Fear In To Kill A Mockingbird

The indecency of Bob Ewell towards Atticus Finch is unprecedented among two white men in Maycomb. Stephanie Crawford, the town’s gossip, is quick to reveal the events upon the townspeople. By spitting on and cursing Atticus, Bob Ewell only began his bit of rage. Of course, Atticus took this in the best way possible, thinking in favor of Mayella. “‘Jem see if you can stand in Bob Ewell’s shoes for a minute. I destroyed his last shred of credibility at that trial, if he had any to begin with. The man had to have some kind of comeback, his kind always does. So if spitting in my face and threatening me saved Mayella Ewell one extra beating, that’s something I’ll gladly take.” (Lee 218). Considering he had completely destroyed Bob Ewell’s

people will see him as the " trash " at the bottom of the pile. It is

Because the Ewells are at the bottom of the class structure along with the African Americans, and are constantly sneered and despised by their higher-ranking white peers, Bob Ewell tries to seem better than his current situation of utter poverty by trying to appear as morally superior to Tom Robinson, an African American. In accusing Tom Robinson, he sees what he believes is a way for advancement in society. Not only does he i) clear his daughter of the ‘crime’ she has committed of tempting a black man, he also ii) elevates his societal status. In his mind, the town should think him a hero for saving Maycomb's white

“Curiosity will conquer fear even more than bravery will” (Stephens). Fear is a big part of one’s life. Fear affects many things including people’s behavior, actions and their state of mind. Even though fear is in everyone not all have the same fears, everyone is made differently, by their culture, their race and their religion, fear is the same it defines what a person will accomplish. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows her readers that fear is a significant part in the novel since it’s the reason for most people’s actions. By looking further into the book the result of fear is present in Tom Robinson’s case, Boo Radley and Bob Ewell.

For example, when Atticus addresses Mayella as “ma'am” or “miss,” she believes it is a sign of Atticus mocking her. Proving that Mayella was never greatly respected or at all throughout her life. Mayella owns geranium flowers that Scout emphasizes for being so well cared for, because she realizes that Mayella looks like she is trying to keep clean, and one may believe that Mayella wanted more than to live in a Negro cabin where its windows were spaces in the wall with a dirt yard behind the town’s garbage dump. Scout also notes the geraniums because she believes that Mayella uses them to separate herself from the rest of the Ewell family. Bob Ewell is an alcoholic and an abusive father. Presented in To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus says “he thought he’d be a hero, but all he got for his pain was… okay, we’ll convict this Negro but get back to your dump.” (Lee, Chapter 27) Stating that although Bob is white, he is still unwanted by others even after Tom Robinson’s conviction. Mayella suffers from her life at home by being abused, let alone is thought of and expected to be lower than everyone else as a reflection of her polluted appearance, her family’s low income, and her father’s

In the story I predict that the children will end up not meeting Boo, because they are too scared to even walk across the sidewalk by his house. The children were playing baseball and they threw the ball over the fence, and said it is gone forever. That is how scared they must be to not even try and go get it. The children think that he will do the worst possible thing if they even consider getting their ball back. The children believe that if they walk near his house or even grab something by his house that Boo will come out and kill them all. Therefore many of the children are scared because the they believe that Boo will come and hurt them. Some of the kids also say that he goes up to their windows at night and watches them sleep, and if

People feel sympathy towards those that are believed to be unlikely to lie, and Mayella took advantage of this. During the trial, Scout realizes that “Tom Robinson was a dead man the moment [Mayella] opened her mouth to scream” (Lee 323), which is mainly because she was given sympathy. When she tells her story about the events that happened between her and Tom Robinson, the audience pities her, and she is described as “[. . .] fragile looking, but when she sat facing us in the witness chair, she became what she was, a thick-bodied girl accustomed to strenuous labor” (Lee 239). They describe her as someone who looks strong and controlled, but also as frail and fragile. Even though her life is not on the line, the people in the courtroom believe her to need more protection because of her fragile appearance. After Mayella’s father, Bob Ewell spit in his face, Atticus responds to his children by saying “if spitting in my face and threatening me saved Mayella Ewell one extra beating, that’s something I’ll gladly take” (Lee 293). Even the lawyer that shows the town that she was guilty pities her, even after she denies her lies and lets a young man die. In this situation, race is a contributing role towards this sudden acceptance, because in the society that these characters live, individuals with white skin are often viewed as less likely to commit sin

