Theme Of Racism In To Kill A Mockingbird

Racism is something that most people would claim they do not believe in or support; however, as clearly shown in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, racism is a disease that spreads through a region and worsens as time goes on. Racism is an issue that is still prevalent in the American society today, and Harper Lee’s timeless novel continues to teach the lesson that one needs to look beyond the color of another man’s skin and see them for who they truly are. Mr. Raymond’s conversation with Dill after Tom Robinson’s testimony initially shows that racism is better comprehended with age. He says, “Let him get a little older and he won’t get sick and cry… Cry about the hell white people give to colored folks, without even stopping to think that they’re people too” (Lee, 1960, p. 269). Here, it becomes clear that children can be naive to racism and the evil in the world, but as they continue to grow up in an area that feels so strongly about white supremacy, they become immune to the injustice and prejudice. Further, Mr. Raymond’s words allow the reader to better understand the severity of the racism in Maycomb and the entirety of the country. It also unveils a crucial theme in the novel, namely that one must consider a person of color to be no different from oneself, as all humans are equal. Additionally, racism is repeatedly referred to as a disease in the novel, which is explained when Atticus is talking to Uncle Jack about the trial and he says “‘... I hope and pray I can get

Racism is both an ideology and a system of domination. To be racist is not just a misuse of derogatory slurs and whatnot. Only certain communities have the power and the privilege to be racist. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird racism was one of the most recurring themes. Communities as well as specific characters were impacted by racism. Tom Robinson, Calpurnia, Bob Ewell and Dolphus Raymond were characters that suffered from Racism.

Throughout the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, there are various types of themes displayed. One of the most prominent themes highlighted in the novel is racism being kept alive through fear and ignorance. With this theme, Lee is able to portray the time period in which the characters lived in. With this portration, the readers are able to experience what life was like back when racism caused clashes between the whites and African Americans.

In the story “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, the main character Scout realizes the town she lives in is full of bias and prejudice toward negros. Scout, the only daughter of lawyer Atticus Finch, is faced with the activism that follows this prejudice when her father decides to defend a negro, Tom Robinson, in the court of law. She is constantly harassed and tormented by the residence of their small town, Maycom. What Lee is trying to show through these events is that people are always going to have prejudices, and sometimes these prejudices come from the people you least expect it form. In the story, neighbors, friends, and family all show their prejudices about the defendant Tom Robinson to Scout, who finally realize the world isn’t perfect but is, in fact, full of flaws and prejudices.

The setting of the book To Kill A Mockingbird has a huge role on the conflicts, outcome of the trial, and Jem and Scout’s development. The book takes place in Maycomb county Alabama, in the 1930’s during the Great Depression. Since Alabama is in the south, and was before the Civil Rights Movement, most of the white residents in the town were racist. In the book, the town of Maycomb is almost like a character on its own. It is a small town that had lots of farmers who were struck hard by the Great Depression. Scout, who is the narrator of the book describes it by saying, “Maycomb was a tired old town, but it was a tired old town when I first knew it. In rainy weather the streets turned to red slop; grass grew on the sidewalks, the courthouse sagged in the square”(Lee 6). Scout even goes on to say, “People moved slowly then. They ambled across the square, shuffled in and out of the stores around it, took their time about everything”(Lee 6). In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the conflict of racism is shown through the trial, Atticus, and Jem and Scout’s uprising in a non-racist home but in a prejudice town.

Imagine being persecuted your entire life. Having to constantly respect someone even though they were rude to you. This is what many African-Americans had to go through during the 1930’s. Racism is a major aspect in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. The main character, Scout, has to deal with this problem everyday. Bob Ewell, Mr. Cunningham, and other characters are very racist, and don’t approve of Atticus defending a “Negroe”. This causes Scout to be bullied in school and even attacked by Mr. Ewell. Also, characters such as Tom Robinson are negatively affected by racism in Maycomb. Tom is killed just because of his skin color. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee’s use of point-of-view, irony, and symbolism help to develop

Even so, Atticus was Tom’s lawyer and he intended to fight for him. Atticus defended Tom to the absolute best of his ability. His evidence was very strong and refuted that of Mayella and her father, Bob. On page 272, Atticus argues that, “[Bob Ewell] did what any God-fearing, persevering, respectable white man would do under the circumstances-- he swore out a warrant, no doubt signing it with his left hand, and Tom Robinson now sits before you, having taken the oath with the only good hand he

