ipl-logo

Theme Of Inhumanity In To Kill A Mockingbird

643 Words3 Pages

In Harper Lee’s novel (1960),to kill a MockingBird,one of the major themes is man’s inhumanity to man. This is shown through the Boo Radley, Tom Robinson and Dolphus Raymond subplots. All three characters can be seen as examples of the proverbial mockingbird. This inhumanity shows that Maycomb might not be the melancholic, quiet town that is described in the book by Scout,’”Maycomb was an old town,but it was a tired old town’” (6). While Scout thought Maycomb was peaceful it was evidently a inhumane town. An example of these “MockingBirds” are: The first and foremost example of this heartless treatment is Arthur “Boo” Radley. He is the subject of not only multiple absurd rumors but also is looked down upon by his fellow neighbours and townsfolk. Children and adult alike fear him for what is heard of him and speculate ideas of the gruesome things he “must” do. “Boo drove the scissors into his parents leg,pulled them out,wiped them on his pants,and resumed his activities” …show more content…

The people of Maycomb stalk and harass an innocent man that just want’s to be accepted.The second he goes and does his own thing, people start absurd rumours about him.Children torment him on a almost day to day basis. They play thing’s such as “Boo Radley play” an offensive play meant to make fun of him. They also berate Boo by going on to his private property to try and see what he looks like.”Dill and Jem were simply going to peep in the window with the loose shutter to see if they could get a look at Boo Radley” (69). Despite Boo being ostracized by the people of Maycomb, he is still nice to them. He gives gifts to the kids that treated him wrongly, even goes as far as to save their life,while risking his own. Boo Radley is obviously a Mockingbird,giving gifts and not harming a soul,but the people of Maycomb think wrongly of him. Sadly Boo isn’t the only innocent man to be hurt by

Show More
Related

  • How Does Arthur Radley Change In To Kill A Mockingbird

    494 Words  | 2 Pages

    Arthur Radley, also known as ‘Boo Radley,’ for many years been described as a malevolent, dangerous, and scary man. But as time goes on, is Arthur as bad as the people of Maycomb describe him? The novel “To Kill a Mockingbird,” written by Harper Lee, is a story told by Scout Finch, a six-year-old living through the great depression in the small town of Maycomb, Alabama where her and her brother must mature fast when they experience the real world face-to-face. Arthur Radley is described as a scary figure by the people of Maycomb, but as the novel progresses, many perceptions of Arthur change for the better.

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird Prejudice Quotes

    1119 Words  | 5 Pages

    In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee teaches us about the town of Maycomb County in the late 1930s, where characters live in isolation and victimization. Through the perspective of a young Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, readers will experience prejudice Maycomb brings during times where people face judgement through age, gender, skin, and class. Different types of prejudice are present throughout the story and they all contribute to how events play out in the small town. Many of those in Maycomb face and express sexism, racial discrimination, and classism their whole lives. This disables the people who fall victim from living their life comfortably in peace.

    Read More

  • Tom Robinson's Innocence

    1442 Words  | 6 Pages

    Mr. Radley isolates Boo from the outside world, so Boo, at the age of thirty-three, stabs Mr. Radley in the leg with a pair of scissors. Again, Mr. Radley prefers confining Boo to the courthouse basement than accept that “Boo wasn’t crazy, he was high-strung” (11). Mr. Radley saves the family reputation by preventing Boo’s incarceration, but the time Boo spends locked up in his own home makes Boo unhinged. When rumors about Boo’s attack circulate Maycomb, they turn a blind eye to “what [is happening in Boo’s house] behind closed doors” despite knowing Mr. Radley is “the meanest man God blew breath into” by arguing that Boo is crazy, and they choose to ignore the obvious emotional abuse (12, 46). Society

    Read More

  • Misjudging People In To Kill A Mockingbird

    793 Words  | 4 Pages

    Days in Maycomb have never been normal for Boo Radley or Tom Robinson, over the years they get misunderstood and judged for reasons they don’t even understand. They only have two reason they could possibly “hate them”, rumors people are spreading and the sheer fact that people hated African American people. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, “Boo the Monster” rests from the comfort of his home while he gazes at Jem, Scout, and Dill, which he sees he’s being mimicked for the things he “has done”. Tom Robinson stares back at a large crowd of angry people for a crime he didn’t commit but has no way to prove it. Racism is a horrible thing but in Maycomb Alabama, it was at it’s peak.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Moral Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1001 Words  | 5 Pages

    Radley is understood to be mistreated by his father in his childhood and was locked away in his home for a minor infraction, making him the gossip of the town in Maycomb. Early in the book, Jem depicts Boo as a terrifying monster who had “blood-stained hands (pg.14)” and a “long jagged scar (pg.14)” from “din[ing] on raw squirrels and cats (pg.14)”. The author creates this gruesome imagery through the frightening connotations of Boo’s description to highlight the children’s’ negative perception of him. However, Boo is a hapless and innocent individual. The audience is first positioned to view Boo as such when he showed an unanticipated act of heroism, saving Jem and Scout from Bob Ewell’s attempted murder.

    Read More

  • Boo Radley Theme

    973 Words  | 4 Pages

    Boo Radley, a character who never comes out of his house and sounds as scary as his name, portrays an important theme in Harper Lee’s classic To Kill A Mockingbird. The classic is rich with themes and inspires many people to learn from these themes. One of the main themes is developed by Tim Johnson, the pet of Maycomb, Tom Robinson, a black man convicted of rape, and Boo Radley. The theme these characters are developing is that it is a sin to hurt or kill something that is not harmful. Tim Johnson is a marvelous dog that brings joy to the town of Maycomb, but Atticus kills Tim.