Over the course of Tom Robinson’s trial, Mayella’s state of mind shifts from anxious and nervous to distress and panic due the aspects of guilt and fear. When Mayella is called to the witness stand, and asked to provide her testimony, she is very uneasy, uncertain and hesitant towards her claims. As the questions grow more specific and complex, Mayella has a difficult time answering and struggles with providing the truth.

Bob Ewell is a minor character who is also depicted as an antagonist in the text and is a of Maycomb?s poorest family. He hates Atticus Finch because he defends Tom Robinson, and he tries to harm him. Bob Ewell helped me understand Atticus, because Atticus? reaction to Bob Ewell?s actions helped me understand more about Atticus Finch?s personality, for example, Atticus does not retaliate when Bob Ewell spits in his face. This shows me that Atticus is broad minded and tolerant who understands that he has wounded Ewell?s pride - the only real possession this man has. The minor character Bob Ewell helped me to come to the conclusion that Atticus Finch is tolerant and is

Therefore, the mockingbird and Robinson's voice commonly are not paid attention to throughout the whole novel. "It couldn't be worse Jack. The only thing we've got is a black man's word against the Ewells. The jury couldn't possibly be expected to take Tom Robinson's word against the Ewells." (88) This quote from Atticus is noteworthy for it implies that regardless of what Tom Robinson claims in the court, the jury is expected to stand on the white man's side. Although the jury at court is supposed to make objective decisions, along the other villagers, he displays a definite bias against the black man. If there is any responsibility that falls upon Tom, it would be the responsibility for chopping wood and providing help for Mayella who is reflected as the loneliest person on earth in the eyes of Scout. However, the mockingbird figure is wrongly accused of things that he has never done or even imagined. Although there is a sufficient amount of proof that Robinson is innocent, it is ignored after all, and he is imprisoned. Emphasizing this, Atticus tells his son Jem: "In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins." (220) This

Atticus displays acts of personal courage in his willingness to keep others safe and his response to racism based threats. Many of the citizens of Maycomb County and its surrounding area were upset about Atticus, a lawyer, taking the defense case of Tom Robinson, a black man who was accused of raping a white woman. Mr. Link Deas and Mr. Heck Tate, along with some other men in Maycomb, come to tell Atticus about the Old Sarum lynch mob coming to kill Tom. The next night, Atticus goes down to the county jail and tells the mob to go home and leave Tom alone (Lee 194 and 202). The lynch mob comes to kill Tom, so they could potentially hurt Atticus, too. The amount of courage Atticus has to display to defend Tom outside of the courthouse and stand up to a dangerous mob of men is extremely high, considering the risks he takes. Atticus comes home from work one day, after the trial is over, and is approached by Mr. Bob Ewell, the victim's father: "According to Miss Stephanie Crawford, however, Atticus was leaving the post office when Mr. Ewell approached him, cursed him, spat on him, and threatened to kill him... Atticus's peaceful reaction probably prompted him to inquire,'Too proud to fight, you [Negro-lover]?' Miss Stephanie said Atticus said, 'No, too old', put his hands in his pockets, and strolled on"(291). Mr. Ewell is upset that Atticus had tried to prove that Tom was innocent and that Mr. Ewell had hurt his own daughter. He also believes that

