Racial Inequality In To Kill A Mockingbird

Social inequality is an uncivilized ranking scale which was created by simple minded people who held the fear being surpassed. The argument made by Harper Lee in her work To Kill a Mockingbird is that social inequality is a hierarchy that is complex and affects everyone. More specifically, the author argues that the racial boundaries put between the black and white during the 1930’s caused great stress. This is proven in the novel multiple times. The people of Maycomb judge one another based on the background and wealth of their families. Not only do they judge each other within the community, they discriminate against anyone different than them. Social inequality does not only exist in the form of racism, there are many forms; some of the major ones appear in this book. Social inequality based purely on family background, social inequality based on the wealth of the individual and family, and racism. These are three of the major forms of social inequality that appear numerous times in the book.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, published in July 11, 1960, shows the discrimination throughout the small town of Maycomb. Scout, the daughter of a white lawyer named Atticus, tells what she saw while she was growing up. Harper Lee uses foreshadowing throughout the entire story. When Atticus defends Tom Robinson in an alleged rape case. The people of Maycomb automatically start calling him, Scout, and Jem “nigger-lovers” for defending a black man.

In the book ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee, racism and social inequality are two central themes. Many different forms of social inequality coexist in the society depicted in the book, as the people of Maycomb are very rigid in their ways. This is because the book takes place in a time at which there was much racism and social inequality. In Maycomb, firstly there is discrimination between rich and poor white people, who do not often interact with each other. There is also racism against blacks by all white people in society, both rich and poor. Black people are denied basic rights and discriminated against in this town. Lastly, there is racism between the lowest classes of the community: poor white people and

In To Kill a Mockingbird, and in the world today there is racial and social inequality going on all around us. I am sure that there will never be true racial and social equality, but I think that it will get dramatically better. Just like it has gotten better since the 1930’s, which is the time that To Kill a Mockingbird is set in.

Social inequality based entirely on race affects people who don’t deserve it. To Kill a Mockingbird original publication was in 1960, it is a classic novel written by Harper Lee, the book is set in 1933 to 1935. To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in a small town called Maycomb, Alabama and follows two years in the life of 7-year old Scout Finch, her brother Jem, and their father Atticus, an attorney who hopelessly strives to prove the innocence of a black man accused of rape. The book also talks about Boo Radley, a mysterious neighbour who saves Scout and her brother Jem from being killed. The definition of social and legal codes are social codes made up of rules and standards, and a legal system is a code of laws made by a state or nation. Throughout the book, social and legal codes are exploited by people to help maintain their social status. In Maycomb County, social and legal laws harm black people to protect white people, such as Atticus Finch, Bob Ewell, and Tom Robinson.

Race is the dominant cause of inequality in To Kill A Mockingbird, thus Maycomb’s views on race heavily influence every aspect of life. Although racial inequality is clearly illustrated in the in the injustice, prejudice, discrimination and antagonism surrounding the Tom Robinson trial, it is also shown more subtly throughout the novel. In chapter 25 Atticus Finch is quoted disclosing that the corrupt justice system is a direct cause of a racist society. “In our courts, when it's a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins” (Pg 295). To emphasize, on the same occasion Atticus attempts to explain to his children how widely spread racism is, “As you grow older, you’ll see white men cheat black men everyday of your life”

In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows a lot of racial or social issues, especially against the African-Americans, such as racial inequality and poor treatment of the poor or homeless; both of these are still at least partially seen today. Harper Lee uses the unfair trial of Tom Robinson and his cruel death to show racial inequality, especially towards the African-Americans. Towards the end of the trial, Lee describes how the jury acts when they come back in as: “A jury never looks at a defendant it has convicted, and when this jury came in, not one of them looked at Tom Robinson…” (Lee 282). Then, Judge Taylor announces the verdict: “Guilty… guilty… guilty… guilty…” (Lee 282). Later on, Atticus comes home after finding out about Tom Robinson’s death: “Tom’s dead…. They got him just as he went over the fence…. Seventeen bullet holes in him” (Lee 315). Based on this evidence, it is clear that racial inequality was evident in the 1930’s because with prior knowledge from the novel, we know that Tom didn’t stand much of a chance against the jury because of his being African-American. Also, if a white man had done what Tom did, he probably would have been given a fairer trial than Tom was. Even though, the police obviously wanted him dead as he tried to escape prison, there was no reason to shoot him seventeen times. Racial inequality can still been seen in the country, and around the world, but doesn’t seem to be as bad as it had been; some statistics show it improved soon after, but some facts show it took longer. One statistic showing that racial inequality has gotten better states, “In 1980, over 50% of the Blacks aged 25 or more had completed high school, and, by 2012, 85%” (Coleman 183).One fact stating that racial inequality took a while before improving states, “Even after the slaves were freed, the African Americans continued to face legal discrimination and segregation until the victories of the civil rights movement in the 1960’s” (“Preface to ‘What…’” 1). This evidence shows that racial inequality didn’t really improve at first. After the civil rights movement, things improved for the African Americans. From the statistic, the reader knows that between 1980 and 2012, a little over 1% more of the

