If you have ever wondered what it was like to grow up while witnessing racism during the Great Depression, then the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is just for you. Two children, Jem and Scout, are living in a world of prejudice with their father Atticus Finch, a well-educated lawyer and their housekeeper Calpurnia, a “colored” woman. Atticus is the most intelligent man in Maycomb County, because of this, he defended Tom Robinson in court. Mr. Robinson is an African-American man who was falsely accused of sexually assaulting a “white” woman . The novel takes place in the South during the 1930’s, where racism was a major issue. “Colored” people were not seen as human beings, they were seen as objects. Many were slaves, and under the control of “white” people. Calpurnia who is the housekeeper for the Finches takes very good care of the house, but not just that. Calpurnia’s mother-like actions and sincerity show that she is an important part of the Finch household. Calpurnia guides and shapes the Finch children and is like a mother to them with her sincerity and love. Whenever the kids do something wrong, Cal corrects them. She doesn’t just cook and keep the house clean, she even gets them dressed. She takes very good care of them. Calpurnia makes the kids who they are. She physically and emotionally guides them with her knowledge and kindness, and is guiding the children to make them better as human beings. “Don’t matter who they are, anybody sets foot in this
How does racism affect a story? As a kid in the 1930s, Harper Lee grew up when there was hardly any equality for African Americans. Harper Lee’s only novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, is heavily based off of prejudice and racism from her childhood. In her book, she writes about racial discrimination through the eyes of a six year-old girl, named Jean Louise ‘Scout’ Finch, during the Great Depression. Her and her family are deeply tied into racism and prejudice involved throughout this story. Racism in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is ever apparent as the story is located in a small southern town in Alabama; it is reflected upon three of the main characters: Jean Louise ‘Scout’ Finch, Jem Finch and their father, Atticus Finch.
One time Cal scolded Scout and Scout talked to Atticus and wanted her removed from the house. But after that she realized Calpurnia only cared for her and wasn't trying to be rude. When you get older you get to have more emotions and for a 7 year old I feel like you wouldn't care that much if there was a killer in town that was raping young teenagers. But if you were in Calpurnia's situation you would feel very scared and frightened and would keep all the doors locked in your house and not have your kids go out at night.
The novel “To Kill a Mocking Bird” is based in the fictional small Southern town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s. When slavery and the Civil War were still present in the people’s way of living and the civil rights movement of the 1950s and '60s are far from close. The novel focuses on the Finches: Scout, her brother Jem, and their father Atticus, and the trial of Tom Robinson and how it affected them and the town. Witnessing the injustice of Tom Robinson’s trial changed Scout Finch in many ways. Scout learns that there is more than one type of courage, she learns about race and its complexity, and she also changes how she views the people around her by putting herself
‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ is a novel written by Harper Lee. It is set during the early 20th Century in the fictional town of Maycomb. Lee has decided to write the novel from a child’s point of view because a child is innocent but as the novel progresses the narrator, Scout, loses her innocence as she deals with the complications of her father being a lawyer. The novel revolves around racism and Scout sees discrimination wherever she goes whether it is racial or social prejudice. The town’s people agree with the idea that whites are superior to blacks. An example of this is when Atticus, Scout’s father, has to defend a black man who is accused of raping Bob Ewell’s daughter.
Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel that takes place in Alabama during the Great Depression. It is narrated by the main character who is a little girl named Jean Louise Finch aka “Scout”. Scout has a father named Atticus who is a lawyer and an older brother. The Finch’s are a white family and when Atticus goes to defend a black man, the whole town is shocked.This novel has tons of racism. Racism is an issue that is still current. Large amounts of racism are expressed in the novel still happens today through racial profiling, police brutality, and segregation.
Being at the top of the social hierarchy has been a must for every American of past generations, but can lead to fatal damages for some trying to obtain that goal and a cause to ruin people’s lives. In a remarkably triumphant story on compassion, Harper Lee explored the horrors of racial prejudice in the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Set in the 1930’s, the poor town of Maycomb, Alabama has been hit by the depression hard, which created a vast, complex social pyramid, with distinct families and lifestyles. At the Finch household, composed of a little nine year old girl, Scout, a twelve year old boy Jem, and their father Atticus, proceed through a whirlwind of events throughout the next few years. Atticus, a lawyer who is a hardworking, honest man at the top of the social hierarchy of Maycomb, has to defend a colored man by the name of Tom Robinson. This happened to be very unusual for the time period, as the family has to transcend through the struggles in a racial prejudice town and learn the raw nature of the worst in humans, thus trying to overcome these events through compassion. The author utilizes metaphor, characterization, and mood to describe the situation of Maycomb, it soon then becomes very clear that the dangers of ruining innocence can lead to a vast road of horrors and evils.
