Mark Twain once said, “The very ink which history is written is merely fluid prejudice.” Prejudice is a pre-determined opinion that is not based on facts, reason, and actual experience. It is still a major issue in the world today. The novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is about a six year old girl named Jean Louise Finch, otherwise known as Scout, who lives in Maycomb County, Alabama during the Great Depression. Her father, Atticus, is a lawyer who strives to instill moral values in Scout and her brother Jem. Growing up, she sees various examples of prejudice which give her insight into the world that is dominated by injustice. Her experiences reveal that people do not see the world as it really is because they are blinded by the stereotypes …show more content…
Atticus is trying to teach Jem that unfortunately, people use skin colour to determine what a person is worth. This is a difficult concept for Jem to understand because both him and Atticus know that it is not right. In addition, people underestimate the power that children possess. Throughout most of the novel, Scout’s abilities are invisible to others because she is only six years old. This is disproven when she acts as a distraction when Mr. Cunningham has the intention of harming Tom robinson. By diverting his attention to her, she prevents him from carrying out his plan. Because ageism encourages people to judge others based on their age, children’s abilities are overlooked which prevents others from realizing their true potential. To summarize, racism, sexism, and ageism are types of prejudice that are still a part of society that negatively influence the people they ostracize. People depend on generalizations to formulate an opinion about something or someone, which gives people a misleading view about them. Firstly, the idea of what it means to be a woman is distorted because it is defined by superficial characteristics. When Aunt Alexandra first arrives at the …show more content…
People’s proximity to each other allows for the exchange of opinions. Maycomb is such a small town that people “knew each other’s voices” (Lee 353). Gossip fosters prejudice because it goes around easily in the community, and is therefore what members are forced to believe since everyone is saying it. This does not allow people to authentically form opinions that are their own. Because people have a fixed perception of what is considered acceptable, something that varies from the norm is automatically deemed incorrect. In addition, expectations established by society enforce an image that people should supposedly strive to obtain. For instance, when Walter Cunningham comes over to Scout’s home and pours syrup over his vegetables, Scout makes rude remarks about his etiquette. Afterwards, Calpurnia explains that due to the fact that he comes from a poor family, Scout should not be so judgmental. Due to Scout’s lack of compassion and understanding for Walter’s circumstances, she expects him to eat like she does. In reality, this is not possible because people come from different backgrounds and are raised differently. Lastly, there are negative consequences if one does not comply with society’s expectations. For instance, when Atticus continues to support Tom Robinson despite antagonistic views that members of the community have, he faces
Prejudice is embedded into society and is taught from generation to generation. In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee the setting is 1930’s in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama. The people in this town look down on those different from them and have been taught prejudice for generations. Even though it was set so long ago the lessons are still applicable to many situations today. In this story a young girl named Scout is the narrator and her father is a lawyer who is representing a black man accused of raping a white girl. It is obvious what the fate of the man will be but the story highlights how and why an innocent man is sent to prison and later murdered.
To Kill a Mockingbird, a classic novel by Harper Lee, is a quintessential example of a novel that brings to light the social injustice that occurred throughout history. This social injustice is not only experienced by people of color, but also people that aren’t perceived as high class in society. Some people that face social injustice in To Kill a Mockingbird are the following: Tom Robinson, the Cunninghams, and Arthur Radley.
Prejudice is one of the world’s greatest struggles. It does not only hold society back, but is harmful to the people who do good .In Harper Lee’s book To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout and Jem live through and witness prejudice and racism in the small town of Maycomb. They see someone wrongly accused of a crime because of his race. Scout and Jem also witness and take part in prejudice against a man no one knows anything about. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird Harper Lee uses characterization to show the negative effects of prejudice and racism.
James J. Corbett once wisely stated, “Individuals can resist injustice, but only a community can do justice”. This quote paints a clear picture of how sometimes individuals, such as Atticus, can stand up for what’s right, yet the entire community must invest in justice in order to advance in this area. Striving for truth and justice in their own lives, all citizens must make an investment in seeing that justice also oversees everything happening in the community. Sadly, in To Kill a Mockingbird, the people of Maycomb allow the town to fall into traps of racial and personal injustice, treating others without common respect and courtesy. This in turn results in a community characterized by unfair thinking and
In To Kill A Mockingbird injustice is exhibited at intense depths; sometimes it takes extreme measures for justice to be displayed even though it might be wrong in the law’s eyes. The most prevalent of these is the injustice the because this leads to the stage in the book where justice has been revealed.