Another presence of judgment in the novel is present in the character of Bob Ewell, an oblivious, grimy, abusive father, who looks down upon Negroes, believing he can take full advantage of them because he is of the white race. Scout declares that, “all [Bob Ewell] had that made him any better than his [Black] neighbors was, that if he scrubbed with lye soap in very hot water, his skin was white” (Lee 229). This indicates that the population of Maycomb judges primarily on race instead of morals, ethics, income, personality, or lifestyle, which further proves the segregation occurring within the South. This excerpt means that the community is more accepting of an unmannerly, poor, and often-drunk man rather than an honest, harmless black man, such as Tom Robinson. Skin color is the main eparation of the people for it determines who are neglected and who are treated like royalty. Furthermore, Mr. Ewell verifies his prejudiced nature, when, “[h]e stood up and pointed his finger at Tom Robinson. ‘I seen that black nigger yonder rutttin’ on my Mayella’” (Lee 231). This further reveals Mr. Ewell’s biased behavior because it presents him mistreating Tom Robinson. Lee uses words

Bob Ewell firmly believes that the death of Tom Robinson was caused by his daughter, Mayella Ewell. “I didn’t wanta harm her, Mr. Finch, an’ I say lemme pass, but just when I say it Mr. Ewell yonder hollered through th’ window.” (221). Tom was suggesting that Bob was yelling at Mayella and not himself. Again in the text it says, “Tom Robinson swallowed again and his eyes widened. “ Some-thin’ not fittin’ to say- not fittin’ for all these folks’n chillun to hear-” (Atticus) “ What did he say Tom? You must tell the jury what he said.” Tom Robinson shut his eyes tight. “ He says you g**d*** w****, i’ll kill ya”” (221) Bob wants everyone to think that he doesn’t harm Mayella in anyway and that Tom did.This shows that Bob Ewell blames his daughters attraction towards a crippled black man. Bob wanted Mayella to only love him, and only want him. Bob does want someone to be blamed for what’s happened to Mayella and he doesn’t want that to be himself even though

Bob Ewell hates everyone that is a supporter of Tom Robinson, and tries to harm them. .Despite of that, Atticus stays calm and puts himself in the shoes of Bob Ewell. Atticus stands for everything that is good whereas Mr. Ewell stands for everything that creates a shadow over the idyll of their town Maycomb. Where Atticus cares for his children’s upbringing, and wants to raise them the best possible way, Mr. Ewell does not care at all. The man falsely accuses Tom Robinson for rape, just to get attention and hide his own sins like sexual abusing his daughter. Even when Bob Ewell died, Atticus felt a little bit sorry for him, and did not think that Jem did the right thing by killing him. Even though Bob Ewell tried to harm

Bob Ewell and the majority of Maycomb are indignant when Atticus voluntarily defends Tom Robinson, but they are even more furious at the outcome of the trial. Atticus is perceptive and courageous during the events of the trial as well as Jem’s encounter with Mrs. Dubose. Regarding Bob Ewell harassing Atticus and spitting in his face, Scout narrates,“Miss Stephanie said Atticus didn’t bat an eye, just took out his handkerchief and wiped his face and stood there and let Mr. Ewell call him names wild horses could not bring her to repeat … I wish Bob Ewell wouldn’t chew tobacco.” (Chapter 23). Atticus’ graciousness in the face of such hate and ignorance illustrates his ability to respect those with absolutely no respect for him. He even finds reasons to understand where Bob Ewell is coming from, like the fact that he has lost all aspects of his integrity and was outed as an abusive father to the entirety of Maycomb. He wishes Bob Ewell would quit his destructive habits and seek rehabilitation for his wrongdoings. Atticus is truly a man of sympathy and whole-heartedness--qualities that Harper Lee views as essential of a social justice warrior. When Jem admits to destroying Mrs. Dubose’s flower garden after being denounced by her, Atticus chastises, "Son, I have no doubt that you've been annoyed by your contemporaries about me lawing for n*****, as you say, but to do something like this to a sick old lady is inexcusable. I strongly advise you to go down and have a talk with Mrs.