“To Kill a Mockingbird” was an exceptional movie even for its time, and although I enjoyed the book more, it was still a great example of social inequality. The movie is set in Alabama and is about Scout Finch and her brother Jem as their father, Atticus is trying to defend a black man who has been falsely accused of rape. The events in the movie affect the children as they watch this man be accused of this horrible crime because of his skin color. It’s also a great example of feminism, culture, Ethnocentrism, Formal Norms, Isolation, and Degradation Ceremonies. Throughout the story, Scout must deal will her feelings about femininity and what it means to be a woman. During the 1930s women were just gaining rights that men already had but they were still seen as lesser individuals. Scout was raised around ladies who were raised to wear frilly dresses, be proper, and not speak out of turn. She was happier playing outside in the dirt and wearing overalls but her and allow not present in the movie I know that their aunt Alexandra is furious over this and wants her to be like the rest of the young girls. Alexandra follows the strict gender rules as most women did of this time and think women should stay inside cooking and cleaning and leave the outside world to the men. There are several more examples of her defiant nature to the social roles imposed on her throughout the movie. She gets into a fight at school with a boy and she always wanted to play “Dangerous” games with the
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.
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
First of all, Scout is more a tomboy than a girl. Boys tend to live by the phrase, “Boys rule. Girls drool.” Scout expresses,” I was not so sure, but Jem told me I was being a girl, that girls always imagined things, that’s why people hated them so, and if I started behaving like one I could just go off and find some to play with.” (45). This quote implies that Scout thinks girl things are bad and boy things are good. She has constantly been taught this. Scout believes she can avoid being a girl by not acting like one. Being a girl to Scout is more about what she does than what she is born with. Another example of Scout being more of a boy is how she reacts to the situation with Walter Cunningham and Miss. Caroline. In the text, Scout states, “Ah-Miss. Caroline? Miss. Caroline, he’s a Cunningham.” (22). The gender role of a girl would usually to sit back and watch everything go down. In Scout’s case, she is outspoken and has no filter. She has to tell Miss. Caroline what everyone else is thinking. It is in this sense and others that Scout challenges the traditional gender roles throughout the
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.
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
Scout does not conform to the typical standards of southern girls in the 1930’s: she does not act like a lady, gets in fights, and curses. Scout especially hates dresses. She loves her overalls, and will do anything to avoid wearing a dress. At one point, Scout actually considers running away from her family: “I felt the starched walls of a pink cotton penitentiary closing in on me, and for the second time in my life I thought of running away. Immediately” (Lee 182). Scout harbors so much hatred towards the stereotypical feminine attire that she contemplates running away. This quote demonstrates the level of distaste she truly has for dresses, and the overall confines of femininity. Scout persistently defies gender roles and acts differently from the conventional woman. This defines Scout’s personality and shapes her adventures throughout the entirety of the
Inequality is a theme that runs throughout all of history. Harper Lee uses the theme of inequality in her book, To Kill a Mockingbird. Tom Robinson must deal with inequality when he is accused of a crime he didn’t commit because no one will trust a black man over a white man. The Cunningham family must face discrimination because of their lack of money. Scout even faces inequality when she tries to play with Jem and Dill. The theme of inequality is a strong one in Lee’s book, and her use of inequality doesn’t only define racism, but also discrimination based on wealth and gender.
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”
Gender roles are another cause of social divisions and inequality the Harper Lee teaches about. Scout defies gender roles and she is looked down upon by many of the women in her community for doing so. Scout’s Aunt Alexandra is one woman who looks down upon scout for this. “Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of my attire. I could not possibly hope to be a lady if I wore breeches; when I said I could do nothing in a dress, she said I wasn’t supposed to be doing things that required pants,” (108). Aunt Alexandra believes ladies are not permitted to be taking place in activities that require pants. She disapproves of how Scout likes to participate in activities she sees as unladylike. This shows the inequality in this society due to gender roles. Another woman who challenges Scouts appearance as a lady is her neighbor Miss Stephanie. When Aunt Alexandra has a
Discrimination is the separation of society; it has always been apart of history, especially in the United States and is still going on now. History has shown that white men has always been the superior race in the past and has had more privileges compared to other ethnic groups. In the mid 1900s white Americans were the superior race and black Americans were treated brutally and didn’t have the same rights. Even today, white Americans are known to have high social status compared to other races. There has always been social inequality and white Americans has always had the upper hand. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee it demonstrates how skin color affected the way people were judged and what rights they had. It shows the inequality
Social Inequalities In the novel to Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee shows a theme of social inequalities throughout the book. Social Inequalities is one of many things that is still present till this day in age. Proves to you that your inequality and relevance can be determined by anything from the people around you daily. To Kill a Mockingbird, the town of Maycomb is an excellent example of the discriminatory practices in place during the 1930s.
A Need For Change In western culture, people are treated differently based on resources, family heritage, and now personal achievements. Social classing and the consequences of it have been prevalent in societies since ancient times. Although it has been called by different names such as caste, stratification, Bourgeoisie vs. Aristocrats, and Plebeians vs. Patricians, social inequality remains. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee paints a picture of the distinct type of social classing that existed in a small Alabama town in the early 1900s.
In to Kill a Mockingbird shows many examples of Racial and Social inequality. Throughout history Racial and Social inequalities have not improved for the minorities in the United States, There's a new trend going around #Blacklivesmatter. It all started when cops started to shoot unarmed African Americans. It takes just one person to standed up and do the right thing, just like Atticus Finch stood up for Tom Robinson and took his trial case even though he knew he was going to lose.
ocial inequality is a major issue in today’s world. It is the existence of unequal opportunities and rewards for different social positions or statuses within a group or society (Mahault et al. 6). Racism is not the only form of social inequality, it can also be because of an individual’s background and or wealth. These three forms of social inequality appear numerous times in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. In this novel, the argument made by Harper Lee is that social inequality is a ladder that is complex and affects everyone.
In “To Kill A Mockingbird,” there is no human equality. Most of the people are racist towards black people and do not understand that they are humans, too. Basically, they just don’t give them a chance. I believe that humans have ruined many of the things in nature. I think this because people just care about getting money and don’t realize that they’re are destroying nature. For example people are just sucking out and taking all the natural resources and not trying to preserve anything. There are not many places in nature untouched by man anymore. This makes me sad because I would like to visit one of these places because it would be a get-away from all the hate and corruption in the world. I believe that Atticus would feel the same way because in his world, all he sees is racism and hate, and I think he would enjoy not experiencing that on a day-to-day basis.