Prejudice in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Tom Robinson’s character exemplifies the mockingbird because he is a black man who is denied justice based on racial prejudice. After Mayella Ewell accuses Tom of rape, there is no way for him to be judged fairly because the narrow-minded, white townspeople are unable to get past their prejudices towards blacks. At his trial, Tom’s lawyer, Atticus, argues,

During the 1930’s depression, there was a great divide between black and white America. There were many communities and groups who had been exposed to the same treatment and persecution as the Negroes in To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper Lee has used a small town setting, such as that in To Kill a Mockingbird, to illustrate America’s views on white supremacy and the inferiority of the black race. The author has illustrated view that are expressed world-wide through her characters in Maycomb county.

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.

During the Great Depression, racism and prejudice were the cause of suffering for many people who were greatly affected by discriminating thoughts. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, Maycomb County is a town also filled with the evils of racism of prejudice, but that immorality is often hidden by certain of acts of courage and goodness enacted by the citizens of Maycomb. In her novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee portrays the importance of courage through characters Atticus, Mrs. Dubose, and Jean Louise (Scout) Finch, who all persevere through the path of rightness in the face of prejudiced and disapproving opinions, without worrying about the consequences of their actions. Atticus’ decision to defend Tom Robinson brings many disapprovals from others but he still continues to fight for him, although he knows that there is a high chance of Tom Robinson being doomed because of his race. Mrs. Dubose exemplifies courage because even though it costs her life and invited bad thoughts from others, she stays determined to get free of her addiction. Scout, an innocent, young girl, shows courage by defending what she thinks is right, although the consequences may not be good for her.

In Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, prejudice and racism are embedded in the regional psyche of Maycomb, a miniscule town in Alabama. The narrator interpolates injustice and racism in Alabama during the 1930s, largely through the eyes of Scout, who was a child during this time, however, the adult Scout occasionally interjects with some adult observations. Furthermore, the citizens of Maycomb are stereotyped pervasively throughout the book. In Harper Lee’s To Kill Mockingbird, examples of racism, sexism, and social class are used to demonstrate how prejudice can corrupt a community.

Tom Robinson’s role in this book shows a lot of prejudice. He is a black man convicted of raping a white women. This book is set in the 1930s, during this time period the Jim Crow Laws were still in place and racism was big. ‘You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her?’ Mr. Gilmer seemed ready to rise to the ceiling” (Lee, pg 197). Tom Robinson is talking about how he felt sorry for Miss Mayella, who is white. Mr Gilmer gets very upset stating that a nigger should not feel sorry for a white woman. "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. They're ugly, but those are the fact of life.” (Lee, pg.220) Atticus is talking to the kids about how Tom Robinson will get the death sentence because of the color of his skin and how the jury looks at him. He talks about there is no court in Alabama that would’ve gave him something less. Basically it was Tom against a town full of white folks. Tom is a big symbol of prejudice in the book.

Harper Lee, author of the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, acknowledged the prejudice in 1930’s America. This novel won the Pulitzer Prize for its strength in upholding the prejudice in a small town in the south. To Kill a Mockingbird is set in a town called Maycomb, where a family of three and their cook lives and deals with this animosity everyday. Atticus, the father, is a well-respected lawyer and Alabama state legislator. He chooses to defend African American Tom Robinson against charges of assault against Caucasian Mayella Ewell. Although Atticus knows that he would not win the case, he still wants to defend Tom to teach his children, Jem and Scout, a valuable lesson. Harper Lee made the right decision in having Atticus Finch defend Tom Robinson; however, the decision came with consequences (Lee).

Harper Lee’s book, To Kill A Mockingbird takes place in the difficult times of the Great Depression in the early 1930’s. The novel surrounds the life of a young girl named Scout Finch, along with her brother Jem, and their friend, Dill. Who are forced at a young age to watch the people of their small town of Maycomb not only receive, but also give prejudice to numerous, harmless people. Whether it be Boo Radley, a shut in who falls victim to the town’s gossip, even though he is constantly showing acts of kindness towards the Finch children. Or it be Tom Robinson an innocent man that Atticus, Scout’s father must defend be accused rape, and be convicted of a crime he did not to just because of the color of his skin. Throughout the novel, the people of Maycomb deal with prejudice in the forms of sexism, intolerance of differences, and in racism.

The prejudice seen in the fictional novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee corresponds with the real narrow-mindedness during this time period. A fair trial would be unlikely during this time period between a white and a black man. Tom Robinson was presumed guilty because of his race.

at all! If a woman wants to be on a jury and meets all the

“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

Prejudices are most difficult to eradicate from the heart whose soil has never been loosened or fertilized by education: they grow there, firm as weeds among stones.

Life is like a thrill ride; one never knows what will be in store for them. Many characters in the story To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee feel the same way about life, having experienced many surprising and unexpected turns of events. This story is about a sleepy southern town filled with prejudice, and a lawyer’s quest, along with his children Scout and Jem, to take steps in ridding the town of its prejudiced attitude. Despite being a white man, a lawyer named Atticus, defends an innocent black man accused of raping a white woman. However, everything does not go as was hoped, and the mindset of the society overpowered Atticus’s fair-minded argument. From this emerges a theme regarding the bigotry and bias overwhelming Maycomb: A

​Prejudice can be described as an opinion or judgment of a person based usually on race, class, or age before they know more about them. There are many forms of prejudice in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird such as race, gender, class, and age prejudice. The many forms of prejudice in the novel become stronger throughout the novel like: Age prejudice is common between many ages in Maycomb, gender prejudice is common between mostly women, class prejudice is common with poor families like the Cunningham’s, and racial prejudice is common throughout the whole novel with African Americans. Harper Lee shows how these forms of prejudice in the novel have the biggest impact on the characters living in the

Tom Robinson is the biggest and worst kind of prejudice in the whole novel. Because of his race, he is immediately judged when he is accused of molesting Mayella Ewell. Bob Ewell, Mayella’s father, knows that Tom is innocent but is doing all he can to prove that Tom raped his daughter. Mr. Ewell is claiming that he heard Mayella screaming and witnessed Tom on top of Mayella which is a lie. During trial, Atticus makes very convincing statements that prove that Tom is innocent. However, since there are only white redneck farmers on the jury, Tom is at a disadvantage. The jury ignores all of the facts and convicts him because of his race. This is no surprise to anyone