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To Kill A Mockingbird Analysis

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Mayella Ewell is an abused young woman in Maycomb, Alabama who accused an African American man Tom Robinson of rape during the Great Depression in the early 1930’s. Mayella took advantage of the Jim Crow laws so she could end the mental and physical abuse her father caused. Since Mayella is white and female, she has power. Although she lives behind a dumpster this still provides a significant amount of power for her. In the book “To Kill A Mockingbird” Harper Lee shows Mayella’s power for class during the trial. Even though Mayella has less power in class than race in gender it is still a significant amount to help her. “Yes, suh. I felt right sorry for her….”“DBQ: Is Mayella powerful?” IL, Evanston, 2013) in this quote it shows that when …show more content…

Whites were preferred over African Americans in this time period. So even though Tom did not rape Mayella he would still be executed because he was still in Mayella’s house which was breaking the Jim Crow Laws which were heavily enforced at the time. “...all Negroes lie, that all Negroes are basically immoral beings, that all Negro men are not to be trusted around our women…” (“DBQ: Is Mayella powerful?” IL, Evanston, 2013)In the quote it shows that white males thought that African Americans were going to take their women and that they were not to be trusted because they all lie. Mayella had power in this because even though Tom did not do it in the courtroom, they saw his race and made the “evil assumption” that he would lie about it. Class, race and gender all have an important role in Mayella’s power.Her gender, and race helped her positively, class on the other hand still had power just less than the others. Mayella had enough power to accuse Tom Robinson of rape which ended in her father and Tom both being killed. Therefore, Mayella is in fact powerful.
Mayella Ewell is an abused young woman in Maycomb, Alabama who accused an African American man Tom Robinson of rape during the Great Depression in the early 1930’s. Mayella took advantage of the Jim Crow laws so she could end the mental and physical abuse her father caused. Since Mayella is white and female, she has power. Although she lives behind a dumpster this still provides a significant amount of

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