    Read More

  • How Does Lee Present Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1405 Words  | 6 Pages

    Yet they still view him as a mysterious figure. Scout recalls, “... crimes committed... were his work... although the culprit was Crazy Addie... people still looked at the Radley Place, unwilling to discard their initial suspicions.” (13) Scout’s remembrance of how the people were “unwilling to discard” their assumptions even when they knew that Boo was not the criminal shows Maycomb’s prejudice. Scout’s recollection not only foreshadows further intolerance in the community but also shows a perspective from young and innocent member, and how she follows the beliefs of the adults.

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird Title Analysis

    466 Words  | 2 Pages

    Tom was charged with the rape of a local young girl, Mayella Ewell. Although he did not commit the crime, the town’s racist mindset led them to side with the guilty party, Bob Ewell. Tom Robinson was shot and killed, so in a sense, Maycomb County killed a mockingbird. The second is Boo Radley, a mysterious man that never shows his face, causing him to fall victim to the imaginations of Maycomb residents, especially those of children like Jem and Scout. Although Jem and Scout have their theories and alleged stories about Boo, he ends up saving their lives in a plot twist.

    Read More

  • Miss Maudie's A Sin To Kill A Mockingbird

    630 Words  | 3 Pages

    Scout understands that by telling Maycomb that Bob Ewell killed himself, “Boo,” the “mockingbird,” is saved from unwanted attention that could potentially hurt him. Tom Robinson and “Boo” Radley are the most obvious examples of “mockingbirds,” but there are also several other, more subtle “mockingbirds” throughout the

    Read More

  • Racial Ideology In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

    948 Words  | 4 Pages

    (245) Clearly, Tom Robinson's case is unfair, and injustice is distinctly shown. In this regard, Boo Radley is being treated unfairly because he is not considered to be a normal person in Scout's eyes. As the town of Maycomb blames Boo Radley for anything negative that happens, it shows the racial ideology in Maycomb. This is displayed when Jem says, "I hope you’ve got it through your head that he’ll kill us each and every one, Dill Harris," said Jem, when we joined him. "Don’t blame me when he gouges your eyes out.

    Read More

  • How Does Lee Use Lies To Bend The Truth In To Kill A Mockingbird

    784 Words  | 4 Pages

    Boo was sentenced from an early age to be a “monster” of sorts due to his past dealings with the law and his time spent in solitary confinement. This story that is invented by the people of Maycomb alters Boo Radley’s true appearance greatly, deeming him to be something he is

    Read More

  • Why Is Boo Radley Misunderstood In To Kill A Mockingbird

    411 Words  | 2 Pages

    Boo Radley who “was not seen again for fifteen years”, is the most misunderstood person in Maycomb. His childhood mistakes marginalise him from society by a “form of intimidation Mr Radley employed to keep Boo out of sight.” To elaborate, Boo did not intend to separate himself and be perceived as a “malevolent phantom.” In truth, Boo is intensely lonely and wants to befriend the children in which he saves their lives. Similarly, in The

    Read More

  • Examples Of Honesty In To Kill A Mockingbird

    888 Words  | 4 Pages

    Showing them the harsh reality of life with honesty and fearlessness. During this time the Great Depression was hitting the southern town of Maycomb. This novel compares many of its characters to mockingbirds, a symbol of pure innocence. One summer, Atticus, who is a lawyer, finds himself in the middle of a controversial case, involving a African American man, Tom Robinson and a white woman, Mayella. Despite the town throwing hatred towards Atticus and his family, he doesn’t back down because he takes pride in helping the innocent.

    Read More

  • Boo's Relationship In To Kill A Mockingbird

    980 Words  | 4 Pages

    Throughout the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird,” written by Harper Lee, the readers can see how Scout changes her view about Boo Radley. Because of their nosiness, Jem, Scout, and Dill try to drag Boo out his house and to the outside world. Their innocent actions combined with Boo’s actions changed the image of Boo, in their minds, from “a malevolent phantom” (10), a person who kills cats and eats squirrels to a neighbor they can trust, who saves them from Bob Ewell. Scout says at the end, “Boo was our neighbor” (373). The readers can see a great change in their relationship.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Social Inequality In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1169 Words  | 5 Pages

    In the novel, ‘To kill a mockingbird, Harper Lee demonstrates the small, imaginary town, the Maycomb County, as a place where racism and social inequality happens in the background of 1930s America. Not only the segregation between whites and blacks, but also the poor lived in a harsh state of living. As Scout, the young narrator, tells the story, Lee introduces and highlights the effects of racism and social inequality on the citizens of Maycomb County by using various characters such as Boo Radley, Tom Robinson, and Mayella Ewell. Firstly, Harper Lee portrays Boo Radley as a victim of social inequality through adjectives and metaphor in the phrase, “There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten;” ‘Long jagged scar that ran across his face’ tells us that Boo Radley has stereotype about his appearance, which forces to imagine Boo as a scary and threatening person. The phrase, ‘yellow and rotten’ make the readers think as if Boo Radley is poor and low in a social hierarchy, as he cannot afford to brush his teeth.

    Read More

More about Theme Of Inhumanity In To Kill A Mockingbird

Open Document