Discrimination In To Kill A Mockingbird

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.

Jem changes his attitude as he gets older, and he starts to feel like Scout should act a certain way, telling her ““Scout, I'm tellin' you for the last time, shut your trap or go home—I declare to the Lord you're gettin' more like a girl every day!" With that, I had no option but to join them.” (Lee 58). At that time, being girly means that you are a coward and that’s why Scout couldn’t take it and had to defend herself. Through To Kill a Mockingbird, The role of men and women during that time, were very traditional and stereotyped.

People judge others all the time. Just because someone does not get paid as much means they do not try hard enough, and someone who has a different skin color is automatically a bad person. These thoughts are called prejudice. People have thoughts like these everyday, every hour, every minute, every second, this does not mean it is right. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the people of Maycomb have these thoughts against people like Tom Robinson or Walter Cunningham. But there are some strong characters that go against all the discrimination against these people.Harper lee conveys that a person's income or race does not make them less of a person through the words, thoughts, and actions of Calpurnia, Dill, and Atticus.

But, specifically for women and girls. They didn’t get many rights and freedom as they do today. Also, it was a big deal for a woman or girl to not match society’s standards because it wasn’t common. That leads into how Scout’s representation of a girl is viewed in various ways by others. Back to the day when Alexandra first comes, she starts hammering on Scout, starting with what she said first: “We decided it would be best for you to have some feminine influence. It won’t be many years, Jean Louise, before you become interested in clothes and boys-” (Lee 170). Scout doesn’t like what she said because she simply isn’t interested in what Alexander says she should be. Again, it seems that Alexandra doesn’t like how Scout isn’t fitting into society’s standard for girls. Scout is also convicted of being different from Jem. Jem’s view on Scout is the complete opposite of Alexandra’s, meaning he isn’t used to or wants Scout acting ‘girly’. Jem started to notice change in her when Scout refuses to sneak into the Radley’s property to see inside of the house. “Jem, please-” Jem replies,"Scout, I’m tellin‘ you for the last time, shut your trap or go home—I declare to the Lord you’re gettin’ more like a girl every day!" (Lee 69). Scout isn’t intending to act differently than she has used to, but she is saying no because she knows it isn’t a smart decision to begin with. Later on after the trial, Jem is

What does it mean to have racial segregation or discrimination in a town or community? It means that people of a different color, in most cases African Americans, cannot go to the same places as white people, do the same things, or even walk on the same side of the street. This was very prominent in many southern states back in the early 1900’s. In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, the quiet town of Maycomb, Alabama was a great example of southern racism in the 1930’s.

Atticus once stated, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (Lee 39). This made his daughter Scout realize that people were being discriminated against in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. This novel is narrated by a young girl named Scout and follows her as she learns of the racism in her old, sleepy Alabama town. This sparks up when she is viewing a trial about a black man raping a white women during the depression era and the whole town turns on that man. On Christmas, the kids got BB guns and Atticus told them, “Shoot all the Bluejays you want, if you can hit'em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee 119).

All around the globe, billions of people ignore their own self-worth for the purpose of pleasing society’s biased outlooks. To survive in this corrupted, prejudiced world, individuals frequently succumb to the judgment of others. They would rather disregard their own priceless and valuable opinions for mere approvals from the greater population. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, the author, Harper Lee, wrote a timeless piece that shines light on the discriminatory behaviors of mankind during the Depression Era in 1933, when racism was widely accepted and executed. The story was set in Maycomb County, a district residing in southern Alabama. One of the main characters, Atticus, willingly decides to rebel against society’s system by utilizing

Thirty-seven percent of the United States population is minorities, and the white majority will be gone by 2043 according to NBC News. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, shows how destructive racism/prejudice can be to a society. A black man named Tom Robinson is accused of rapeing a white girl named Mayella during a period of time where there was a lot of prejudice towards blacks. Tom is being defended by anti-racism lawyer Atticus Finch. The case is looking like it’s impossible for Tom to lose, but then the racism in the town of Maycomb says otherwise.

