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Social Inequality In To Kill A Mockingbird

Decent Essays
Prejudice toward groups of people results in social inequality that limits people's potential. This prejudice towards groups of people is present in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Published in 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in Macomb county a sleepy, southern town in the midst of the 1930’s. The novel focuses on the childhood of Scout Finch, a young, curious girl, her family and the town she grows up in. More specifically, the prejudices toward certain groups of people in the town, such as the colored community. Scout takes readers through, first hand experiences of these prejudices via the trail of Tom Robinson, a black man who is accused of raping Mayella Ewell, the eldest daughter of the impoverished Ewell family. Forms of prejudice oppress the victims of this social inequality and limit their potential. This oppression is shown in the limitation of characters among certain targeted groups that face, sexism, classism, and racism. The people who face these forms of prejudice and discrimination are not given the same opportunities as others and face oppression in this way. Specifically, sexism is a form of prejudice that oppresses the groups of women affected and limits their character potential. For instance, the oppression of the sexes in shown in the brother sister relationship between Scout Finch and Jem Finch, in the manipulation of Scout Finch and in the powerlessness of Maycomb women such as Miss Maudie. Towards the beginning of the novel, during
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