“Feminism encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbian” (Robertson). This quote dates back to 1992 and was said by Pat Robertson, a media mogul. It displays the toxic minds of those who do not agree with equal rights and often label women as simply assets to men, which is a prominent theme in To Kill a Mockingbird. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper E Lee represents many controversial topics, including racism and oppression. Although this book takes place in the 1930’s, its messages are timeless and presently are still applicable to the majority. The book surrounds the case of Tom Robinson: an innocent black man being tried for rape. Also, the book follows three kids and their interest in the town’s psycho. As demonstrated in the novel, despite what society may think, a person does not need to fit into gender roles to be content with life.
For starters, Aunt Alexandra is perhaps the biggest pest in trying to conform Scout into a woman-like mentality. Already from when she’s first introduced, we know Aunt Alexandra worries about Scout’s tomboy tendencies. When introducing
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This is completely opposite from Aunt Alexandra, as Aunt wants her to become more ladylike whereas Jem prefers Scout to act as basically a little brother. In one instance, Jem shames Scout’s cowardness by saying, “‘I swear, Scout, sometimes you act so much like a girl it’s mortifyin’’” (Lee 50). Obviously, he sees being a girl as weak and being manly as far superior. It’s interesting as Scout does take this as an insult, but why? Although she is literally a girl, she’d rather fit in with her brother and Dil and be included, meaning she’d have to swap a dress for trousers and such. At such a young age, Scout doesn’t really care what other citizens of Maycomb think of her, she only values Jem’s