Set in the mid-1930s of the Great Depression, To Kill a Mockingbird opens with the setting of historic and rigid Maycomb through a brief description of the town's history, provided by Harper Lee. It is prevalent through Lee’s storytelling that there is a significant relationship to how one's past can greatly determine the standing in society in one’s present and future. It is because of Scout's family history that both she and her relatives are considered to be “well off.” However, the same can not be said about more than half of the characters in the novel. Tom Robinson, a man who stands convicted of a crime he did not commit, is put on trial simply due to the color of his skin. Throughout the novel, he is shown as a character who is constantly …show more content…
After Calpurnia (the Finch’s family maid) had returned with both Scout and Jem from her church, Scout asked her father if he would grant her the joy of returning there for the upcoming Sundays. With no hesitation, Aunt Alexandra replies in Atticus' place with a firm ‘no.’ Scout throws a minor fit, but quickly overcomes it and leaves the room. She overhears the two adults discussing Calpurnia and Aunt Alexandra's unhappiness with her as the maid. Atticus strongly disagrees and adds logical reasoning while clarifying to Aunt Alexandra by professing “...I don’t think the children’ve suffered one bit from her having brought them up. If anything, she’s been harder on them in some ways that a mother would have been… she’s never indulged them the way most colored nurses do,” (137). In this passage, it is apparent how Aunt Alexandra does not approve of Calpurnia's ways of raising the children because she believes that as a colored nurse, she is overstepping her boundaries. Atticus proclaims he would never unemploy Calpurnia because she is an important asset of the family and her loyalty has always been unwavering. Aunt Alexandra eventually relents, however, it is indisputable that she is bothered by Calpurnia’s presence and her power in the Finch