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Characters showing the idea of empathy in to kill a mocking bird
To kill a mockingbird tensions
Analysis to kill a mockingbird
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" This is trying to say that no matter what they will always belief Mayella. “Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed. ”(pg.241)This is an example of injustice and racism as well then Tom was scared he would have to go through the consequences of something
Mayella is not a sympathetic character because she lied under oath, “tempts” a married black man, and was the reason Tom died. During the trial Atticus asks Mayella if her dad ever has beaten her, or abused her in anyway.
This can be showed in the book “To Kill A Mockingbird” when “ apparently Mayella recital has given her confidence, but it was not her father’s brash kind: there was something like a steady-eyed cat with a twitchy tail”(Lee 243). This quote shows that she is afraid of her dad because she knew that she will get hurt if she doesn’t lie. I can relate with to her because I grew up in a house with alcoholic parent and always scared to say anything because I didn’t know if they would snap and hurt me. Also, the fact that she didn’t even know what friend were and this can be shown in the text when " it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world..."(Lee 256). I can also relate to this because I didn’t have any friend until I was 13
Hannah Flesch Mrs. Allen English 1: Part 1 General Program 29 April 2024 Quote Analysis Essay Introduction Empathy is a very powerful emotion that helps people understand and share the feelings of others. In some works of literature, empathy plays a crucial role in character development and the overall message of the story. One book in particular really dives into the subject of empathy, and that is Harper Lee's classic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. This captivating classic follows Atticus Finch, a small-town lawyer in Maycomb, Alabama, who teaches his children Scout and Jem valuable lessons about empathy. One quote in the book that really shows you the message of the book is when Atticus is talking to his daughter Scout
Evil: I think that Bob Ewell's should be in this column. On pages 227-234 is where Atticus is asking Bob questions about what happened the night of Mayella’s “rape”. During this whole court case Bob was joking in the beginning about Mayella and it was clear that he doesn’t care much for Mayella. He also uses very inappropriate language in the courtroom. On page 230 Bob says “I got to the fence I heard Mayella screaming like a stuck hog inside the house.”
She also says “What her papa do to her don’t count” (Doc B) which shows that he’s probably took advantage of her because she can’t physically do anything to stop him. The last quote i got was “There is circumstantial evidence to indicate that Mayella Ewell was beaten savagely by someone who led almost exclusively with his left” All these quotes show that Mayella has been beaten by someone they don’t know who but being a female she isn’t as strong as whoever beat her so she can’t defend herself. She won’t say it’s her father but from the circumstantial evidence that whoever beat her was left handed and it couldn’t have been Tom because he can’t use his left hand so the only other suspect left is her father and it makes sense that it could be him because he told her that he would kill her if she didn’t say that Tom raped her because there is evidence to pass that someone has beaten her and her father doesn’t want the truth to come
Mayella was not favored by the people in Maycomb. She was extremely poor and never spoke on any harassment she suffered from her father. Tom Robinson attempts to get the truth out in the open when he is giving his testimony, “She said what her papa do to her don’t count” (Doc B). Mayella doesn’t fully understand that her father is physically abusive towards her. To her it’s just love.
In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the worth of compassion persists as a relevant theme. Throughout their childhood, Jem and Scout encounter many people who do nothing to earn any compassion. But as they mature and endure countless moral conflicts, compassion evolves from a form of pity into a determining and necessary moral factor. Even though people often act deceitful and immoral, everyone deserves compassion.
When Tom shows her compassion, she did not know how to react. Misinterpreting his kindness as an attraction to her, she grabs at it, when she has the chance. Without having a positive role model in her life, Mayella should not be expected to know what to do. Her lack of mentor is what really causes her poor decision making. Mayella should not be blamed for the situation she is born
Ewell also is racist, so he probably wants his children to think the same as him, which makes her household even more toxic. She has lived a life where she has been taught to not trust and even be afraid of people who are different from her, which led to the entire trial in the first place. Scout describes Mayella as “fragile-looking” which shows how much pain you can tell she is in. Mayella put effort into things unlike her father and probably the rest of her family because of how she tried to clean herself up for the trial unlike her father, as Scout described. She has to also act like a mother due to how negligent her father is to her and the rest of her siblings and this shows that not only is she being abused but she also has many responsibilities and burdens to take on.
In Modern day society racism isn’t as common as it was in the 1900’s. In To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the Mockingbird is a symbol for an a character who brings nothing but peace to the world. Atticus Finch is an harmless and innocent mockingbird, whose image is ruined by trying to step aside the racial barrier in and defend Tom Robinson. Atticus is a mockingbird in this book because of his exceptional behavior he provides to the community around him.
Quotations Responses 2/14/2023 - Chapter 7, p. 65 “As Atticus had once advised me to do, I tried to climb into Jem's skin and walk around in it: if I had gone alone to the Radley Place at two in the morning, my funeral would have been held the next afternoon. So I left Jem alone and tried not to bother him” (Lee 65). 2/11/2023 - Chapter 7, p. 67 “Atticus told me to delete the adjectives and I’d have the facts” (Lee 67).
But she said he took advantage of her, and when she stood up she looked at him as if he were dirt beneath her feet.” Mayella’s loneliness and powerlessness drove her to have an affair with a black man, breaking a societal code. She is a victim of poverty because of the hatred and discrimination occurring in Maycomb. Although some might view Mayella Ewell as a victim, others might view her as a villain because she broke a societal code by attempting to have an affair with a Negro.
“Maycomb County had recently been told that it had nothing to fear but fear itself” (Lee 6) Scout. This quote is said by Scout when she is older and starts to tell the story of her childhood. This quote is almost ironic because later in the book Maycomb deals with many problems. I admire this quote because of the meaning it has behind it. “You just hold your head high and keep those fists down.
Mayella Thoughts of having an affair with a black man is exciting in a dangerous sort of way, but more importantly, making advances toward Tom gives Mayella power. This completely powerless woman has total control over Tom. Something that she has never had as the part of the ewell family the lowest of the white people, only them making their family respectable is the fact that they are white. But dangerous in that she is toying with social norms and if caught can become even lower in society for doing something unthinkable in the time period this novel takes place in trying to seduce a black man. Mayella throughout the novel only feels loneliness she belongs to The Ewells family, they are the lowest of the low amongst the whites in Maycomb.
