Ayden Dixon
Mrs. Andrews
English 1
4/26/2023
“Racism is a disease that can destroy the world”(Lee,) In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, the town of Maycomb is a very racist and heated town. Scout and her brother are well enough to have a maid, Calpurnia. Calpurnia has a very different personality and behavior outside of the Finch household. In Chapter 12, the kids and Calpurnia visit the local black church while Atticus is away. Lee uses literary devices like setting, character, and conflict to transform and change these characters.
The setting of the black church scene and the context of the setting are used as the building blocks of the conflict in this scene. Since the time of the story is the 1930s, there is a great deal of a racial divide. So many places exclude blacks and many places exclude whites. So once Scout and Jem go to the black church, they are met by a black woman named Lula.“‘I wants to know why you bringin’ white chillun to n-word church.’”(Lee, 135) She tells Calpurnia and the kids to leave since the kids are white. But Calpurnia argues with Lula that they can come in. “Lula stopped, but she said, ‘You ain't got no business bringin' white chillun here-they got their church, we got our'n. It is our church, ain't it, Miss Cal?’”(Lee 136)
…show more content…
Once they enter the church, lula greets them with conflict. Through the conflict, they also learn more about racism and that it can affect everyone. They learn this through Lula, who refuses to let the kids in braces on their race. “‘I wants to know why you bringin’ white chillun to n-word church.’”(Lee, 135) At the time period of the book, racism was very popular, and especially within the town of Maycomb in the book. But racism was on both sides of the
Calpurnia decides to take Jem and Scout to her church a “colored” church that sunday Atticus was gone. One woman at the Church Lula, criticizes Calpurnia for bringing white children to church seeing it was a “colored church” though it was friendly Reverend Sykes welcomed them, saying that everyone knows their father. Scout also learns while
Calpurnia is strict, respected, and a motherly figure to Jem and Scout, and teaches the reader that being respectful and having a good role model does not depend on skin color. Calpurnia is strict. Calpurnia punishes the kids, she does this to make sure that Jem and Scout are both making good choices. In chapter twenty-one, Jem, Scout, and Dill sneak to the courthouse to watch Tom Robinson’s trial, when Calpurnia gets there, she scolds Jem for taking the kids to watch a trial that is unsuitable for children: “Mr. Jem, I thought you was gettin’ some kinda head on your shoulders- the very idea, she's your little sister!
In "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Maycomb (a small town in Alabama) is described by three aspects (culture, social, and economy) that are later broken down into three smaller matters (racism, poverty, and tradition). In Maycomb there is a so-called ¨usual disease¨ which is racism. The text states at the beginning of chapter three,¨Put my bags in the front bedroom, Calpurnia," was the first thing Aunt Alexandra said. In this part of the story Scout and Jem´s Aunt Alexandra visit them but the first thing demanded is that Calpurnia needed to put their Aunt´s things in the bedroom.
What is so hypocritical is that Miss Stephanie is being mean to Scout and makes fun of her. Another such hypocrisy happens when Scout and Jem with Calpurnia are going to Calpurnia’s church only to be stopped by Lula. Lula stated,“You ain’t got no business bringin’ white chillun here – they got their church, we got our’n. It is our church, ain’t it, Miss Cal?” Churches are suppose to be open for anyone no matter what race he
In the novel Luna argues,”’You ain’t got no business bringin’ white chillun here-they got their church, we got our’n’” (136). With this aggressive message the writer can better illustrate
Lula promotes racial discrimination Whereas, Calpurnia encourages identical rights for both white and black residents of Maycomb. Moreover, Calpurnia believes in mixing of the two cultures. When Calpurnia escorts Scout and Jem to the church Lula states, "You ain't got no business bringing white chillun here”. Lula stands up for the black and shows rage towards the Jim Crow laws. Jim Crows laws state no blacks at the white church.
She is different at church than when she´s home. Jem responds, ¨rest of the colored folks. Cal, but you talk like they did in church¨ (Lee 167). Jem was describing how Cal was polite to the church and talked nicely to the
(Lee, 153-154). In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, one of the characters, Calpurnia, is an aged, African American worker that Atticus respects. In this book, she resides in Alabama during the 1930s, when there was still segregation. Despite the completely contrasting perceptions from other African
(Lee 155). I would explain Lula’s antagonism towards Jem and Scout as racism. She seems aggressive to them for the sole reason that they are white “Lula stopped, but she said ‘You ain’t got no business bringin’ white chillun here---they got their church, we got our’n. It is our church, ain’t it, Miss Cal?’”
When Atticus leaves the family for two weeks, Calpurnia stays and takes care of Jem and Scout. On the following Sunday, she must take the children to her church. While she is there, many African American folks approach Calpurnia, making statements like, ‘“I wants to know why you bringin’ white chillun to nigger church”’ and ‘“You ain’t got no business bringin’ white chillun here-they got their church, we got our’n”’ (Lee 158). Cal responds to these unkind remarks and says, “It’s the same God, ain’t it?”
The-one-and-only Calpurnia from To Kill A Mockingbird fills that void in Scout’s life, fulfilling the maternal role in her life. The biggest maternal influences Calpurnia provides Scout with is the ability to to be an involved caregiver , the ability to guide and educated her , and the ability to teach her to be a tough and poised woman. Sometimes, Miss Maudie and Aunt Alexandra are seen as being stronger influences against Calpurnia but it is not a valid argument. The author’s portrayal of Calpurnia proves her to be a mother to Scout in several different ways including the care, patience, and skill, shown in the book.
“You ain’t got no business bringin’ white chillun here-they got their church, we got our’n” (p. 119) Lula, a colored woman is a prime example of the two way road of racism. When Scout and Jem hear this they are completely astonished by the fact that the white race is looked down upon by other races. Racism is a problem that affects everyone; even the “master” race. “Now don’t you be so confident Mr. Jem, I ain’t ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a
She believes that the way they act is a result from Calpurnia being such a major part of their life. Alexandra tries to tell Scout that she is not allowed to go to Calpurnia’s house, Scout quickly objects saying how she asked Atticus, not Alexandra. Atticus scolds Scout telling her she has to listen to both Alexandra and Calpurnia, but later in private politely talks to Alexandra about how he believes Calpurnia should be in the kids lives. He is polite and calm, setting down a rule while still respecting Alexandra, even if he does not believe what she is saying (Lee 106). His politeness shows that he is not racist, he is a very understanding person, not someone that would put someone in a backseat to be
Atticus trusts Calpurnia while he is away to take care of the children. Calpurnia cares for Jem and Scout very much and decides to take them to church with her on Sunday. Even though her church is a coloured church, it doesn’t stop her since church is an important part in the children’s lives. Calpurnia stands up for Jem and Scout when they are being criticized for being white in a black church, and they later accept the kids as their own.
Scout and Jem notice this as she starts to approach them and asks Calpurnia, “I wants to know why you bringin’ white chillun to negro church” (Lee 157-159). Basically, Lula