To Kill A Mockingbird Quote Analysis

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Throughout the novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’, author Harper Lee demonstrates how the persona of an individual can be shaped by moments in their life, exploring the major issues of race and class in the 1930’s. In Chapter 19 of the novel, Tom Robinson, a black man from Maycomb, makes the mistake of voicing his pity for a white girl in his trial. “Tried to help her, I say’... ‘I felt sorry for her, she seemed to try more’n the rest of ‘em-”. The quote uses dialogue and emotive language to express character beliefs and racial hierarchy, and helps foreshadow the demise of Tom. Tom elevated himself above Mayella by feeling sorry for her. It contradicts the racist assumptions and beliefs of the day, and therefore is regarded as a mistake on Tom’s