I am reading the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. This book is about a girl named Scout Finch who lives with her brother, Jem, and her father, Atticus, during the Great Depression. They live in a small town called Maycomb, Alabama. Maycomb is a town where everybody knows everybody. There is currently a trial taking place; Mayella vs. Tom Robinson. Tom has been accused of rapeing Mayella. Tom has pleaded not guilty for the crime he has been accused of. In this journal I will be evaluating Tom’s character and questioning why the Ewells may be lying. Tom Robinson is a unique character that displays his honesty. However, with Tom’s honesty comes the fact that Tom is also naive. Tom had a severe injury to his left arm. Tom lost his …show more content…
By Tom displaying his lack of having a left arm proves that Tom has nothing to hide. A quote that proves Tom exposing his arm and is willing to tell the truth is, “Jem said Atticus was showing the jury that Tom had nothing to hide”(Lee 217). Tom also tells his side of the story, what happened the night of the “rape”. He gave compelling evidence that he did not commit this crime. An example of the evidence that was provided is when Mayella invited Tom in to do simple tasks. While completing these tasks, over time, Mayella developed feelings for Tom. A quote proving Mayella has feelings for Tom is, “She reached up an’ kissed me ‘side of th’ face. She says she never kissed a grown man before an’ she might as well kiss a nigger.” 221(Lee). Tom has a wife and kids to look after. What kind of father would he be if he did not tell the truth and set a good example for his children. Even Mr.Link stood up for him in court. Mr. Link was telling everyone in court that Tom has worked for him a long time and has not ever been in trouble, not even once. A quote that reflects Mr. Link standing up for Tom is, “I just want the whole lot of you to know one thing right now. That boy’s worked for me eight years an’ I
Tom Robinson’s character exemplifies the mockingbird because he is a black man who is denied justice based on racial prejudice. After Mayella Ewell accuses Tom of rape, there is no way for him to be judged fairly because the narrow-minded, white townspeople are unable to get past their prejudices towards blacks. At his trial, Tom’s lawyer, Atticus, argues,
In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Tom Robinson has been accused of beating and raping Mayella Ewell. Tom was married and has three kids. He works for Link Deas picking cotton, pecans, and doing work around the yard for him. Tom acquired an injury one day in Mr. Dolphus Raymond’s cotton gin when he was little. Tom passes by the Ewell place every day to get to work. Tom is put on trial for his life because the claim made by the Ewells of rape. The case is basically the Ewell’s word verses Toms. During the case Mayella slips up on what really happen. Because of the type of injury Tom has, Mayella’s slips up on the stand, and the fact that Tom was already married, the jury should acquit Tom- finding him not guilty.
Tom Robinson s Innocence Introduction In Harper Lee s classic novel To Kill A Mockingbird Tom Robinson is accused of the rape and assault of Mayella Ewell. After reviewing the evidence, I believe that Tom Robinson is not guilty of the rape and assault of Mayella Ewell. Throughout the evidence presented in chapters 17-21, there are numerous ways to prove Tom Robinson s innocence. One of the things that could prove why Tom Robinson is not guilty is that there was a significant lack of consistency and certainty within Mayella s story of what had happened. Within this essay, I will be giving reasoning as to why Tom Robinson is innocent of the crimes he is accused of.
