The Contagious Rumors
“I guess rumors are more exciting than the truth.”-Venus Williams. People spread rumors because they feel that it will interest them more than the truth. In some ways, creating rumors can give people a reason to for them to believe that something is more flared than what the actual truth is. In other words, this means that people elaborate and stretch the actual truth in a situation, rather than believing the astounding truth. Often times, this helps people compress the unknown, and fill in the gaps to the clues that don’t make sense. Not understanding the unknown is hard, and leads to people jumping to conclusions when they don 't even know exactly what happened. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, rumors spread throughout the town creating stereotypes and changing many people’s once honorable reputation and unfairly forcing them to alter their way of life forever. One situation where rumors got the best of an innocent person was in the situation of Tom Robinson. Tom, and African American living in Maycomb county, is accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a poor, white female. When Tom is accused of beating and raping Mayella, many people around the town think that he’s automatically guilty. Atticus, Tom’s defending attorney, agrees to take on the case to help Tom because
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In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, rumors spread and lead to making false assumptions about people, which could cause their reputation to crumble. The novel clearly states many clear and valid points as to why these rumors can affect many people, and how they can change a person 's life in a bad way. Such as in the situation of Dolphus Raymond, Boo Radley, and Tom Robinson. Throughout the novel, many people suffer from the sickening disease of rumors. Don’t try to create rumors about people because it only leads to more damage between the person who spreads rumors, and the person who has rumors spread on them, because it could truly affect their life in ways that are
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Show MoreInjustice is found in the town of Maycomb during Tom’s court case. He is brought before court accused of committing an appalling crime, even though clear evidence and facts have been
Mayella accused Tom of rape, which was proven false but the jury decided to choose the voice of a white girl over a black man, which was common during this period of time. The jury then found Tom Robinson guilty, then sentenced Tom to prison. Some may say that Tom Robinson was at fault for entering the Ewell household but Mayella asked tom to come inside, and help her with some tasks which then started the accusations of Tom Raping Maylla Ewell. Tom only helped Mayella because he was black and he wanted to stay on her good side which unfortunately did not happen. Mayella spoke against Tom which caused the jury to find him guilty.
Atticus decides to take the case in defending a black person, something nobody in the town would have done. Most of the residents of Maycomb do not believe in equality and have hatred towards black people. If an African-American is charged for committing a crime, he is automatically believed to be guilty because of their skin color. Atticus says, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view” (39). To clarify, Atticus took the case because he believes there is a chance of Tom being innocent.
Kaleb Fisher, Henlie Guy, Jason Harris, Rowan Scripps, Coleman Wright Ms. Brewer Honors English 9 28 February 2023 Excerpt 8 Analysis Essay In Harper Lee's fictional novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus argues that Tom Robinson is an innocent man. In the novel, we meet Tom an African-American man accused of raping Mayella, a young white women. Atticus is appointed as Tom’s lawyer and this is Atticus’s closing statement. Atticus claims that there is no real evidence to convict Tom and he has done nothing wrong.
A critical event in the book is when Atticus accepts to defend Tom Robinson, a black man, who is accused of raping Mayella Ewell; however, he is disfavored against by the town due to his race. In the book, Atticus says, “...The only thing we’ve got is a black man’s word against the Ewells’. The evidence boils down to you did--I-didn’t. The jury couldn’t possibly be expected to take Tom Robinson’s word against the Ewells’...” (Lee 117).
Perception defines the world around you. It affects every aspect of your being: your thoughts, actions, beliefs, etc… In the novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch begins to understand just how impactful perception can be as she witnesses the deterioration of the dignity of Tom Robinson, a black man who is being tried for the rape of a white girl. In this intriguing read, Harper Lee demonstrates the theme of inaccurate allegations very effectively. More specifically, when inaccurate allegations that are solely based on perceptions are presented, the consequences can be significant, for others may suffer at great lengths.
Tom was accused of raping a white woman who was Mayella Ewell, Mayella said he raped her while he was helping her with chores. She later on tells the readers that it was false allegations. The reason why she didn 't tell the truth at her first trial was because, Mayella was afraid of being embarrassed because she kissed a black male. She rather have an innocent man get charged with a crime than that. “However, Robinson was transferred from the state prison to Maycomb 's county jail on Saturday, two days before he stood trial on Monday, and Atticus had to defend him against a lynch mob”.
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is the story of a small town named Maycomb Located in Alabama, highlighting the adventures of the finch children and many other people in the small town. The people in this town are very judgemental and of each other and it often leads to people being labeled with stereotypes and people think they know everything about that person however that is not reality. It is not possible to know the reality of a person 's life by placing a stereotype without seeing it through their own eyes and experiencing the things they experience. This happens often throughout the story with many people in the town. People are labeled as many things such a “monster” a “nigger” and many other things that seem to put them in their
Tom Robinson is a young African-American who's been accused of raping and abusing Mayella Ewell, a young and closeted white woman. Racial discrimination is hinted throughout Tom’s trial as Atticus Finch explains to Jem that a white man’s word will always win over that of a black man’s - "... In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins. They're ugly, but those are the facts of life" (220). Atticus explains to Jem that in the courts of Maycomb, a black man’s state of innocence or guilt is truly determined by a white man’s testimony.
Social prejudice is shown throughout Harper Lee’s award winning book, To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper Lee powerfully analyses the theme social prejudice, and its effect on people. Such as how the Social prejudice is discrimination based on your status in society. An example of social prejudice would be the Radley family, which consists of Boo Radley, Nathan Radley and Arthur Radley. As they haven’t been out of their house in years people are lead to believe the rumours.
Despite racial inequalities in the South, Atticus sticks to his own morals and agrees to be the defending lawyer for Tom Robinson, a black man being accused of raping a white woman. Although Atticus’ defense in court was thorough and clearly proved Tom’s innocence, the jury was prejudiced towards black folks and convicted Tom as guilty. Nonetheless, Atticus is still a hero despite losing the case. He has the courage to stand up for what he believes in, fights with reason rather than guns, and has utmost determination, making him a hero despite being just an average human being. Ultimately, his thoughts and actions set the stage for major changes in the meaning of equality throughout Maycomb County, changing lives of numerous people.
When discovered she covers her guilt and shame by accusing him of rape. In this era and in this community, Mayella’s accusation is seen as reasonable and unfortunately believable, which leaves Tom beaten before he enters the trial. However, Atticus expresses a powerful message in his closing argument to create a move for change in his society. The argument is expressed subliminally, by communicating that in the 1930’s society disregarded that all were equal, and categorised men and women based on the colour of their skin.
To Kill a Mockingbird On a rainy day, a man at the bus stop asks for change. The two choices are walking past him avoiding eye contact, or giving him the change with a smile. Before even talking to this man, one may have already made the assumption that he is homeless or a drug addict wanting to buy his next high. But assumptions cannot accurately explain who he is or why he needs money.
" During the Trial, it is proven by Atticus that Tom was helpful to Mayella, by fixing things for her when he was walking by on his way to work. And the fact that the jury could still convict Tom after all the evidence suggested otherwise shows that although they
In the novel: To Kill A Mockingbird, Mayella Ewell, a poor white woman, accused Tom Robinson, an African American, of rape. The Ewell’s are very indigent and her father, Bob Ewell, gets drunk and abuses Mayella. Since Mayella is very poor, this makes her not so powerful. In Maycomb, Alabama, A poor white woman named Mayella Ewell who lives behind the town garbage dump, accuses Tom Robinson, an African American, of rape.