In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, Lee took the minor character of Mayella Ewell and made her into a sympathetic role to her readers in a latent way. Mayella's life at home is told through the story's background and foreshadowing references. This is how Lee made Mayella memorable enough to the reader to know who she is and her family situation without needing her point of view of her side of the story. Once Mayella enters the storyline, her actions will become understandable to the reader and generate sympathy. One way Lee makes Mayella a sympathetic character is how before entering her into the story, one of Mayella's younger siblings was introduced. Not only does this illustrates the Ewells financial crisis but as well as allude the behavior of the men within the Ewell household. Lee's introduction of Mayella's younger brother Burris was an introduction that was made to catch the reader's attention with Miss Caroline's outburst from seeing …show more content…
Ewell's behavior is revealed to be hostile and rash. His English is informal and his behavior is rude. When Robert is proven to be lying about the story he begins to act like how his son Burris did to his teacher. It is also revealed that he was the one to give Mayella all the injuries Sheriff Taft witnessed after it was discovered that Mr. Robinson has no mobile use of his left arm. And if Mayella had a bruised right eye the person must be left handed and it is revealed that Mr. Ewell is left handed after Atticus tested him by asking him to write out his name on a piece of paper. However what Lee did by creating an attentive notion of how Mr. Ewell was the one to beat Mayella was the revealing of these facts but not actually stating he did it. Thus a tension is built up out of these annotations but Mr. Ewell will not get in trouble creates an anger in the reader. It also explains why Mayella lied on the stand, because she was scared what her father was gonna do to her if she
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Show MoreEwell begun her testimony. With much emotional difficulty, she struggles but tells a shaky account of how she called in Mr. Robinson to the house to chop some furniture, when she was suddenly attacked. Mr. Finch then questioned Ms. Ewell with inquiries about her personal life, and brings up previously stated injuries to which Ms. Ewell struggles to confirm. Mr. Finch also points out Mr. Robinson’s left hand is heavily crippled from previous permanent injury. Ms. Ewell after this refuses to answer a series of questions from Mr. Finch, then refuses any more questioning at all.
Additionally, Bob Ewell’s hatred towards Atticus grew, as the book went on. He got so sick and tired of him and wanted revenge. Atticus explains that, “So if spitting at my face and threatening me saved Mayella Ewell one extra beating, that’s something I’ll gladly take.” Harper Lee describes that Bob Ewell was so full of hatred that he would beat up anyone he disliked. Towards the end of the novel.
Mayella Ewell accuses an African American, Tom Robinson, of raping her, and she goes on trial against Tom. This trial is motivated by race, and whose word the judges trust more. Mayella knows that every white person is trusted more than an
The feeling of compassion is for those who cannot escape the circumstances they go through, making those around them feel upset or sorry for them. What defines whether or not someone is fitting for compassion is if they deserved the difficulty of their life and the discomforts they were given. Mayella Ewell, from the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, is a nineteen-year-old girl who lives in 1935 and was given the lower hand her entire life, as her family struggles with money, she has no friends, and her father is very cruel. Her father caught her kissing a black man, Tom Robison, and abused her, and in order to protect her innocence and value, they told the sheriff that Robison raped her and took him to court where an attorney named Atticus defends
With their unbeknownst number of kids the Ewell brood, specifically Bob Ewell becomes jealous and outright angry that Atticus would oppose him in the court of law by representing Tom Robinson. Although against the odds Atticus feels empathetic towards the Ewells not necessarily Bob but instead for Mayella, he understands what she is being put through, Suffering through domestic abuse, and in court Atticus even goes so far as to state that he feels sorry for Mayella. To add to this he implies that the man truly guilty of beating Mayella is in the courtroom (Bob Ewell). This did nothing to calm Bob Ewell’s seething manner instead it only escalated it, and in an attempt to get back at atticus he tries to kill his children whom are saved by an unseen and unknown force which killed Mr. Ewell. The precursor towards this however was when Bob Ewell spit on Atticus but even through this Atticus was rational, he thought about it.
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.
Rabindranath Tagore said, “No civilized society can thrive upon victims, whose humanity has been permanently mutilated.” Society shapes and influences people very well, from news to even personal beliefs. It can be done through media, rumors or just information that has been fed to people. Society influenced Victoria and Ruby as victims to be accusers and even shaped a fictional character, Mayella, to be both a victim and an accuser as well. Mayella Ewell, from To Kill a Mockingbird, and Ruby Bates were both victims of society, which they were rejected by when they wanted to be accepted.
In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird Mayella Ewell's is a powerful young teenager. In the 1930’s in Maycomb, Alabama Mayella set news to the small town, she made allegations of rape against Tom Robinson. Mayella is as powerful as the ocean when it takes you underwater. In Harper Lee’s, To Kill A Mockingbird will show Mayella’s power by using Class, Race, and Gender.
Another quote shows how wrong Mr. Ewell acts:”I seen that black nigger yonder ruttin’ on my Mayella!” Mr. Ewell (Lee, 92) In the novel he accuses an innocent man of raping and hitting his child Mayella however that is not the true story he because is lying, he hit her. While Atticus chooses the right moral dilemma and he also has humanity: "Which, gentlemen, we know is in itself a lie as black as Tom Robinson's skin, a lie I do not have to point out to you. You know the truth, and the truth is this: some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some Negro men are not to be trusted around women—black or white.
Atticus receives a threat and gets spit on by Bob Ewell and he does not do anything back to Bob. A while after this incident Atticus tells his children that he took the insult from Bob Ewell to potentially save Mayella a beating from her father Bob Ewell. Since Atticus reveals Bob Ewell's behavior toward Mayella in the court. Atticus feels sympathy towards Mayella and tries to avoid another incident where her father is beating her up. This proves that empathy is one of the characteristics of Atticus.
During Tom Robinson’s testimony, Scout had epiphany. “As Tom Robinson gave his testimony, it came to me that Mayella must have been the loneliest girl in the world” was what she had said. Mayella’s loneliness can be clearly seen by anyone who talks to her. Furthermore, she does not know what it feels like to be treated politely. For example, when Atticus Finch calls her ma’am, she asks him to stop giving her attitude and then proceeds to yell at him.
In Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird”, the issue of Southern Womanhood is brought up many times throughout the novel. Lee uses many different characters to help show how she viewed Southern Womanhood. Specifically she uses, Scout, Mayella Ewell, and Scout’s Aunt Alexandra. In "To Kill A Mockingbird", Harper Lee uses specific characters to show how negative of an impact Southern Womanhood used to have. Harper Lee uses Scout in many cases to show how she thought Southern Womanhood used to have a negative impact.
Bob Ewell was the plaintiff who was accusing Tom Robinson of raping his daughter, Mayella Ewell. During the trial, they called up the plaintiff to testify what he saw. Bob Ewell was under oath but still ended up lying to win the case described. Atticus saw what he was doing and ended up calling him out on everything, subtly. It was shown that Bob Ewell was left handed while Tom Robinson was crippled on that side of his body.
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.
Mayella Ewell is a victim. Mayella is a victim of her father, Bob Ewell, because he is an alcoholic that abuses her. During the Tom Robinson trial, Atticus proved Bob Ewell to be left-handed. Based on Bob and Heck Tate’s testimonies, Mayella’s right eye was blackened