Mayella Ewell claimed Tom Robinson beat and raped her. Both of Bob’s and Mayella’s testimonies have many loose holes and have multiple things that don't add up. For example,Tom not being able to use his right arm, but Mayella claimed he got on to her, beat and choked her. “And so, a quiet, humble, respectable negro, who has had the unmitigated TEMERITY to feel sorry for a white woman, has had to put his word against two white peoples. The defendant is not guilty. But somebody in this courtroom is...now, gentlemen, in this country our courts are the great levelers. In our courts, all men are created equal. I'm no idealist to believe firmly in the integrity of our courts and of our jury system. That's no ideal to me. That is a living, working reality!...” (Lee 273). This paragraph reveals the theme of racism in the city of Maycomb because Atticus has to re-explain why Tom is innocent. He has to keep telling them that the evidence from the Ewells don't add up, there was no positive medical kit, and Tom's story doesn't add up with the Ewells. It shows racism because it shows how far the people of Maycomb will go to make a black person suffer. It shows how much hate is filled with the whites of Maycomb. Tom Robinson is eventually shot 17 times by a police officer, and leaves behind his wife and three children. The outcome of Tom Robinson is horrible. But it shows how little the

Decades ago, in the 1930s, people of color were not treated fairly. Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird took place in the 1930s in the fictional place of Macomb County, Alabama. It was narrated through a young girl named Scout Finch. Throughout the novel, Scout, her older brother, Jem, and their good friend Dill discover realities of society. Scout and Jem’s father, Atticus, was appointed to be the attorney of a black man. Because of the time period, the case was almost hopeless, but Atticus fought anyway. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird displays universal themes such as racial intolerance and innocence of youth.

There are many themes shown throughout the book To Kill a Mockingbird. The author, Harper Lee made the novel take place in the 1930s and in a fictional town called Maycomb County in Alabama. The narrator was a young girl in the novel names Scout Finch. Throughout the book Scout, her older brother Jem, and her best friend Dill discover new things and become more mature. Then towards the end of the book Atticus, the father of Jem and Scout, agrees to defend a black man named Tom Robinson, who is accused of raping a white girl. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, racial intolerance and courage are two of the many themes demonstrated throughout the novel.

Living in 2017, many people believe America is free of racism and prejudice. That it is past the years of wrongfully convicting African-American men and past an unfair judicial system. People believe equality for all is really happening. Yet, studies show that innocent black men are seven times more likely to be convicted of murder than innocent white people. Another study shows that even though black people represent only 13% of the US population they represent 47% of 1,900 exonerations from 1989 to mid-October of 2016. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, author Harper Lee shows us that racism and fear are often more powerful than justice and morality. Three characters who understand this injustice include Atticus Finch, Bob Ewell, and Tom

In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, many minor themes are present such as gender and age. However, the largest and therefore major theme of the book is racism. All of the events and themes in the book had only one purpose, to support the theme of racism.

The way each character acts shows how unknowing and blind the residents of Maycomb are to the injustice they create. Tom is hard working, respectable and knows and accepts his place in society, even if it’s a place where Tom is treated as if he didn’t deserve to live. This is displayed when Mr. Link Deas interrupts the court to say “That boy’s worked for me eight years an’ I ain’t had one speck o’ trouble outta him. Not a speck” (pg.222). Bob Ewell, on the other hand, is disorderly, rude, vengeful and lazy, as shown when, according to Ms. Stephanie Crawford, “Bob Ewell stopped Atticus on the post office corner, spat in his face, and told him he’d get him if it took him the rest of his life” (pg.247). Because Tom Robinson and Bob Ewell are isolated differently, they each have differing workloads in community. Bob Ewell gets to live a life where he is allowed to hunt off-season and, as Atticus Finch puts it, “It’s certainly bad, but when a man spends his relief checks on green whiskey his children have a way of crying from hunger pains.” (pg.34) Tom however, proves his worth in the community, even though he is still viewed lower in the community than Bob Ewell. Tom’s kindness against hatred is shown in when he testifies that Mayella Ewell asked him to fix several items and

names’s Tom Robinson”. Discuss the effects of racism on Maycomb citizens such as Tom and Helen Robinson,

He was a married black man who lived next to a white Ewell family. This family accused Tom of raping Mayella, Bob Ewell’s daughter. Tom’s trials took place in the court with Atticus as his lawyer. Atticus was a non- racist man, unlike the other lawyers who never supported nor tried to help out any niggers sent to court. The Ewells were not very educated and had a low class in the society. But even that being said, the jury in the court had taken their side as they they were white. As Tom was black, with no fault, he was sentenced to death. This shows the great discrimination that stirred in Maycomb. Over that, Mayella and Bob even lied under oath on their trials and tried to make up stories. “-- I seen that black nigger yonder ruttin’ on my Mayella!” (Lee 285). This quote is one of the lies that Bob Ewell brought with him, trying to falsely blame Tom. When asked by Atticus if Mayella remembered Tom hitting her, she hesitates and says, “No, I don’t recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me” (Lee 305). Her hesitation surely proves that she had planned to lie and bring down Tom Robinson. Tom Robinson being shot innocent made some of the people in the court realize the truth and how misjudged Tom’s identity