ipl-logo

What Are The Effects Of Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

851 Words4 Pages

Effects of Racism
“Racism is taught in our society, it is not automatic. It is learned behavior toward persons with dissimilar physical characteristics.”-Alex Haley To Kill A Mockingbird is a novel that is greatly affected by the way others see the world. Scout, a young girl, growing up in Maycomb a place where racism is accepted. She is constantly learning how racism affects the community through different altercations in Maycomb. She realizes that racism shouldn’t exist due to the side effects. In To Kill A Mockingbird Harper Lee conveys that racism causes inequality between people, isolation, and injustice.
Racism affects the individuals of maycomb by creating an unfair and non welcoming area for people. Maycomb’s prejudice view on black …show more content…

After the final judgement of the trial the city sheriff’s input about the trials outcome was, “Im not a very good man, sir, but I am sheriff of Maycomb County. Lived in this town all my life an I’m going on forty -three years old. Know everything that’s happened here since before I was born. There’s a black boy dead for no reason and the man responsible for its dead. Let the dead bury the dead, this time Mr. Finch let the dead bury the dead.” (Pg 276) A person that has control on the outcome didn’t even stand up to help the trial of Tom Robinson. This unjust area is completely dependent to the racial thoughts in Maycomb. Not only that but black people aren’t welcomed into this area due to the possible punishment that could happen to them. They could be held accountable for something they didn’t even do. Atticus fears that "There's something in our world that makes men lose their heads—they couldn't be fair if they tried. In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins” (Page 224) Atticus confirmed that Maycomb won’t have a just system due to white men’s words to black men. This would only make Maycomb welcoming to white people and unwelcoming for black people. Maycomb is unwelcoming and unjust for the prejudice view for black

Show More
Related

To Kill A Mockingbird Double Entry Journal Analysis

202 Words | 1 Pages

The interactions between those of a different race in Maycomb is looked down upon. Therefore, many african americans are wrongly punished and treated as though they are less than human. African-Americans are often seen as inferior to caucasians.

Read More

How Did Tom Robinson Get A Fair Trial

1367 Words | 6 Pages

Even when the evidence overwhelmingly supports Tom Robinson’s innocence, the jury’s bias towards blacks convicts Tom as guilty and is the reason for his eventual death. However, Atticus’s strong efforts leads to a lengthy discussion about the verdict of Tom’s case, which creates hope for a turning point in Maycomb, where whites and blacks are treated equal, because no other trial involving a black person has taken this length of time. In summary, all the occurrences of injustice in To Kill a Mockingbird such as the trial of Tom Robinson are created by a group of people with the same immoral beliefs but can be fixed with strong determination

Read More

How Do Wes Moore Use Drugs In To Kill A Mockingbird

1492 Words | 6 Pages

This image shows how the people in Maycomb based their beliefs, about Thomas Robinson, by his skin color. Most whites who were at the trial, didn’t want to hear anything that Mr. Robinson has to say, because he was black. Since he was black, the whites automatically assumed Mr. Robinson was guilty. Mr. Robinson says he didn’t mean any harm toward Miss. Mayella. “Mr. Finch, I tried.

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Prejudice Quotes

1119 Words | 5 Pages

(100), here, Atticus knows even if everyone knows Tom is innocent and Tom’s opponent is white trash and ignorant, everyone understand that he will suffer racial discrimination and will be labelled guilty no matter the proof. Racial segregation will be the main factor as to why no one will choose a black man’s side over a white’s. No matter how much evidence there is, the mindset on blacks in Maycomb is nearly impossible to discard. “Atticus had used every tool available to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of men’s hearts Atticus had no case. Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed” (276), it is no surprise when Tom tries to escape the prison and dies doing so, because everyone knew there was no hope for him once a white accuses him.

Read More

Examples Of Loss Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

616 Words | 3 Pages

For instance, Tom Robinson was convicted of a crime, even though all odds were in his favor. This shows that the people in Maycomb do not care about what is right, but rather the color of a person's skin. On page 267, Scout says, “Calpurnia said Atticus told her that the day they took Tom to prison he just gave up hope. She said Atticus tried to explain things to him, and that he must do his best not to lose hope because Atticus was doing his best to get him free” (Lee 267). To explain, Tom was tired of putting his faith in the court system.

