Opinion Of The Ewells in To Kill a Mockingbird Essay

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

Scout and Mayella both lost their mothers at a young age, thus leaving them with their fathers, but the difference lays with their fathers and it says a lot about why the two young ladies are the way they are. Scout’s father, Atticus Finch, is a very respected attorney in Maycomb and he teaches Scout and her older brother Jem tolerance, good manners, and respect. As time goes on, Atticus gets criticized by the people of Maycomb because he is defending an African-American man who was accused of raping Mayella Ewell. Mayella’s father, Bob Ewell, doesn’t bother to take care of the rest of his children and to the Maycomb community, he’s is considered the lowest of the low, or “white trash.” Instead of going out to find a job and support his kids, he drinks all day and collects his welfare cheques. Due to him not being very much of a fatherly figure, Mayella has to support herself and her siblings in their small home close to the landfill and she has no time to go to school, town, meet new people and make friends. Mayella is looked down upon by those around her because of her father’s poor reputation. Young girls generally look up to their

To confirm Scout’s thoughts on Maycomb’s citizens as being different than they portray, she goes through a heart-stopping event. After the trial, Mr. Ewell was upset with Atticus for Atticus had tried to pin the rape on Mr. Ewell. In Mr. Ewell’s mind, he had to get back at Atticus some way in order to ‘teach him a lesson’ even if it meant risking his own life. One evening as Jem and Scout were walking home, something spine-chilling took place. “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.” (357). Scout’s life had flashed before her eyes. One minute her and Jem are wandering home from school and the next they’re being chased down by Bob Ewell. For two young kids

Trying to get Tom Robinson killed, spitting in Atticus’ face, beating up his own daughter, and attempting to kill Jem and Scout are all terrible things that Mr. Ewell has either succeeded or tried to commit. The stereotype of the poor white southerner, along with the theme of the mockingbird, the destruction of innocence, is strongly supported by Bob Ewell and his actions against his community. First off, Bob exemplifies his stereotype when he tries to throw his own crime against Tom because he is “below him.” And he doesn’t do it so subtly either. When Bob was describing Tom in his testimony, he said, “I seen that black nigger yonder ruttin’ on my Mayella” (Lee 175). This one quote shows just how trash Bob is. The way he phrases his accusation achieves an impressive feat of multitasking as he dehumanizes Tom by not even speaking his name, emphasizes his race over everything else, compares Tom to a beast by saying he was “rutting”, shows Mayella as a passive victim, and puts his own power over her by saying “my Mayella”, as if Tom is stealing property from the Ewell’s.

This relates to the Tom Robinson case because mr. Ewell is keeping his daughter quiet to manipulate the jury to think that he did not beat her. This shows the unjust ways of white people at this time towards blacks, including Tom Robinson. The knowledge of Tom not raping Mayella in the black community, and the white community thinking that Tom did rape her, only increases the tension between the two groups. “You ain't got no business bringin’ white Chillun here-

The first factor in determining Mayella’s power is her gender, female. Although men were always in charge at this time, women had the power to influence men emotionally. In the southern United States, respecting women has always been a large part of the culture. Men would likely feel the need to “defend” her

Racism is one of the main messages in this book also how people around us, not only parents have a strong influence on us when we are growing up, and how rumors and misjudgements can make a person look bad. Judging people without the knowledge of facts is also a common occurrence. I think this novel has this genius aspect of capturing these particular events through a child's eyes yet also being able to keep the adult perspective alive. It makes important points about prejudice and humanity without clobbering anyone over the head with the idealism of Atticus. A quote said by Atticus on page 99 of chapter 10 says, “Remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird. That was the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss Maudie about it”(Lee,99). I feel that this quote is referring to the people that can be considered as mockingbirds hence characters such as Scout as well as other children are mockingbirds because Scout has the innocence of youth and it would be wrong to steal the innocence of children by issues concerning only to adults therefore this happens frequently in the society we live in by becoming pawns in divorce, through exposure to inappropriate media and other types of abuses. Tom Robinson gets falsely accused of a crime. He is a symbol for innocent people who are the victims of everyday prejudice hence his greatest crime was feeling sorry for a white woman that was a crime back in those racist days therefore even in today's world racism does take place . Mayella Ewell should also be considered as a mockingbird whose innocence has already been destroyed by her abusive father and had been forced to confront to the court that Tom had raped her even though it was not true. Her situation is similar in almost