Harper Lee's attitude and philosophy concerning prejudice is revealed in the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Prejudice is described as a opinion or judgement of a person through racism and stereotyping. Harper Lee shows that prejudice does not only harm an individual but also damages an entire society. She also shows that men, women and children experience prejudice, either as victims or using prejudice towards others due to their differences.
There are unforgettable moments in a society when one can shape events for generations to come. For an individual to use proper judgements to change one’s living environment, and make the situation equal for others is a significant responsibility. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch presents as an evident contradiction of the society of Maycomb in which racism and injustice are customary in able to emphasize Lee’s lesson that one must stand with their own moral code, regardless of what others think in order to change society.
We see this in the separation of the classes, the expectations of the lower classes and the expectations of the higher classes. Firstly, Scout is not allowed to play with Walter after the trial because aunt Alexandra believes he is below the finch family standing. When Scout asks to play with him she said “I’ll tell you why she said. Because-he-is-trash, that’s why you can’t play with him. I’ll not have you around him, picking up his habits and learning Lord-knows-what”(Lee,301). Who is family is and where they stand on the social chain causes Alexandra doesn’t see the as equals. They are viewed as a step below the townspeople. They are thought to be dirty and uncivilized. The prejudice tied to wealth has always been a large issue in society and even today will sometimes put barriers between two people. We seem to associate wealth with power and this creates negative prejudice to those who don’t have a lot. The lower class citizens of Maycomb such as the Ewells and Cunninghams don’t have the same expectations as the rest of the town's residents. For example the Ewells never showing up after the first day of school. Scout explains this to Miss Caroline when she
There are many examples of injustice that exist in our world. Harper Lee in her novel, To Kill A Mockingbird reveals injustice in her novel. Through the novel there are three main ideas about how the main characters deal with injustice that are, One must use their own conscience regardless of social norms, represent those who don't have a voice or one that is a minority, and that change does not come easily. The author develops the idea that the individual must stand up to injustice to demonstrate awareness of their own morals and values that can transcend conformity.
In the segregated American south of the 1930s, America did not value equality as it does today. This is the case in Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, which depicts such injustice in Scout Finch’s fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama. Though Scout narrates the story as an adult, the difficult events she shares are from her childhood. As Scout lives through the events of the unfair trial of an African American man falsely accused of raping a white woman, Scout comes more aware of the evils of her society such as racism, sexism, and classism.
Tom Robinson is like a mockingbird, and is done the injustice of being ‘sentenced’ to death for doing no harm. During the Trial Arc of the book, Tom’s testimony is put up against three white people’s testimonies, two of which paint him as a terrifyingly violent man. In reality Tom is simply a farm worker. Mayella Ewell describes him as a violent and assertive individual during her testimony, which starkly contrasts Tom who clearly states when asked why he ran from the Ewell home that “ [...] if you was a n----- like me, you’d be scared, too [sic]” (Lee, 195). Tom clearly knows that he must not intervene or do anything or he will be persecuted for a crime that he may not have even committed. To contrast the injustice displayed during the trial, there are a few miniscule deeds of justice delivered to
Injustice- Tom Robinson- Onomatopoeia- Infamy- Avert- Brine Tom Robinson is the perfect example for the theme Injustice. He is found guilty of a crime he did not commit. Surprisingly, it was his compassionate and kind nature that put him as risk for this accusation. He did not portray any bitterness about his situation on the stand or let them see the brine (word power) of his tears.
In to Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee addresses justice. It came to all who deserved punishment. One of the best acting characters loses his temper. A young lady acts terrible, showing the father as terrible ending up with him dead and the girl devastated. In To Kill a Mockingbird justice always happened in one way or another, for better or worse. Mayela, Mr. Bob Ewell, and Jem received justice for what they did.
The theme of injustice exists throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, as evidenced by, Tom Robinson being falsely convicted, Boo Radley being ostracized for keeping to himself, and Bob Ewells attack on Scout and Jem. The first example of injustice occurs when Tom Robinson is falsely convicted. In the 1920s Deep South, racism occurred and was accepted every single day. When Tom was accused of assaulting Mayella, the reader immediately knows that Tom is an innocent man.
Throughout the Great Depression Era existed the vast injustice of the African Americans all throughout the United States. In the county of Maycomb, the main setting for To Kill A Mockingbird reveals the true injustice and ignorance that was conveyed by its residents, both white and black. An important character from TKAM is Tom Robinson, he symbolizes the injustice, disrespect, etc. he and the majority of the black community sustained throughout every corner of the town and even in a courtroom. The true ignorance is quite obvious amongst most white people in the south, like Mrs. Dubose.