The Effect of Social Hierarchy in to Kill a Mockingbird

In To Kill A Mockingbird, the ignorance seen throughout the novel conveys how expectations set by society affects the important events of life. The trial of Tom Robinson exemplifies how the recurring beliefs on race affected the outcome of the trial. The ideas of social class in Maycomb determined the way the Cunningham's were treated. Aunt Alexandra´s visits to Atticus's house and her gender view towards Scout. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee reveals how society sets expectations of how people should treat others based on race, social class, and gender.

In a small town named Maycomb located in Alabama during the 1930’s, an interesting case has caused controversy among the townspeople. A lawyer named Atticus took on the challenge of defending a black man named Tom Robinson, against some very serious allegations. At the time, everyone thought that he was crazy for taking the case, but he had his reasons. The main reason he decided to take the case was to stand up for what was right, even when faced with judgment from others. The narrator starts off by showing how Atticus described Tom Robinson and the reason he took on such an impossible task upon himself.

Everyone in their town of Maycomb expects Atticus to blow off the case and not try because Tom is a black man fighting against a white man. Atticus goes against the norm by using the case to work towards ending racial bias and change. Atticus understands and works very hard to prove that people should be treated equally despite their race, especially in court. The community sees this and recognizes that “[Atticus] fought for him all the way” (Lee 276). Atticus knew it would be difficult to defend Tom as innocent and move toward justice and equality in Maycomb.

While numerous citizens in Maycomb express how “Atticus[‘s] aim to defend him. [Is] what [we] don’t like about it”(Lee, 218) and that he has “got everything to lose from this... I mean everything.”(Lee, 195) Atticus full heartedly stands behind the fact that if he didn’t defend the Tom Robinson case he “couldn’t hold up [his] head in town... [and] couldn’t represent this county in the legislature.”(Lee, 100) This reveals the moral importance this trial means to Atticus, as he believes that everyone should be treated equally, regardless of their skin colour as “men are not to be trusted around women—black or white... a truth that applies to...no particular race of men.”(Lee, 273) Atticus’s personal definition of courage is revealed to Jem after he is forced to read to Mrs Dubose for an entire month. As defined by Atticus, real courage is “when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what.”(Lee, 149) Similarly, Atticus’s raw motives concerning the Tom Robinson trial run on the evident fact that he knew he was “licked a hundred years before start[ing]”(Lee, 101) Mr Robinson’s trial, but nonetheless defended him to his last breath. Atticus’s definition and actions correspond and show the reader how his values are congruent, no matter the situation. All in all, Atticus’s personal beliefs and values suggest to the reader

Tom Robinson’s case, in which we see in that time period how a white man’s word goes against a black’s, is perceived as unfair by Scout, Jem, Atticus, and many of their neighbors. As Atticus says to Jem, “As you grow older, you’ll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don’t you forget it–whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash.”(295) This quote explains that there is great injustice and extortion for personal gain. This is disturbing in its own right; The fact that Atticus needs to even make a comment like that is disturbing in its own right, let alone that any person would do that to another, also tells Jem this: “So far nothing in your life has interfered with your reasoning process. Those are twelve reasonable men in everyday life, Tom’s jury, but you saw something come between them and reason. You saw the same thing that night in front of the jail. When that crew went away, they didn’t go as reasonable men, they went because we were there. 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 facts of life.”(295) Even a man like Atticus, a sort of rebel in that time period, accepts that the system is

How far do you think Harper Lee has effectively shown social class and family groups to be important at that time? The rigid class structure and social stratification of Maycomb County had a profound effect on the events in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. The impact of this class structure was especially evident in the trial of Tom Robins on, a Maycomb Negro. The extreme prejudice of the town eventually led to the unjust conviction of Robinson for a crime he did not commit.

Social norms are apart of every society in some way, shape, or form. Issues occur off these social norms when there are outcasters who don’t exactly fit in with society's expectations. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Scout was pressured by many relatives and neighbors to “act like a girl”. Accept, Scout wants to be her own person. She wants to play in the dirt and have fun. Although, one particular person keeps putting her down, and that is Auntie Alexandra. Alexandra tries to play a female role for Scout and tells Scout how she is suppose to act. Scout however is very similar to Juliet capulet in this way. In Romeo and Juliet, Juliet was pressured by her mother to be more like other girls and to get married. Scout and Juliet,

To conclude the novel, “to Kill A Mockingbird”. Despite being published decades ago, still portray various social injustices that occur in today's society. In the novel the black community is treated unfair, as if they are worthless and inhuman. This also happens in the u.s however, not only people of the black community are being target but people of other dark skin races are as wel. Some people cannot afford a lawyer and some aren't granted a fair trial and sometime will get no trial. This happens in the court scene involving tom robinson, even though he had evidence that proved his innocence he was still found guilty all because of his skin color. But the true injustice is the fact that there are laws that are supposed to prevent this unfair judgment in courts but

Social Class’s Standards In 1930, the national income halved and one-fourth of the American workforce stood unemployed (“The 1930s”). When the lower end of economic social class implied an empty stomach, social class naturally lingered on everybody’s mind. However, social class exists not simply as an economic construct. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee presents a story of a town during the 1930s with many well-defined social classes.

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

Atticus is appointed to defend a black man named Tom Robinson who has been accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a white woman. She is a member of the Ewell family, who is looked down upon by Maycomb society and referred to as "white trash." Atticus knows that Tom has almost no chance because he is black and will be tried by an all white jury. Nevertheless, he wants to help him reveal the truth.

The unusually long time for the jury to come to its verdict, demonstrates the effectiveness of Atticus’ speech which motivated them to think about their views on race. He may not win the case but, Atticus succeeds in making an impact on the future of racism in Maycomb and succeeds in founding a place where one day people “will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character”. Although Tom is eventually proven guilty, Atticus’ persuasive speech makes an impact on the society by revealing Tom’s innocence and the multitude of prejudice taking place in their

Atticus says that even though Tom is innocent, the all-white jury will find him guilty anyway because he is a black man. The people of Maycomb are livid that their best lawyer would defend a black man who “raped” a white woman. Up until now, Maycomb has been displayed as a happy little town, it’s been seen as nothing but positive. The racist and unflattering side of Maycomb has been exposed as they attack the Finches. Even some of the Finches’ family members disapproves of Atticus’s choice. The town believes that Atticus defending a black man puts the Finch name to shame. They believed that he shouldn’t have done what he

The “other” is someone(s) who are different than me and my group. Some of the “others” in Maycomb include: Boo Radley, Miss Caroline Fisher and Walter Cunningham. Race, class, and gender play a role in establishing the “other”. Gossip and superstition play a role in figuring out who society believes are the “other”. Stereotypes also play a role in determining who is an “other” because stereotypes are undefinable attitudes that people have about other people. Fear plays a role in “otherness” because fear causes people to say and do things that they normally wouldn’t do. A quote to support this is from chapter two: “The class murmured apprehensively, should she prove to harbor her share of peculiarities indigenous to that region.”

There are many different social classes in “To Kill A Mockingbird.” The factors that separate people into these social classes are their skin color and their occupation. For example, Atticus, Scout, and Jem are part of the highest social class. They are part of this social class because Atticus is a lawyer, which makes him a highly respected person in the community. He is also white, which, at that time was a very important factor that chose who belonged in what social class. Scout and Jem are his children and therefore are also part of this social class.