Read More

Tom Robinson's Innocence

1442 Words | 6 Pages

Maycomb refuses to accept Tom Robinson’s innocence and instead uses him as a scapegoat to protect the Ewell’s pride and to justify blaming him for Mayella’s circumstances which preserves Maycomb’s power over the African American community. Maycomb’s inability to believe Tom’s innocence is because his case is a “black man’s word against the Ewells” and “the jury [can’t] possibly be expected to take Tom Robinson’s word” because Maycomb deems ignorant, uneducated white people, like the Ewells, as more respectable, valuable, and trustworthy than black people (88, 108). Tom’s case demonstrates how Maycomb sees African Americans as expendable because of deep-rooted prejudices. Maycomb chooses to condemn a black man to death over damaging Mr. Ewell’s pride. Maycomb attempts to rationalize this verdict with stigmas about black people, falling back on their ingrained prejudices.

Read More

Examples Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

1286 Words | 6 Pages

The trial consists of Mayella Ewell, a white woman, and Tom Robinson, a black male. In the Great Depression era, the white juries would have believed a white woman’s word than a black male’s. Even in Tom’s defense, Atticus could not help but say, “But I cannot pity her: she is white” (272). Even though Mayella Ewell is at fault trying to frame Tom Robinson guilty, she is still in a higher power over Tom Robinson. As soon as Tom Robinson was shot, the town of Maycomb killed a mockingbird as well as their innocence.

Read More

Atticus Taking A Stand Analysis

400 Words | 2 Pages

The people of Maycomb were very mad and very unthoughtful of the decision for Atticus to take the case because Tom is black. “He’s nothing but a nigger lover.”(Lee)Pg.110) However if Atticus hadn’t taken the case he wouldn’t be able to face his kids anymore. He wouldn’t have enough dignity anymore. He also wouldn’t be known as a racist.

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Argumentative Essay Argument

450 Words | 2 Pages

We are all equal and human. The only difference is the color of our skin. The town of Maycomb just think otherwise. They think that because their appearance is different from theirs, that they are going to come and kill them or something. Don’t get me wrong, i’m sure there are a few black men/woman that really did get into some trouble and hurt other purposely but not all of them.

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Innocence Quotes

559 Words | 3 Pages

This quote is a perfect example of Tom Robinson, a black man who the people of Maycomb inappropriately label as a criminal and therefore act prejudiced against. Tom can be likened to a mockingbird in the sense that he too is innocent. Furthermore, it is a criminal offense to kill a mockingbird because everyone knows they are harmless creatures that do no wrong. Unfortunately for Tom, this precedent does not apply to black men in Maycomb even once they are proven innocent. This is seen during Tom Robinson’s trial just before Judge Taylor announces if he is guilty of asssuluting and raping Mayella Ewell.

Read More

Hyperbole In To Kill A Mockingbird

1524 Words | 7 Pages

The negative affects in this passage such as loss of hope and innocence, convicting an innocent person guilty etc., shows how powerful racism was in a Maycomb and the prejudiced behaviour of the citizens in Maycomb. Lee uses several literary devices in this passage to intensify the mood of the story and make people know that this is how bad situations were as a way to rebel against the racism present in this

Read More

Examples Of Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

860 Words | 4 Pages

The novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” was written in 1960 by Harper Lee in the point of view of a young innocent girl named Scout. One of the main messages that Lee has (need a new word than – indicated or set out) is racism, it plays an important role which strongly impacts many character’s lives unfairly and changes the relationship between two. Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird” shows that it is wrong to hurt someone who does no harm to you, for example, black people are innocent but no way did they have as many rights as white people did. Black people lived hard lives because society was judgemental, irrational and most importantly, racist. As Scout and Jem grow older they learn to cope, take responsibility and are introduced to new aspects of life, one of which is racism.

Read More

Examples Of Racial Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

857 Words | 4 Pages

Essay In the novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee, there are many important messages shown throughout the book. However the primary focus was set on racial prejudice that existed in the 1930s-1940’s in the fictional town of Maycomb County. The racism in the novel was very much a reality in 1930s-1940s America. A very good example of the racial prejudice that existed was in the courtroom during Tom Robinson’s trial, an innocent Negro man held against his will for a crime he did not commit.

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Testimonies Analysis

358 Words | 2 Pages

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.

Read More

Theme Of Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

858 Words | 4 Pages

Though most of the town Maycomb feels negatively and discriminates the African-Americans, characters like Atticus show us how one person can impact his surroundings if he has high morals. Although he couldn’t change the mindset of the other town residents , he made sure that his own children didn’t discriminate people, purely on the basis of their skin colour. Racism can be seen even in the first few chapters of the book. These racist comments by nonracist children typify the culture in which they were growing up.

Read More

More about What Are The Effects Of Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

Related Topics

Open Document