as how the Social prejudice is discrimination based on your status in society. An example of social prejudice would be the Radley family, which consists of Boo Radley, Nathan Radley and Arthur Radley. As they haven’t been out of their house in years people are lead to believe the rumours.

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Atticus fears that "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” (Page 224) Atticus confirmed that Maycomb won’t have a just system due to white men’s words to black men. This would only make Maycomb welcoming to white people and unwelcoming for black people. Maycomb is unwelcoming and unjust for the prejudice view for black

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