Double Entry Journal “ ‘… the evil assumption- that all Negroes lie , that all Negroes are basically immoral beings, that all Negro men are not trusted around our women, an assumption that one associates with minds of their calibre.’ ” (Lee 232). What I think Harper Lee creates Aunt Alexandra’s prejudice towards other social groups, and Maycomb’s prejudice towards African-Americans to illustrate the bias opinions of others, and the impact that they have on the town’s southern society throughout the 1930’s.
The novel To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee explores this idea of judging others before looking at the world from their perspective. Scout and Jem, although raised in a prejudice town, learn from their father Atticus that who a person is racially, does not define them as a person. Although the children make up stories about Arthur “Boo” Radley to pass the time in part one of the novel, in part two the Tom Robinson situation widens their eyes to the biased ways of their town. In the end, Jem and Scout are rescued by Boo Radley, the very person they feared during their childhood. Mockingbirds are used as a symbol in the novel to portray the fact that innocent and caring people are sometimes the most abused.
“Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old town when I first knew it.” Harper Lee had used the tragic situation of Tom Robinsons trial to explore many themes including, racism and differences in privilege. “To kill a mockingbird” written by Harper Lee explores many situations linked to the broad idea of racism throughout the systems of Maycomb and differences in privilege in many different ways. The quote that Atticus argues with explains that in Maycomb, all men and things are equal.
As the book goes on and the characters change, ethical dilemmas about fear, and racism are seen. Additionally, what the book has to say about moral values and how things are done is mentioned in this essay. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee depicts the crude reality of Ethical Dilemmas in Maycomb, Alabama during the 1950s. One of the first Ethical Dilemmas presented in the book is what are the morals of the people in Maycomb. It is clear that Maycomb has differences in how people act, but that is different on what their moral values are.
To kill a mockingbird has the theme it is important to recognize all humans deserve respect regardless of their place society. Not all citizens of Maycomb weren't treated equally and with respect. For instance Arthur, “Boo” Radley was treated unequally and badly because no one knew about him so they began with rumors and pictured as an evil monster. Bob Ewell was born into racism and abuse and people judge him thinking he wants to do what he does but he was raised this way. And last but not least Tom Robinson was disrespected not because he did something but due to the color of his
The testimonies reveal how deep-rooted the racism within Maycomb runs, as it is present even in court rulings and how casually present it is. The court is taking place, and the order of prosecutor’s witnesses who are: Mr. Heck Tate, the sheriff; Mr. Bob Ewell, Mayella’s father; and Mayella Ewell, the one who is accusing Tom Robinson of raping her. When it’s Mr. Ewell’s turn to speak, he does so with many racial slurs and slang embedded in his accusations. When relaying what he saw to the jury, he points at Tom and yells “―I seen that black n*gger yonder ruttin’ on my Mayella!” Mr. Ewell, who, although, has never been a part of a court case or viewed one, doesn’t truly care, or notice, that so far into the formal case, not one person has used racial slang to talk about Tom, and uses the term n*gger quite casually.
In Maycomb, both white people and people of color hold animosity to each other. So the children in the town with both a white and black parent are treated differently because society can’t put them in a box “‘ They don 't belong anywhere. Colored folks won’t have 'em because they’re half white; white folks won’t have ‘em ‘cause they’re colored, so they’re in-betweens, don 't belong anywhere. ’”(Lee 161)
The Co-existence Of Good and Evil In Human Morality: To Kill A Mockingbird Analysis Essay Set in the rural southern town of Maycomb, Alabama, To Kill A Mockingbird is seen through the eyes of Scout Finch and her older brother Jem, Maycomb appears to be friendly and peaceful. However the children are exposed to the dangers and the truth of their community. As they mature and learn important lessons from others, they’re exposed to prejudice, inequality, racism, social class and injustice.
In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, the entire town of Maycomb accepts and contributes to maintaining the racial status quo. The narrator, Scout, tries to make it seem as though Maycomb, Alabama is a better place than other southern states in the United States. Although, they tolerate racism just as much as any other southern state. Some characters are aware of this, like Atticus Finch and Dolphus Raymond and others are not. Dolphus Raymond even states “Things haven’t caught up to that one’s instinct yet.
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.
Argumentative Essay “Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win”. Atticus Finch decided to defend Tom Robinson when he was accused of raping a white woman. I would’ve done the same thing as Atticus because I believe that back then it wasn’t a very fair world. As soon as a white person blamed a black person Police or the Judge would automatically take the word or the white person.
In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses characterization, symbolism, and irony to express the cloud in judgment prejudice causes when examining the morals of others. Scout is able to understand more about the town folk in Maycomb County through studying her teacher’s ironic and corrupted views of life around her. Lee uses Miss Gates, Scout’s teacher, to allow Scout a chance to understand the complexity of the adult world. While teaching the class about the Holocaust, Gates expresses the injustice being done to the Jews. She teaches the children that the town does not “believe in persecuting anybody” (Lee 329) because of the U.S. democratic government.
How does Harper Lee vividly capture the effects of racism and social inequality on the citizens of Maycomb county in ‘To kill a mockingbird’? In the novel, ‘To kill a mockingbird’, Harper Lee conveys the theme of racism and social inequality by setting up the story in Maycomb, a small community in Alabama, the U.S back in 1930s. Lee presents some of the social issues of 1930s such as segregation and poverty in the novel. These issues are observed and examined through the innocent eyes of a young girl, Scout, the narrator.
To Kill a Mockingbird is a book written by Harper Lee about racism and justice during the Great Depression. In Maycomb County, most people still aren’t over the confederate days, but Atticus Finch, a very ethical lawyer, and his family have to undergo a case over a black man. The thematic statement found in this book is,”A person’s surroundings will affects their choices and disregard morals.” This tells how the people in this book disregard some base morals and make choices. In To Kill a MockingBird there are examples of people disregarding their morals in mob mentality and letting society influence them, but keeping to a strict line they wouldn’t cross like Atticus defending Tom.
The black and white communities of Maycomb hardly ever come across one another, and in the rare occasion of such occurrence, the black individual most likely will get punished. Maycomb County is filled with so called “laws” that punish the black individual with