Sleepy Maycomb, like other Southern towns, suffers considerably during the Great Depression. Many things happen, and poverty, racism, and violence encompass nearly everyone in Maycomb. Poverty, racism, and violence reaches from the privileged families, like the Finches, to the Negroes and “white trash” Ewells, who live on the outskirts of town. Harper Lee paints a vivid picture of life in this humid Alabama town where nearly everything explodes into conflict. The theme of racism, poverty, and violence is present throughout nearly every chapter in To Kill a Mockingbird.
The theme of racism in To Kill a Mockingbird is present in nearly every chapter, and is one of the main focuses in the book. When Calpurnia brings Jem and Scout to her church, Lula, a colored woman, is not nice at all towards Jem and Scout. “You ain’t got no business bringin’
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Tom Robinson, although he is not actually guilty of the violence, is accused of rape, and many chapters of the book include him. “‘Old Mr. Bob Ewell accused him of rapin his girl an’ had him arrested an’ put in jail’”(Lee 164). This quote shows that even though Tom Robinson is a symbol of violence, he was not responsible for raping Mayella. Also, the events that took place on the day that Tom Robinson supposedly raped Mayella, is another example of violence. “‘She was beaten around the head. There was already bruises comin’ on her arms and it happened about thirty minutes before… she had a black eye comin… her right’”(Lee 224). This shows that the fight that Mayella was caught up in was very violent, just like the fights that Scout got in when she was smaller. “Catching Walter Cunningham in the schoolyard gave me some pleasure… I was rubbing his nose in the dirt”(Lee 30) shows that everyone in the book was faced with violence in some way. So, the theme of violence was spread widely through the book, and showed up to nearly
Mockingbird in Everyday Lives “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird. ”(119) In the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Atticus uses this quote to teach that it is wrong to harm innocent creatures.
In the classic novel To Kill A Mockingbird, author Harper Lee takes on the malignant impact of racism, a deeply rooted problem, from a different perspective and teaches readers what it truly means to be a good person as she brings to life one of the most virtuous characters in American literature-Atticus Finch. Told through the eyes of a young child, readers learn about the heavy prejudice embedded in the people of Maycomb County and the loss of innocence that is brought upon the kids as a racial conflict spurs a series of significant events in their quiet town. Taken place during the early years of the Great Depression, Maycomb must face its biggest problem-racism. Atticus Finch is the lawyer who defends this case and ultimately brings a
The quote I chose for this essay is "Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." (Lee 103). The context of the quote is that during Christmas, Scout’s uncle gave her and Jem shotguns, and they decide to go shooting with them, and Atticus tells them that. The quote means that since mockingbirds do no harm and just provide nature with singing, it is not right to kill them.
In the modern world, we are surrounded by judgement and discrimination. Nearly everyone is faced with hardships and insults based on their beliefs, habits, interests, and appearance. In a time of such hatred, there is a handful of pieces of literature that have spoken truth through the ages. One such book is To Kill a Mockingbird, a novel by Harper Lee. To Kill a Mockingbird takes place during the Great Depression in the fictional southern town of Maycomb, Alabama.
In the book To Kill A Mockingbird and Of Mice And Men, almost most of the characters lie about something. People lie even if they’re innocent because they want to protect themselves from being an outcast. Calpurnia lies about being able to read, Dolphus Raymond lies about being an alcoholic, and even worse, Mayella lies about Tom Robinson raping her. All of these false accusations lead to consequences and the only reason these people did this is because they’re too worried about their social standing in their community and they don’t want to be looked at any differently than anybody else.
“Mockingbirds don’t do one thing except make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it is a sin to kill a mockingbird.” Quoted by Atticus Finch and Miss Maudie. When Jem gets his first gun Atticus tells him that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird, and when Jem asks Miss Maudie about it she agrees and explains Atticus’s theory.
Then some people thought that Tom was innocent but the judge decided to make Tom go to prison. In the book it said that Mayella hugged and kissed Tom on the cheek. From this I can infer that Mayella is desperate and can get away with this because Tom Robinson is a black person. This reminds me of a couple southern movies I’ve watched where black people are always the first to suspect because of their color. Tom Robinson on trial for his life said Bob Ewell yelled “whore I’ll kill you” when he saw Mayella kiss Tom from the window.
A. Theme- Pick two quotes and explain how each relates to a theme in the novel in 3-5 sentences each. Do not summarize the novel. 1. “‘[It’s] a sin to kill a mockingbird.’” It relates to the novel because it is a sin to kill a mockingbird.
In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, racism grudges on Maycomb Ville’s society. Families collared by agony, struggle everyday to break free from the chains of poverty. Domestic violence eclipses the town as it conceals beneath the dark shadows. Maycomb ville’s conflicts all revolt into a drastic nightmare.
What many people don’t realize is how much of a mockingbird Mayella is. The reader follows only a small portion of Mayella’s story, but it is substantial enough for the reader to identify her as a victim of abuse. Mayella was abused by her father throughout her life and becomes manipulated to pin the blame for her own actions on the innocent. It becomes a chain reaction of sorts. Though Mayella isn’t described in vivid detail, she was an influential character in the book as well as a victim of the evil of Maycomb.
To Kill a Mockingbird Essay: Comparing Atticus Finch and Bob Ewell In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, there are many events that affect the town and people of Maycomb Country, Alabama. Taking place during the Great Depression, things happened a lot differently than they would have happened today and affected the people differently than they would today. Atticus gaining the job to defend Tom Robison made a lot of chaos in this little town leading to threats, attacks, and even deaths.
An example of racism can be found in chapter 12 is when Lula is making fun of Jem and scout because they are white people in a black church. “‘I wants to know why you bringin’ white chillun to a nigger church.’” (Lee 158). Lula doesn’t like white people an obviously doesn’t want them at the black church. Lula is racist and doesn’t white people and is racist to them just like they are to blacks.
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.
“You ain’t got no business bringin’ white chillun here-they got their church, we got our’n” (p. 119) Lula, a colored woman is a prime example of the two way road of racism. When Scout and Jem hear this they are completely astonished by the fact that the white race is looked down upon by other races. Racism is a problem that affects everyone; even the “master” race. “Now don’t you be so confident Mr. Jem, I ain’t ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a
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.