To Kill a Mockingbird, a novel written by Harper Lee, tells the story of a little girl named Scout. Set in Alabama in the 1930s, Maycomb county, Scout’s home, is a sleepy place, that hides a dark streak of racism. Maycomb gets pulled into a whirlwind court case of sexual assault consisting of an African American man getting accused of beating and raping a white girl. Scout, whose father defended the African American, learns of the deep problems in society. Still in the mindset of constant racism, the jury ruled against the black man, even though the evidence clearly proved that the girl’s father beat her. Unfortunately, this racism survives today, and one only has to take a peek at the news, or a glance outside to notice it. Racism still exists today, as seen through brutality against

Racial inequality is an ongoing issue in America. Throughout history, people have discriminated against minorities. The same is true in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, where Maycomb is facing a sensible amount of racial inequality and injustice.

For many years America has been known as the land of the free, but would you really feel free knowing that everyday you were looked differently over something that's unalterable? To go more in depth, during the 1930s social inequality was an immense issue, due to the constant discrimination that occurred. Such as, colored people were treated with no respect, and were given less privileges than white people. Furthermore, social inequality also came in cases against people with little wealth, and towards women. That being said, adults were very prejudiced during these times, but kids saw pass that, and saw the truth with their innocence. Relating to, the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, where

People have always treated others differently for little differences between each other. People judge others because of these differences and have different standards for different people. This is called social inequality. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee was trying to show that people should not treat people differently because of their differences.

In this country, American means white, the blacks have been downgraded and treated like trash on the street. In the 1930s, the small town of Maycomb County racism has a very strong tension between the blacks and whites. Harper Lee in To Kill A Mockingbird, describes how white male are more favorable than the black male. This novel teaches about racial inequality by a trial. A white fellow accused a young black man of rape. The black male has a strong man on his side named Atticus Finch. Mr.Finch also has two children named Jem and Scout. Jem and Scout have to go through some rough times with this trial. Harper Lee teaches us these inequalities of race through the eyes of children. They get nagged, they learn something new, and they earn a little

Boo Radley represents the mockingbird in this situation; a good person injured by the evil of mankind. He was an intelligent child emotionally damaged by his cruel father, providing an example of the threat that evil poses to innocence and goodness. When Jem and Scout learned how to use their shiny new air rifles, Atticus wouldn’t teach them how to shoot, but he did give them one rule to follow: do not shoot a mockingbird. Confused, the children asked Miss Maudie about it. She said, “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (119). In this story, the death of a mockingbird that commits no wrong against humans represents the death of innocence. Concealed in an initial aura of creepiness, Boo is a powerful symbol of goodness that the mockingbird represents, leaving little presents for Scout and Jem and emerging at an opportune moment to save the children. After Scout learns who Boo Radley really is, she believes that hurting Boo Radley would be like shooting a mockingbird. Having walked Boo Radley home, Scout reflected on what it meant to be a good neighbor: “We never put back into the tree what we

In the novel, "To Kill a Mocking bird" written by Harper Lee, published in1960. Within her book the subject of racial segregation comes up of importance. Looking over the issue, I would agree that racial segregation not only playing a huge role in Lee's novel, yet also within the daily life of the world in which many live in. This paper will discuss being on how seeing separation of people into racial or other thrice groups is still seen daily on todays generation.

Racism have created stereotypes that affected different types of races. Racial discrimination have spreaded throughout history affecting many people. In a book, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Tom Robinson, a black man, is being falsely accused of raping Mayella, a white woman. Mayella exploits her abilities by manipulating Maycomb’s society into convicting Tom Robinson to death. In an article,  The Trials of “The Scottsboro Boys” by Douglas O. Linder, nine black teenagers are falsely accused and sentenced to death by two white women. The two white women begin to cover up their secrets by deceiving people into believing the teenagers of raping and abusing them. In an article, White People Are Fine With Laws That Harm by Jamelle Bouie explains how people fear blacks because of the stereotypes that they are dangerous. She undertakes a social experiment that resulted in blacks getting perceived worst than whites. Some negatives effects of discrimination in fictional and nonfictional are destroying a sense of security and creating violence between each race.