In the ideology of the town's citizens, it is presumed impossible to force “the Ewells into a new environment.” Mayella “keeps clean” distant from the remainder of the Ewells, “tenderly” grows beauty in an obscene yard, seeking for something of quality in her existence. Escaping from the “dump” is feasible due to “poverty and ignorance,” she is her father’s subservient, incapable to build on her own. She is restrained by her father, in the court room it is acknowledged that Bob appointed her words as he “sat up straight” and “waited for her answer.” In court, Mayella is deceitful for the sake of her protection from the incestuous relationship with her father. Additionally, Mayella takes aggression towards Atticus, while he politely inquiries her by

Atticus wants Scout to learn to stand for her beliefs. Furthermore, Bob Ewell and Atticus’ interactions is beneficial to Scout by teaching her to understand others. Scout should take Atticus’ advice to “climb into his skin and walk around in it” even “if spitting in my face and threatening me” is Bob Ewell’s way of vengeance. Atticus takes other people’s lives in consideration and wants Scout to as well. If Scout understand others, she will make the right choices.

Mayella Ewell is one of the antagonists within To Kill A Mockingbird. She went rock bottom and framed Tom Robinson of a crime he didn’t commit out of her own embarrassment and shame. There was also the fact that she herself was a victim, a victim of abuse. Not just physically from her father, but in ways

The incident took place on the night of November 21st, last year near a garbage dump. Mr. Heck Tate, the town sheriff, was hurriedly called to the Ewell residence by Bob Ewell because Tom Robinson raped his girl, Mayella. On arrival, Mr. Tate found Mayella lying on the floor and seemed well beaten up. She also had a black right eye. Mr. Tate confirmed, “Oh yes, that’d make it her right. It was her right eye, Mr. Finch. I remember now, she was bunged up on that side of her face….”. However, a doctor was not called at all to examine her physical conditions.

It has been said that "Fear can’t be the driving force. " In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee reveals fear as a contagious disease. In Maycomb County, fear dominates the minds of its residents by locking them in their comfort zone and forcing them to act selfishly. This demonstrates how fear is a disease that affects one’s decisions and prevents them from thinking straight.

The seed of discrimination blooms from a society where humans quickly and easily change their beliefs to fit into a larger society. Children, however, for a short period of time in their innocence, do not share this sentiment - arguably, no one is born knowing how to hate based on skin color. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows her readers how racial discrimination and stereotypes can lead to devastating and heart-wrenching tragedies, with a story set in the small Alabama town of Maycomb, and told from the perspective of an innocent, but naive, the child named Scout. In the novel, Lee uses Bob Ewell, an uneducated, racist, sexist and violent white man, as well as the town of Maycomb as a whole to represent the rampant racism and close-minded attitude that many white populations held at the time of the 1930s; as well as her own opinion on the matter.

Ewell. During Atticus ' cross examination, however, Bob complied with the request to write his name, which he did with his left hand.Tom Robinson however, states that he came inside the Ewell 's house at Mayella 's request, and she suddenly kissed him and grabbed him around the waist while he stood on a chair. He immediately ran from the house out of fear, and as he did, Bob Ewell appeared at the window, and began to yell at Mayella. He also tells the jury that he would often help Mayella with small jobs out of empathy, but never intended to hurt her. As Scout watches the case she notices that “Tom Robinson was probably the only person who was ever decent to her” (257). The town of Maycomb assumes that all African Americans are essentially incapable of compassion, when they are the same internally as the white population in Maycomb. Despite all of the crude comments that Tom receives, he still has the common decency to treat everyone equally. Tom Robinson will always be a better man than people such as Bob Ewell, but the town of Maycomb doesn’t comprehend this simply because they only see a white man and a black man. Scout is not the only one who has come to this realization; Tom’s employer, Mr. Link Deas, also views Tom as an honorable, and kind person.During the trial, Mr Gilmer, the

Earlier in the novel, Scout relates that Atticus views the Ewell family as “the disgrace of Maycomb” (33). However, as the Ewells are a white family, they are having a higher social status. During the trial, it is declared that Mayella seduces Tom Robinson, and her father, Bob Ewell, thought that his daughter would shift her warm feelings for a black man. In addition, Bob Ewell’s reaction to his daughter kissing to Tom Robinson displays the fear of miscegenation. Atticus, however, strives for justice. Atticus explains the ugly truth to Jem and Scout: “In our courts, when it’s a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins” (251-252). Atticus shows disgust with white people taking advantage of a black person’s ignorance” (252). Tom Robinson is facing a trial and the death sentence because he is black. Furthermore, Atticus makes it clear to his children that racism exists and tells Scout and Jem: 'In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always