So, if everyone knows that lying has consequences, then why do people even lie in the first place? In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee answers this question. The main characters in this book are two kids named Jem and Scout, as well as their father named Atticus. The book takes place in the 1930’s when segregation and racial injustice were prominent. Therefore, when Atticus is appointed to defend a African American man, named Tom Robinson, who is accused of raping a white woman, it is a big deal.
To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is a book about the racial tensions and segregation that arose in the 1930’s. The general storyline is about the main characters, Scout and Jem. At the start of the story, Jem and Scout were always discriminating against other characters, especially Boo Radley. The town was split in half due to racial segregation and Atticus Finch, their father, was a lawyer who doesn’t care who he’s representing because he’s a man of integrity and decency. Scout and Jem eventually mature and start to understand the dangers of discrimination after they see that Boo Radley is just a human and not the person that they all made him into.
The consequences Atticus faced are how his family and him got insulted by Bob Ewell and some of the other men in the county of Maycomb. Atticus is one day guarding the cell where Tom Robinson is located at and a group of men come and want to kill Tom, but since Atticus is with him they want to kill him as well, because they are white supremacists and don 't like how Atticus chooses them over the black community. For example, in the book To Kill a Mockingbird demonstrates "...Mr. Bob Ewell stopped Atticus on the post office corner, spat on his face, and told him he 'd get him if It took the rest of his life" (Lee 217). This is important because it shows how Atticus was treated due to him helping Tom and proving that he was innocent. In addition, Bob Ewell insults Atticus by when "Francis rose and sprinted down the catwalk to the old kitchen.
Scout and Jem are the children of Atticus Finch, the lawyer who is trying to defend Tom Robinson in the court. In the article “Lynching” by Mark Twain, He talks about how mobs are formed by cowardly people. The three main themes in To Kill A Mockingbird are Loss of innocence, Power of words and Role of women. The first theme of To Kill A Mockingbird is Loss of innocence. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout is losing her innocence due to her lack of a filter and too much curiosity.
Two police officers and one of them is a racist and harassed an African American couple, that are in the show business. A Hispanic man that works as a locksmith and tries to take care of his daughter and wife, and a Persian family man that is discriminated by an American in a shop and mistaking him from an Arabic man. Some of these people come in contact with each other in some way or another, in a negative situation that deals with racial stereotyping of each other and prejudices. (“Crash (2004 film),” 2015) The Hispanic man takes a distance from the stereotype that Hispanic men are gang members and criminals and does not want to be affiliated with that, he works as a locksmith to support his family. This stereotype was shown as an example when he was working for a white woman, as she loudly expresses her concern that he was going to steal they keys and give it to other gang members so they break in because of his background and his appearance.
“Scout, I’m beginning to understand something. I think I’m beginning to understand why Boo Radley’s stayed shut up in the house all this time…” (227). Prejudice and discrimination are major issues that are present in the town of Maycomb; Scout and her brother Jem are young children who learn about the disturbing existence of the bigotry that they were previously unaware of in their familiar southern hometown throughout the trial of Tom Robinson, an innocent African American who is accused of rape by a white woman. To Kill a Mockingbird introduces a world that harbors prejudice against some of its very citizens and describes how discrimination was a major flaw in society and still is a flaw present day society. The author, Harper Lee develops a major theme of people should not discriminate against others solely due to prejudice on the basis of differences for it leads to consequences using dialogue between the characters, thoughts from the narrator 's perspective, and descriptions of beliefs during the time period throughout the book To Kill a Mockingbird.
Just Mercy was written in 2014, In modern day society, racial injustice has a big impact in this world today, as stated in Just Mercy and To Kill a Mockingbird. Showing that they are both related in many ways. The characters from To Kill A Mockingbird deal with racial injustice first hand. Scout, the narrator and daughter of Atticus Finch, experienced racial injustice of her father’s court case with Tom Robinson, an African American. Tom was accused of raping a white woman who was Mayella Ewell, Mayella said he raped her while he was helping her with chores.
These aspects have been revealed through three character who are Juror 10, Juror 8 and Juror 3. Juror Ten announces his intentions very early in the play. He speaks loudly and forcefully from the beginning, clearly showing his racism and prejudice towards the boy. Juror 10 quickly votes guilty and asserts that the defendant cannot be believed because “they’re born liars”. Additionally, he claims that the “kids who crawl outa those places are real trash.” With selfish attitudes like this, it was unlikely that Juror 10 would be interested in the truth behind the evidence and the case itself.
During the trial, Tom Robinson tells Atticus that he ran out of the Ewells’ house when he saw Mr. Bob Ewell. Atticus asks him why he ran and Tom replies, “Mr. Finch, if you was a n***** like me, you’d be scared, too” (195). Tom knows that he will be unjustly accused of committing the sexual assault due to his race. This is because Mayella’s word will be taken over his because the people of Maycomb would believe a white woman’s sworn testimony over that of a black man, even if it was not credible.
It is clear that Juror Ten’s uncompromising belief that the accused is guilty is because of his dislike for the boy’s race. His prejudice is clear when he says that “I’ve lived among ‘em all my life. You can’t believe a word they say” when speaking about the boy (16). Juror Ten’s prejudice causes him to disregard all of the facts that are presented to him by Juror Eight that can prove that the accused is not guilty. Juror 10 allows his prejudice to blind him of the truth.