How Does Bob Ewell Show Loss Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

Bob Ewell is a wretched, two-faced, conniving most unworthy person to have the gift of life in all of Alabama. He drinks a lot, does not bother to work, and he just collects welfare checks and spends them on alcohol. Harper Lee wrote, “a little bantam cock of a man . . . A shock of wispy new-washed hair stood up from his forehead; his nose was thin, pointed, and shiny; he had no chin to speak of—it seemed to be part of his crepey neck”(Lee 227) Harper describes Bob Ewell as a apathetic, tipsy, Neanderthal that can’t keep a job to save his skin. During Tom Robinson’s trial Bob Ewell tried to say that he beat his daughter Mayella and then raped her; when in in reality Bob Ewell is the one who beat Mayella. Another reason Bob Ewell is terrible person is at the end of the story when he tried to kill Scout and Jem. Harper Lee had wrote, “What is it, Heck? Said Atticus. Mr. Tate found his neck and rubbed it. Bob Ewell’s lyin’ on the ground under that tree down yonder with a kitchen knife stuck up under his ribs. He’s dead, Mr. Finch. (Lee 357). Mr. Ewell had aimed to kill Scout and Jem but Mr. Author James Radley, more commonly known as Boo Radley, saved their lives. Mr. Ewell was mad at Atticus because he knew that it wasn’t Tom who beat Mayella and raped her, so Bob Ewell saw that he could get back at Atticus by taking the lives if the two most important people in the world to him. Bob Ewell illustrates the dark side of

In To Kill A Mockingbird it’s very evident that the belief system of the parents has directly shaped the values and personal identity of their children. Throughout Mayella Ewell’s life her father, Bob Ewell negatively impacted her values and belief system by imposing racism and prejudice towards black people on her. Despite her attraction to Tom Robinson the father’s racist attitude makes it impossible for her to naturally express her interest. At one point during the trial against Tom Robinson, Bob Ewell states “I seen that black nigger yonder ruttin' on my Mayella!” (Ch.17) This statement clearly indicates how racist he his towards black people as he dehumanizes him by not even saying his name or “him”. He also emphasizes Tom Robinson’s race by calling him a “black nigger” and compares him to an animal in a way by utilizing the word “rutting”. Bob Ewell’s racist values led

Mr. Ewell is wicked. After having put an obviously innocent man on trial and getting him killed because of the racist jury, he has the nerve to verbally harass Tom's wife as she tries to pick up the pieces of her life that he just scattered abroad (Lee 285). After Bob got Tom convicted, "Mr. Ewell approached [Atticus], cursed him, spat on him, and threatened to kill him." (Lee 248), just for defending Tom and embarrassing the already low Ewell

Jem doesn’t understand why Bob Ewell can win a trial because there was better evidence for Tom Robinson’s trial. Atticus goes on to explain the racism and why he won by saying, “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” (Lee 295). White men always win over black men during this time period of the Great Depression. None of the black men are accepted no matter what kind of person you are and they will always lose. In this situation against Tom Robinson and Bob Ewell, Bob wins only because he is white and no one will ever believe Tom

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

thing during and following slavery. In the novel, a man named Bob Ewell despises black people and calls out Atticus by saying, “too proud to fight, you nigger lovin bastard?” (Lee, 291). What that quote is saying is how Bob is getting upset with atticus just because he is Tom Robinson's lawyer and Bob Ewell doesn’t like black people. Another example of racism occurs in chapter 11. This happens when the kids are walking by Mrs.Dubose’s home, and she starts yelling out racist comments about Atticus. She yells out to Jem and says, “your father is no better than the niggers and trash he works for!” (Lee, 105) She attacks their father for doing his job, but even more so attacks Jem and Scout by Yelling furiously about their father. These two ways are clearly shown in To Kill A Mockingbird and there are many other ways throughout the novel.

