Discrimination In To Kill A Mockingbird

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.

Discrimination: a noun that is defined as, “the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex”. There are many types of discrimination in To Kill a Mockingbird. To Kill a Mockingbird is a story that is taken place during the Great Depression . Scout is the main character and her father Atticus is defending a man named Tom Robinson, who is a Negro. There are three main topics that are discriminated in To Kill a Mockingbird. The three main topics that are discriminated are socioeconomics, gender, and most importantly, racism.

Discrimination is prevalent in the story “To Kill a Mockingbird”, the most obvious being the excessive amount of racism (Lee). Racism is the easiest to see but there are more forms of discrimination (Lee). Boo Radley is ostracized from the community when truly nobody really knows him (Lee). People discriminate Scout for being a tomboy not a lady (Lee). The last one that no one ever thinks about is how reverse racism is seen when people threaten Atticus for defending Tom Robinson in court (Lee). Discrimination in any form is a controversial topic but everyone knows that it is not right to discriminate against people.

Discrimination, it has been part of human nature for a long time, especially relevant subject in literature such as To Kill a Mockingbird. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the main character of Scout Finch was exposed to different types of discrimination as she grows up. Discrimination affected the lives of characters in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mocking Bird because of society’s prejudicial views of race, gender, and class.

Decades ago, in the 1930s, people of color were not treated fairly. Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird took place in the 1930s in the fictional place of Macomb County, Alabama. It was narrated through a young girl named Scout Finch. Throughout the novel, Scout, her older brother, Jem, and their good friend Dill discover realities of society. Scout and Jem’s father, Atticus, was appointed to be the attorney of a black man. Because of the time period, the case was almost hopeless, but Atticus fought anyway. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird displays universal themes such as racial intolerance and innocence of youth.

Discrimination: unjust treatment of a different group of people or things. Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, discrimination is visible. The one most identify with is racism, with a great deal of the story revolving Tom Robinson’s, a black man, jury case. Left in the shadows, though, is the prejudice of other characters, whom the community of Maycomb may find to be a bit on the outs. Whether it is their way of life or how they act, someone always pick up on it and calls them out. Atticus Finch is old compared to the rest of the parents of students at Scouts school, keeping him from activities like the Methodists vs Baptists football game. Boo Radley, making poor decisions as a teenager, is confined to his house twentyfour-seven and

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

Prejudice, a main theme of To Kill a Mockingbird, is another representation of injustice in the novel. Racism is the most obvious type of prejudice, and this is shown through the trial and the outcome of it. "Well, coming out of the court-house that night Miss Gates was - she was goin' down the steps in front of us, you musta not seen her - she was talking to Miss Stephanie Crawford. I heard her say that it's time somebody taught 'em a lesson, they were getting way above themselves, an' the next thing they think they can do is marry us. Jem, how can you hate Hitler so bad an' then turn around and be ugly about folks right at home - ?" (Scout, pg272). In the 1930's, being racist was seen as normal. Atticus, for example, was seen as unusual because he thought that whites weren't above blacks. "'Cry about the simple hell people give other people - without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people give coloured folks, without even stopping to think that they're people too.'" (Dolphus Raymond, pg222). The prejudice of racism is shown throughout the book, and because of Atticus' views, Scout begins to see it as unfair and unjust. Another type of prejudice that is briefly touched upon is that of sexual discrimination. "For one thing, Miss Maudie can't serve on a jury because she's a woman.' 'You mean women in Alabama can't - ?' I was indignant." (Atticus and Scout, pg244). Like racism,

Millions of humans have suffered at the hands of racism and discriminatory events throughout history. The majority of these racial and discriminatory events are the basis of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. The novel references Jim Crow laws, mob mentality, as well as the issues of racism and discrimination in that period of time.

In the riveting coming-of-age novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, the author Harper Lee projects the idea of acceptance of all people, through the eyes of a child. Harper Lee combats the prejudice of social standing when she proves that some of the poorest people have the best of character traits. While racism of African Americans is first and foremost in this novel, the acceptance of white people into the African American community shows racism can be beaten from both point of views. Finally, the disabilities that Arthur Radley portrays, is forgotten, when his actions help him soar above the bigotry of the people of Maycomb County. The most obvious topic is the overt racism based on a person's skin color, however, Harper Lee takes us beneath the skin to show that discrimination occurs in other ways.

"I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks."(lee 304) said Scout, to what Jem replied "that's what I thought too...when I was you age. If there's just one kind of folks, why can't they get along with each other? If they're all alike, why do they go out of their way to devise each other?"(304). Discrimination and prejudice is illustrated in the classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Throughout the novel discrimination is shown in two different categories, racism and stereotypes.

In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows that many people discriminate because of the race. Some of the white people think that black people can't do as much them, but other people believe that they are capable of anything we are. An unforgettable novel, it shows how dramatic and sad it is in the old town of Maycomb be like, but through her writings, some big conflicts about politics and critical are going on through this tired old Southern town. “Tom Robinson’s a colored man, Jem. No jury in this part of the world’s going to say, ‘We think you’re guilty, but not very,’ on a charge like that.

In the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, the concept of racial discrimination is a major theme. Several characters are affected by Racial Discrimination including Bob Ewell, Atticus Finch and Tom Robinson. Harper Lee aim to educate her audience about the negative effects of Racial Discrimination this includes Poverty, lack of education and injustice in the law system

There are various forms of discrimination talked about in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Racism is the primary source of discrimination in the book. The story centers around the trial of Tom Robinson, who is a black man accused of rape. Another example of discrimination is sexism. Jem constantly tells Scout that she’s acting like a girl when she gets scared or emotional. Harper Lee also uses social class discrimination in To Kill a Mockingbird. In Aunt Alexandra’s eyes the Cunninghams are trash because they are poor.

When people hear about prejudice, they unconsciously think about racial prejudice. However, it goes way deeper than just that. In the novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird.” It's a novel about a girl called Scout, her brother Jem, and their father who is a lawyer, Atticus finch, who live in Maycomb County. Atticus Finch decided to defend Tom Robinson, a black man falsely accused of raping a white woman. Many examples of prejudice and discrimination seem to us throughout the novel. The most obvious type of prejudice that is repetitive throughout the novel is racism. As a matter of fact, there are many other types of prejudice people just forgot about. Economic status or social class, fear of the unknown, and gender roles play a big part of in the