Racism has the power to change anybody’s life. Jem Finch is a young teen character from To Kill a Mockingbird who longed for the warm summer days when he could just play on the lawn and not care about the future. However, as the novel progresses, it becomes clear that he cannot just play around when he knows what is going on around him and what is happening to the black community of Maycomb, Alabama. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a success in the world of literature. Set in the 1930’s down south where racism was rampant, Harper Lee shows us the challenges of growing up in a community of inequality through the characters Jem and Scout Finch. Jem is older than Scout by 3 years so he understands how serious the nature of racism is and
The novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee is a simplistic view of life in the Deep South of America in the 1930s. An innocent but humorous stance in the story is through the eyes of Scout and Jem Finch. Scout is a young adolescent who is growing up with the controversy that surrounds her fathers lawsuit. Her father, Atticus Finch is a lawyer who is defending a black man, Tom Robinson, with the charge of raping a white girl. The lives of the characters are changed by racism and this is the force that develops during the course of the narrative.
Harper Lee’s book, To Kill A Mockingbird takes place in the difficult times of the Great Depression in the early 1930’s. The novel surrounds the life of a young girl named Scout Finch, along with her brother Jem, and their friend, Dill. Who are forced at a young age to watch the people of their small town of Maycomb not only receive, but also give prejudice to numerous, harmless people. Whether it be Boo Radley, a shut in who falls victim to the town’s gossip, even though he is constantly showing acts of kindness towards the Finch children. Or it be Tom Robinson an innocent man that Atticus, Scout’s father must defend be accused rape, and be convicted of a crime he did not to just because of the color of his skin. Throughout the novel, the people of Maycomb deal with prejudice in the forms of sexism, intolerance of differences, and in racism.
To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is a powerful novel that explores the widespread racial discrimination in 1930’s Alabama. Throughout the novel rarely is Alabama’s racism bridged, with the exception of three main protagonists Scout Finch, her brother Jem Finch and their Father Atticus. Lee’s use of symbolism, foreshadowing and irony present the consequences of the loss of innocence and the penalties that racial prejudice can have on a community.
The small town of Maycomb, Alabama gives the outward appearance of being cozy and cheerful, with quirky neighbors and backyards filled with gardens and treehouses. Beneath the small-town charm lies a place that is home to deep racial injustices and townspeople who refuse to acknowledge the damaging power that their racists views hold. In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Jem and Scout spot a dog while looking for small creatures to shoot with their air-rifles. Jem notices immediately that something is wrong, and is wary of the dog’s strange behavior. The children return home and recount the experience to Calpurnia, who calls their father, Atticus, to eliminate the danger and shoot the dog. The mad dog that roams the streets of Maycomb
The novel “To kill a mockingbird” demonstrates the theme of racism through the various situations that occur within the book. Atticus’s decision to defend Tom Robinson begins to have a deep effect on the Finch family. This is demonstrated by the Finch family receiving many racist comments from various people. The next example of racism is demonstrated when Calpurnia, Scout, and Jem go to a church where only “black” people attend, and the Finch family gets discriminated. Later, when Calpurnia, Scout and Jem got home, Scout asked Atticus if she could go to Calpurnia’s house, but Scout’s aunt said “no”. This is because Calpurnia’s neighborhood has too many “black people” which is a “bad influence” on Scout. Through these situations, it is clear
You look into a house in a small town where you see a little girl playing on the floor playing with her brother. Little does this innocent little girl know how she will change after a series of events that will occur soon in her life. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, the reader follows a series of events told in the point of view of the said little girl. She goes through harrowing events that bring her closer to understanding the nature of humans. Throughout the novel though, she abides by her belief that humans have good in them while she grows more mature as the novel progresses.
As the United States “progresses” in economic, educational and technological advancements we still are fighting for racial equality. With more than 50 years since the brown vs. board of education case there is still incidents like Ferguson, Baton Rouge, and Phiando Castile where many questions are still unanswered. However, Harper Lee dealt with these same problems in 1960 when she wrote To Kill a Mockingbird. Lee created an emotionally confronting story. Lee writes through the eyes of “Scout” a lawyer’s daughter in a small sleepy town of Maycomb in Alabama during the great depression. Throughout the book “Scout” learns coming of age lessons from Atticus and her own experiences. But when Atticus takes on a case defending a black man (Tom Robinson) convicted for rapping a white woman (Mayella Ewell) and is found guilty. “Scout” her brother Jem begin to understand the effects of the prejudices in society. Therefore, Lee applies the literary concepts of diction and tone to revel the truth that prejudices in society negatively affect the way people treat each other in To Kill a Mocking Bird.
Assuredly, Calpurnia doesn’t just prepare meals for the Finch family. She taught Scout to read and write on her own. Calpurnia also gave