How Does Lee Present The Inequality In To Kill A Mockingbird

Prejudice is one of the world’s greatest struggles. It does not only hold society back, but is harmful to the people who do good .In Harper Lee’s book To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout and Jem live through and witness prejudice and racism in the small town of Maycomb. They see someone wrongly accused of a crime because of his race. Scout and Jem also witness and take part in prejudice against a man no one knows anything about. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird Harper Lee uses characterization to show the negative effects of prejudice and racism.

In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, injustice is a main theme that is reflected towards many characters. To Kill a Mockingbird, is a novel written by Harper Lee and published in the nineteen-sixties. Many characters in the story are treated unfairly in society due to racial or prejudicial attitudes. Overall these characters are innocent victims of injustice. Atticus, Boo Radley, and Tom Robinson are considered to be mockingbirds in the novel. A mockingbird was defined as a bird that did nothing wrong, but sang beautiful music for us to hear. These characters did nothing wrong and were treated unfairly in their town. In this different society, there are many factors that have had an influence on people’s perceptions towards others.

Atticus said, “They’ve done it befor and they did it tonight and they’ll do it again and when they do it-seems that only children weep”(Lee 285). To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel written by Harper Lee. It is about two siblings , Jem and Scout, who live in a small town called Maycomb. Their father Atticus, is a well known lawyer, who is defending an African American that was accused of raping a white women. Throughout the novel, Jem and Scout are introduced to discrimination and learn that it’s an everlasting problem. Prejudice and discrimination are important themes in To Kill a Mockingbird because of racism, sexism, and ageism.

As children grow up, they open their eyes to the harsh truths in the world around them that they once did not understand or question. This is experienced by the main characters of Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. The story is of a girl called Scout and her older brother, Jem, who go through the trials of growing up in the fictional small Southern town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s. Racism is rampant in the mindset of the townspeople, shown when the children’s lawyer father, Atticus, takes the case of an obviously innocent African-American man and they convict him in their hearts before the trial even starts. Through this all, we can see the theme of loss of innocence in the children. Lee uses characterization to portray

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a multi-faceted novel which explores the principles and morals of people in the South during the 1930s. Mockingbirds are symbolic of the people that society abuse. Lee narrates the events of the novel using Scout’s voice and uses this technique to add emotional context and develop themes. Themes of racial and classist prejudice are developed by Lee to challenge the reader. These techniques are all powerful ways to alter the views of the reader.

Gender inequality and race inequality are similar and different in that they are both unjust, however race inequality plays a more prominent unjust theme in the time and setting of To Kill a Mockingbird. Both black people and women dealt with stereotypes, like being a woman associated with being useless, a gossip, and delusional and being a black person meant you are uneducated. These stereotypes led to the word “female” or “n*gger” or black an offensive term. These connotations made being a woman or a black person less worthy. These connotations and stereotypes invalidated a woman’s or black person's word, these stereotypes and connotations led to their word being less true or important than a white mans, even in court. Gender inequality

“Racism is a disease in society. We’re all equal. I don’t care what their colour is, or religion. Just as long as they’re human beings they’re my buddies.” These words said by Mandawuy Yunupingu, are saying skin color should not matter and individuals should be treated the same because people are all human beings. Putting oneself in someone else's shoes and seeing what he is seeing and feeling is the main theme, in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the main character, is a lawyer in a small town that he and his family live in. He tries to win a trial about a false rape of a different skin color that he knows he will not win; but he does not give up. He keeps trying with all his might to win. Atticus is trying to set an amazing example for his children, Scout and Jem. When Bob Ewell, the person against Atticus on the trial, spits on Atticus

To Kill A Mockingbird: The purpose behind Atticus defending an African-American Advocating for one’s diverse morals and ideology is what makes an impact on society. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee illustrates this idea through the noble character, Atticus Finch. As the father of two young children, Jem and Scout, Atticus tries his best to raise his children adequately. By schooling them to not judge based on one’s race or background, the children accumulate a considerable amount of wisdom. Their father’s character is persistent, calm, and patient when facing most situations, which may be a result of his line of work.