In an effort to go through with his plan to convict Tom of rape, inevitably leading to Tom’s death, (Lee, 315) Mr. Ewell knew that if he got Tom on trial, he would be convicted, and hung, despite Ewell's bad reputation. Mr.Ewell knew that he had an advantage of being white, (Lee, 303) against Tom, Ewell only ever stands up to someone if he knows he can win, or they won't do anything. Mr.Ewell spits Atticus’s face, the day after the trial had ended, Bob knew that Atticus wouldn't do anything to harm him, so he had no problem standing up to him and acting superior to him. (Lee, 296, 303) As we have just reiterated, Mr. Ewell has a reputation of action superior to those he knows he can win against. But not only is that his only

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

The male ego is a common trait that all men have. A man’s ego will cause him to act out if his pride is damaged. Bob Ewell is a white man in Maycomb who is the head of the Ewell family. Atticus describes the Ewell family as “the disgrace of Maycomb for three generations” (40). This damages Mr. Ewell's pride because he is looked down upon by everybody in the town. Mr. Ewell attempts to restore his pride when he falsely accuses Tom Robinson of raping his beloved daughter, Mayella. Mr. Ewell accuses Tom Robinson because Tom is black so he feels that he can have somebody to look down upon, which will make him feel better about himself. Lee uses Mr. Ewell as an example that a man's ego makes him feel like a better person, but it really decreases his credibility. Mr. Ewell’s

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

“Even among the poor whites, there were social divisions: at the bottom of the social rung, even below the poorest whites, were those who only two generations before would have been slaves. In To Kill a Mockingbird, this poor white bigotry was personified through Bob Ewell”(Mancini, Candice 9). Tom Robinson was known for being and honest man in the black community. He would go to church often and he was a family man. In contrast, Bob Ewell was the town drunk and was by no means a model citizen. Clearly the better man was Tom but due to his race, many people believed Bob and Mayella Ewell when they said that Tom had raped Mayella. In reality, Mayella kissed Tom, “she was white, and she tempted a Negro. She did something that in [their] society is unspeakable: she kissed a black man … a strong young Negro man”(Lee, Harper 204). At the time Lee was growing up, whites and blacks were still segregated and it was inconceivable that the two races consort.

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 makes my temper rise because of how abusive and unprofessional he is. He knows what he did but is too much of a wuss to take consequences for his actions. If he is so “tough.” by abusing his daughter why can’t he take consequences for it? He thinks he is superior when in reality he is not. Spitting in someone’s face and threatening them? That is VERY unprofessional. I think that Bob Ewell is threatening him because he knows Atticus will do everything in his power to prove that Tom is not guilty. He is afraid of the truth being let out. Not so tough anymore, right Bob?

In To Kill a Mockingbird, the antagonist, Bob Ewell played a prominent role in the accusations from his daughter against African American, Tom Robinson, in a rape trial. During the 1930s, many held extreme prejudices against African Americans due to the color of the skin. Mr. Ewell accuses Tom Robinson, a young African American man, of raping his daughter. He showcases his personality prominently through his actions during the case trial. For example, the Judge of the trial asks Mr. Ewell to speak more respectfully. The author states his response: “his mouth struggled silently with htem- ut their import registered on this face (233).” His reaction to the scolding shows ignorance in his personality. He is unaware of his actions because he was

nson. “--- I seen the black nigger yonder ruttin’ on my Mayella.”” This is pure lies all coming out of a man who wants a welfare check and for the community to like and accept him. He wis will to through Tom on the ground and spit on him just so he can look better. Bob Ewell is the purest form of prejudice. His daugher, Mayella, isn’t much better. She walks up to the stand with the same promises her father did and she said, “... He got me round the neck, cussin’ me an’ saying dirt-- I fought’n ‘hollered, but he had me round the neck. He hit me agin an’ agin--.” Tom Robinson is a crippled man. He is short an arm. This whole family makes up this lie for himself. To hide their own issues. They do it at Tom’s expense. The prejudice is breaded in