Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

“Prejudice is a learned trait. You’re not born with it; you’re taught it,” said Charles R Swindoll (Author). Prejudice is incorporated into How to Kill a Mockingbird in many ways. Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, and Miss Maudie are some of the ways prejudice is shown.

Prejudice is defined as: “An unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason.” Harper Lee explores this theme throughout To Kill A Mockingbird with various characters demonstrating or being affected by it, especially because it is set in the turbulent time of 1930s southern USA. In particular, the theme is prominent in the characters Arthur (Boo) Radley, Atticus Finch, and Tom Robinson. I will begin with Arthur (Boo) Radley.

Prejudice means an opinion that is not based on reasoning or actual experience. In To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, prejudice is portrayed in many ways. For example, when the townspeople of Maycomb hear that Scout Finch’s dad, Atticus, is defending a black man in a court case, the kids in school began to hector Scout for his Dad’s actions. “This order, given by me to Cecil Jacobs was the beginning of a rather thin time for Jem and me.” (Lee, pg 99) says Scout after the long school day. “My folks said your daddy was a disgrace an’ that nigger oughta hang from the water-tank!” (Lee, pg 102) said, Cecil, after Scout confronted him about it the next day. This is an example of prejudice because even though the trial hasn’t begun yet, people are already against Tom Robinson. By looking at his dark skin color, the townspeople already believe that he is guilty. Even after Atticus Finch brought in evidence and strong arguments that Bob Ewell was really the one who had done harm to Mayella Ewell. But the all-white jury still believed that Tom was responsible for Mayella’s abuse. “Jem, see if you can stand in Bob Ewell’s shoes a minute. I destroyed his last shred of credibility at that trial, if he had any to begin with…” (Lee, pg 292).

“To better understand a person you have to climb up inside their skin and walk around in it.” The quote previously stated by Atticus in the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is an unveiling of the upcoming forms of prejudice. The setting for the novel is a fictitious town called Maycomb. This town is situated in Alabama. The racial prejudice shown in the novel has a lot to do with the town being situated in the southern United States. The backwardness and narrow-mindedness of the community fueled racism in Maycomb. These negative qualities account for the social and religious prejudices in the novel. Maycomb people have very inward looking views and so these views are passed on

testing his respect, courage, and mental strength to their fullest extent. Atticus is widowed and is forced to raise his two kids, Scout and Jem, with the help of Calpurnia, the maid of the household. Atticus chooses to take the court case of Mr.Tom Robinson, a colored man, in Maycomb County. Maycomb happens to be a very prejudice town set during the Great Depression. He takes this case knowing that most of the towns people will resent him for it. This is where Atticus has to choose between what he thinks is right and what others will think of him throughout different situations in the book.

Atticus Finch is a white lawyer who defends African Americans. His last name “Finch” symbolizes a bird which stands for innocence. One day, Atticus is asked to defend a black man, named Tom Robinson. Atticus tries very hard to prove that Tom is innocent. The entire town, turns against him because he takes the side of a black man. After the trial, Bob Ewell, the plaintiff, yells at Atticus in the street. The narrator explains, “... Mr. Ewell approached him, cussed at him, spit in his face and threatened to kill him” (291). This quote shows that Bob Ewell is racist and hates Atticus because Atticus defends a black man. Atticus did not deserve to be treated that way. Atticus is a mockingbird he did the right thing and he was attacked for it. Atticus is a

If you have ever seen anything on the news, it was written with a bias. People have opinions and prejudices, and they tend to communicate this in their writings/scriptures. Harper Lee portrays the 1930’s from her perspective as Scout and she also demonstrates to us her opinions, which are highly influenced by her brother, Jem, and father, Atticus in the book To Kill A Mockingbird (TKAM). Scout and her family teach us through their thoughts that prejudice is wrong, that the ‘real’ world is not what a child expects it to be, and that we do not get the justice we deserve.

Firstly, Tom Robinson is just one character that is prejudged in the novel. He is accused of raping a white girl named Mayella and it is a problem to the jury that a black man is trying to defend himself in court. Atticus realizes how Tom is being treated unfairly and that it is uncommon for African Americans and white people to associate with each other. During Atticus’s speech, Mayella is accused of lying in her testimony when “she kissed a black man [which is] something that in our society is unspeakable” (Lee 272). The black man who Atticus refers to is Tom. He is ridiculed and judged by several people in the book and he gets all this

Often, it is Mr. Finch that comes to the most reasonable and mature conclusions from the situation. Atticus Finch is both a father and attorney of immense integrity, which is shown throughout the events that take place in the novel. In the book, To

Mrs. Dubose displays acts of personal courage in her honesty and strength. When Jem and Scout walk past her house to go meet Atticus on his way home,

We as humans have a predisposition to separate ourselves from things we don't understand and the things we find to be different than ourselves. Harper Lee has done a good job of capturing this instinct, and showing the reader the evolution of prejudice amongst humans and how it can impact our society. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the most important theme found is Prejudice plays a big role in human interaction.

Have you ever judged a person by his or her appearance? The Mockingbird stands for innocence in this novel. This novel also goes through judgment and justice. This story takes place during the Great Depression. Scout and Jem learn a couple of lessons about judging other people, for example, the way they judge Boo Radley, a mysterious and antisocial neighbor.

Throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird one of the main themes is the importance of moral education taught by Atticus to Scout and Jem. Atticus educates the children in many ways that a formal education in 1930s may prohibit, like the lessons of courage and integrity. For instance, in the scene where Atticus talks to Jem about Mrs. Dubose, their elderly neighbour’s death. During this section Atticus speaks highly of Mrs. Dubose, how she dies free of her addiction to morphine and how she shows what the meaning of real courage is. In this lesson Atticus states, “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin

In To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, prejudice plays a big role and sets the table for one of Atticus Finch’s biggest court cases. During the 1930s, it would be very difficult to win a case for an African-American in the deep south, especially since he, Tom Robinson, was accused of raping a white woman by the name of Mayella Ewell. A time when white people always had the upper hand over African-Americans and that even if there aren’t any facts or proof that something happened usually the African-American man would be charged and automatically lose the case. Examples of prejudice are in almost every chapter from small things to big cases like Tom Robinson’s. One example in the book is when the court case was immediately in favor of Mayella because she was white and Tom Robinson's big disadvantage was that he was black. We have seen multiple examples of prejudice in our daily lives over the past couple months about the National Football League players that have decided to sit or kneel during the National Anthem because they feel that African-Americans are being treated worse than white Americans. Prejudice was a problem in 1930s and still is a big issue in the society in the United States of America.

‘It’s time somebody taught ‘em a lesson, they were gettin’ way above themselves,” (Lee 283). This is one of the many prejudiced sayings that have been stated about The Black Community in To Kill a Mockingbird. To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930s which was a tremendously racist town at that point in time. Throughout the book the highly anticipated court case involving Tom Robinson, a Negro, made many people’s true prejudice show. Prejudice, is one of the biggest hardships in To Kill a Mockingbird and is felt through Tom Robinson, The Black Community, and the children.