“Hypocrisy is the mother of all evil and racial prejudice is her favorite child” (Don King). In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, a young girl named Scout is receiving a first hand experience of racism and its brutality. In Chapter 26, during school, Scout’s teacher, Mrs. Gates explains what a democracy is and how it differs from the events taking place in Germany with Hitler and the Jews. Using her biased opinion, Mrs. Gates shows Scout that the world can be a cruel place in more ways than one. During the scene, “Mrs. Gates,” Scout learns that hypocrisy exists in the most trusted through the character of Mrs. Gates, the internal conflict of Mrs. Gates and racism, and the settings of both the school and the Finch home.
Tom Robinson is persecuted for being black in To Kill A Mockingbird. It was normal for people to do this in the time period. In particular, Tom is singled out an object of transgression by Bob Ewell as well as a mob of people who try to lynch him. Not only are people hated because of their race in the text, but some are also judged based on gender roles and social class. The inherent close mindedness in all of these acts boils down to simple prejudice, and these people’s refusal to try to understand Tom.
Bob Marley, a famous singer once said, “Prejudice is a chain, it can hold you. If you prejudice, you can 't move, you keep prejudice for years. You’ll never get nowhere with that.” Prejudice is shown in our everyday society and their are many reason on why prejudice is shown. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the author shows why prejudice is shown and the effects of it. The novel takes place in Alabama in the 1930s, and it is narrated by a young girl who is a tomboy. She lives with her older brother and a father who is a lawyer. The father 's name is Atticus and he is a lawyer who decides to defend a black man who is falsely accused of rape. As the two kids grow up surrounded in an environment based on prejudice and misunderstandings,
In the classic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Tom Robinson, a sympathetic, considerate African American field worker, is accused of the rape of an abused 19 year old white girl, Mayella Ewell. As the consequent trial unfolds, the reader glimpses Tom’s understanding personality despite the harsh 1930s stereotypes that cloud the trial.
“Everyone wants the truth but no one wants to be honest.” In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird hypocrisy is used throughout the novel. Harper Lee uses multiple cases of hypocrisy in the novel including Scout’s teacher, Miss Gates and Mrs.Merriweather to reveal how people acted in 1935 and 1960.
In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee teaches us about the town of Maycomb County during the late 1930s, where the characters live in isolation and victimization. Through the perspective of a young Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, readers will witness the prejudice that Maycomb produces during times where people face judgement through age, gender, skin colour, and class, their whole lives. Different types of prejudice are present throughout the story and each contribute to how events play out in the small town of Maycomb. Consequently, socially disabling the people who fall victim from living their life comfortably in peace. Boo Radley and his isolation from Maycomb County, the racial aspects of Tom Robinson, and the decision Atticus Finch makes as a lawyer, to defend a black man has all made them fall in the hands of Maycomb’s prejudice ways.
In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses allusions to help the reader to understand the setting, and irony to show character and develop theme. Prejudice, in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, is described as the “simple hell people give other people without even thinking”, and the novel powerfully portrays examples of racial and social prejudice.
Who are the blue jays and mockingbirds of To Kill A Mockingbird? Set in the early 1930’s of America, Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is a coming-of-age book that tells the story of an innocent, naive child becoming an adult through the experience and intake of racism, discrimination, and social injustice throughout the book. Harper Lee’s development, usage and characterization of her characters throughout To Kill A Mockingbird help establish two of her most important themes of the book, which are the presence of social injustice and the coexistence of good and evil.
To Kill A Mockingbird was, and still is, a book read by many. There are so many things to learn from Harper Lee as she has written a classic American novel taking us through times and matters we’ve never lived ourselves before. Scout, the main character, is a young girl who as the book goes on learns many life lessons. Her father, Atticus Finch, is a lawyer in Maycomb County. When Mayella Ewell, a poor white woman, accuses Tom Robinson, a black man, of rape, Atticus takes up the trial and will represent Tom Robinson in court to help prove his innocence. The trial goes on and on and many witnesses are called to the stand but, in the end Tom Robinson loses. He is found guilty and sentenced to the electric chair. The theme of “race” is brought up a lot in the book To Kill A Mockingbird, and that’s the theme to focus on. Race has been a controversial issue going back four centuries, and this novel portrays race in an unfamiliar way to others, but very familiar to Lee. She has done a tremendous job on bringing us into the world of racism and how it permeates each decision throughout her book.
In “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Harper Lee uses a range of characterisation techniques, including dialogue, direct characterisation and character development to portray the theme of discrimination. Dialogue is one such technique, shown in the use of “nigger” throughout the text. When Bob Ewell states that he has "seen that black nigger yonder ruttin' on my Mayella," it reveals to the audience his racist views. Use of “nigger” as a derogatory term reveals to the reader character’s racist views. Lee also uses direct characterisation. At the start of the novel, Jem and Scout’s view of Boo is based on rumours, such as “he dined on raw squirrels,” and “his hands were bloodstained.” These characterisations paint a picture of Boo in the reader's head.
What are the major ethical dilemmas (laws of life) of To Kill a Mockingbird? How do different characters resolve these dilemmas?
To understand an individual, it is necessary to place ourselves in their shoes. In the novel, “To Kill A Mockingbird,” by Harper Lee, the author addresses the need for human understanding in order to destroy the evils of racial prejudice. Scout, the main character, is the representation of innocence due to being a pure, young girl who views her surroundings with an untainted perspective. She is inclined to consider people’s point of view in order to understand them. She is taught this by her father, Atticus, who risks everything as a lawyer to defend a black man who is accused for a crime that he did not commit. As the novel progresses, it is necessary to change perspective on those accused of crimes in order to deteriorate racial prejudice. By examining the characters in Maycomb, it becomes clear that closed-minded people are the source of prejudice because their opinion is incapable of expanding and understanding the purpose of an individual’s true personality.
How does Harper Lee vividly capture the effects of racism and social inequality on the citizens of Maycomb county in ‘To kill a mockingbird’?
Judy Collins once said, “I look in the mirror through the eyes of the child that was me.” Growing as a person is not only growing physically, but also growing emotionally and mentally. It is about having your own thoughts, and seeing the world from a different perspective as the years go on. Learning about the cruel realities of society can be difficult. For instance, as scout grows up in the novel, To kill a mockingbird by Harper Lee, she sees the changes in her society. To Kill a mockingbird takes place in the 1960s, in a small Southern town, named Maycomb. The novel is based on Harper Lee’s own life and how she learned to grow up with racial prejudice. Harper Lee’s character is named Scout, who is a young girl with unusual traits, both in
One of the most controversial social issues in the world today that has continued to affect millions of people is racism. This concept can be defined as the discrimination of others based on their racial background; the belief that one race is superior to the other (Patten, 2016). Racism can also be based on different ethnic backgrounds, cultural values, and physical appearances. Throughout the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, the theme of racism is evident through the trial of Tom Robinson. Harper Lee’s themes of prejudice towards African Americans are still present today due to unfair trial convictions and racial wage gaps, despite the fact that there is workplace protection against racism.