Harper Lee's To kill a Mockingbird addresses many forms of discrimination. Scouts father, Atticus is a lawyer defending the whites and blacks in his community. People discriminate by gender, race, religion, sexual preferences, social class, wealth class, and by disabilities. Many and if not all are shown is this book. Racism, sexism, and social class are the most significant form of discrimination in the book and the most actively used form. According to Rezazade blacks have been “considered as the inferior creatures who are socially, politically, and culturally deprived of their rights as human beings” (1). This is completely true and is shown in To kill a Mockingbird.

Discrimination is an enduring issue that society has yet to solve. According to a poll conducted by CBS news, 42% of people have felt discriminated against because of their race. The root causes of discrimination can be attributed to pride, ignorance, and fear. Pride creates a feeling of superiority whereas ignorance leads people to judge without adequate knowledge.

For instance, Jem first acknowledges the difference between male and female to Scout. He asserts, “Scout, I am telling you for the last time, shut your trap or go home, I declare to the Lord you are gettin’ like a girl everyday!” (42). Let alone, Scout has many characteristics that could resemble a male. Scout does not want to be the stereotypical female that does “girly” stuff. She believes that both male and female are equal. However, Jem sees Scout in a different way. Jem sees her as a little sister and not so much as a friend. He does not think that Scout should be doing such reckless stuff like he is. Additionally, during the trials of Tom Robinson, Judge Taylor pleases, “This courtroom be cleared of spectators, or at least women and children” (146). In fact, Society puts men a step further than women. Women are so restricted and heavily looked over by men. Scout realizes that society is messed up. She learns that men and women can not do the same thing or be the same thing. Not because of appearance but simply because of society. Without being said, sexism affected the everyday lives of women in Maycomb

The novel To Kill a Mockingbird is written by Harper Lee. The novel is about two children called Scout and Jem who are growing up in a small town called Maycomb during the 1930s. Their father Atticus Finch decides to defend a black man called Tom Robinson who is being charged for the rape of a white woman called Mayella Ewell. Atticus provides ample amounts of evidence proving that Tom is innocent but he is still convicted because he is black. Tom goes to prison and is killed trying to escape. Jem and Scout then become targets of Bob Ewell but Boo Radley saves them killing Bob in the process.

Gender discrimination/bias surrounds Scout Finch. As an eight year old tomboy, Scout would rather play in the mud than drink tea with the neighborhood ladies, much to the dismay of her Aunt. Furthermore Aunt Alexandra has mentioned to Scout that “she could not hope to be a lady if she wore breeches.” This pointed remark is towards her regular attire which consists of overalls and tee-shirts not dresses and camisoles. On the other hand, Jem got mad at Scout for acting like a girl, saying “girls always imagined things, that’s why other people hate them so.” Due to the fact

Black discrimination was a big and known predicament in the United States, but the problem of it across the world was not aware to most. Specifically in London, England, where with the business of civil rights in action in the U.S., nobody could see the obscured issue. Recently in class, topics of study have been To Kill A Mockingbird and The Help. Both pieces of literature focus greatly on the topic of prejudice on blacks in America. In another book, To Sir, With Love, by E. R. Braithwaite, there is, again, a theme of discrimination on blacks. What is different is that it’s told from the view of a black man who is native to British Guiana, yet still faces the injustice of prejudice that the people of London put upon him and don’t recognize. He eventually finds a job as a teacher to children that have no respect for him. They soon change their feelings of distrust to love and call him by ‘Sir’. Despite

The dictionary's definition of prejudice is, “preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience; biased.” The book To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee tells the story of a small town, Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930’s. We follow the story of two kids, Jem and Scout Finch. Jem and Scout and the kids of Atticus, who is a lawyer in town and is on Tom Robinson's case, he is a black man that is accused of raping a white woman, Mayella Ewell. Their eyes are opened when they see the true side of everyone in their town as they talk and listen to everything in Maycomb has to say about someone, or something. Prejudice is shown through the actions of citizens in Maycomb through class, gender, racial prejudice.