The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is based on the experiences of one girl, Scout, growing up in Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s. The novel explains some conflicts in Scout’s life. Scout, the main character, learns that things are not always morally correct and is confronted with the reality of prejudice and stereotyping. Scout struggles with understanding the prejudice and stereotyping she witnesses. Atticus Finch, Scout's father, "with his strongly held convictions, wisdom, and empathy, Atticus functions as the novel's moral backbone." (2). Atticus tries to raise his children to be fair and nonjudgmental. It is through the lessons of Atticus and Scout's experiences with discrimination that the reader sees

The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, tells the story of Jem and Scout Finch and their adventures in Maycomb county in the 1930s, and Atticus their father who takes a brave step to defend Tom Robinson, a black man who everyone is against, over a white woman who accuses him of rape. Lee reveals that fighting for justice in an unjust society requires the courage to stand up against the majority. This theme appears in the novel when they introduce Maycomb county and show that the society they are living in is difficult, when Atticus takes a brave step to defend a black man in a rape case and has to deal with the consequences of it, and when Scout and Jem also have to deal with the hate from Atticus’s choice but keep their head up

In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird the idea of caring for your fellow man is explored. The first half of the novel focuses on siblings Jem and Scout and later friend Dill as their childhood curiosity towards Boo Radley a man described as “dining on squirrels and any cats he can catch” leads them to many complicated situations. The second half of the book deals with their father, Atticus and the backlash of the town when defending Tom Robinson a black man accused of raping a white woman. As the story progresses, the children's perception of their world shifts and their actions with it. Through the use of the novel, Harper Lee conveys a message that Justice, Courage, and Empathy should be preserved and this shows in the real world.

It further develops the plot by showing evidence of the segregation that was built up over the generation of the Finch family. Specifically, we begin to see the injustice and the problems Scout and Jem encounter because of Atticus’ passion. It develops the conflict because the real problem of the story and in the opinions of all of Maycomb think what Atticus is doing is going to ruin the respect and dignity built over the decades. The literary device, characterization, is used to label Atticus and Scout based on their actions and their credence, “he turned out to be a nigger-lover...” The reader begins to see the different diverse characters and the racial comments made, mostly the grandmother ruthlessly making Atticus seem like a horrible person in the minds of the young children. Atticus Finch becomes a victim of the ongoing prejudice due to his dreams to help an innocent black man. Harper Lee uses indirect characterization to further develop the theme, prejudice and the inequalities, through the characters for better understanding the unjust. When the trial is discussed in the novel, the town folks make racist comments or ideas in an attempt to persuade those who believe that Tom Robinson is innocent. In this quote, the theme discussed is the fear of prejudicial injustice. The author, Harper Lee, explains the fear and the restrictions a skin color could

Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, To Kill a Mockingbird details the life and experiences of two children in a small town of Alabama. It describes how a series of events shakes their innocence, shaping their character and teaching them about human nature. In her novel, Lee demonstrates how these children learn about the essentiality of good and evil and the existence of injustice and racism in the Deep South during the 1930s. She describes the conscience and the loss of innocence that the two children experience and also details their individual development to maturity. Jem Finch, one of the children in the story, realizes the unfairness that exists around him and

Depression (1929-1939). Harper Lee managed to merge a beautifully lighthearted tale with a dark, sorrowful plot. This narrative is an incredible representation of the racial prejudices still existent in our society to this day. The book centres around a black man named Tom Robinson, and his white lawyer, Atticus Finch. In the story, Tom is unjustly accused of raping a white woman, and Atticus unsuccessfully defends his case. The story is presented from the viewpoint of Atticus’ daughter, Scout, who provides a child’s perspective of various characters in the story, of the legal trial, and other societal issues such as racism and gender inequalities (p. 252). Hence, the following essay will describe how the themes of racism, morality, and justice are displayed throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, specifically, the coming-of-age fiction, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is predominately about racism and reveals how morality and justice can make this world an unbiased place to live.

Harper Lee uses her novel to teach us important lessons from the characters presented in To Kill a Mockingbird. Atticus, a fair and moral character, whose parenting style is unique, lined with honest and example, teaches us to follow his ways. Scout, an innocent girl who teaches us what’s important in life. Tom Robinson, someone who is ostracized for being African American, can teach us the importance of equal treatment and awakens us to our surrounding society. Lee’s construction of characters gives us perspective to issues in our society today, how they still matter and what we can learn from the novel such as compassion, justice and understanding.