In chapter ten of To Kill A Mockingbird, Jem gets angry at what Mrs. Dubose said about him and his family, so takes scouts brand new baton and chops off the top of her camellia buds and then he snaps her baton in half. As Jem and Scout make their way to town Mrs. Dubose who raked them by her wrathful graze, subjected to ruthless interrogation regarding our behavior, and given a melancholy prediction on what we would amount to when we grew up, which was always nothing She criticized how Scout dressed, how Atticus was defend tom, a black man, and how Atticus let them run wild. When Atticus found out that Jem had chopped the top of her bushes off, he made him go apologize to her. Mrs. Dubose then made a request for Jem which was for him to read
Gentleman of the jury, I would like you to take a look at this man, the man I am defending. His name is Tom Robinson. Tom is a diligent man. On a daily basis, he would walk to work, and when the time came after a day of long, hard work, he would walk home. He did it to provide for his family. Now, every day, on his journey to and from work, Tom would pass by the Ewell home, and Mayella Ewell would call him, from her yard, for help. Like anyone else in this town would’ve, Tom decided to help. He never wanted to harm Mayella. In fact, he felt sorry for her. How peculiar, in our society, for a black man to feel sorry for a white woman, a person who has more privileges and rights. Yet, he still felt sorry, and have had a good reason to feel sorry
In chapters 19-20 of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird Mr. Tom Robinson’s testimony is revealed, further showing the underlying racism in Maycomb. While Tom is testifying it seems clear to Jem that atticus will win the case, due to pure logic. Tom’s story has a sense of innocence; he claims to have felt bad for Mayella. Opposed to the callous lady Mayella was earlier portrayed as, Tom shows her as another victim.
I have read chapters sixteen through twenty-three in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. In these chapters the Tom Robinson trial has occurred. Tom is being accused of taking advantage of Mayella Ewell. In this journal, I will be characterizing Tom Robinson.
Imagine a place where the verdict of a rape trial stems from racial prejudice rather than the proper evaluation of proven evidence. This is Maycomb, Alabama, the strange, Southern town where Scout and Jem Finch grow up during the 1930s in the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. In short, the novel travels a thin line between a light-hearted narrative of the siblings’ childhood with their single father, a defense attorney named Atticus Finch, and the injustices that arise within their close-knit community. The complexities include extreme racism, a peculiar social hierarchy, and general misunderstandings of certain people within the small town. These are all seen as “Maycomb ways”, almost as if they are considered facts. Through her writing, Lee conveys an important message that an essential part of a child’s education often takes place in a home or community rather than a classroom by utilizing the characters, Atticus Finch and Tom Robinson, a black man accused of rape whom Atticus is defending.
Power is too overpowering sometimes especially for class, gender, and race. TKAM is a book written by Harper Lee in 1960. Mayella Ewell is a white, 19-year-old woman, who accused Tom Robinson, who is Negro, for rape. The book takes place in Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s in the South during the Great Depression where there was a recession. Mayella is not a powerful character based on her class, gender, and race compared to Tom Robinson.
Today’s society is damaged with the results of people doing terrible things to each other. Peoples actions can make or break lives.The novel To Kill A Mockingbird, is about a little girl, her Brother, their Dad, and the negro they all fight to defend. The main character scout and her older brother Jem, get into all sorts of dilemmas in the small town of Maycomb, Alabama. As they learn new valuable lessons about life, they also pick up that the small town they grow up in is not as clean and safe as it seems. The father, Atticus Finch is a kind hearted soul who was given the case of Tom Robinson, a negro accused of Raping a white woman. As soon as Atticus was given the case he aimed to defend Tom but a faulty jury made sure it did not happen.To
For example, when Tom goes to help Mayella, and gets accused of raping her. This shows that he is treated unfairly, and tormented by only doing the right thing. He never harms Mayella in any way, and just does what he thinks is right. In addition, when Tom Robinson tried to run away and got shot seventeen times for not doing anything bad or harmful. This shows how Tom Robinson was never treated right, and all the
“Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird (119).” In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird this quote from Atticus Finch alludes to one of the central themes the novel focuses on. The mockingbird is an innocent creature that does not cause harm, it is purely for the enjoyment of others. When killing a mockingbird it symbolises destroying this innocence. There are many incidences in this novel which display this theme, as several characters are unjustly persecuted by the people in Maycomb. The significance of the title To Kill a Mockingbird is a main theme throughout the novel. It shows that in a society that carries prejudice, innocence is easily destroyed and good does not always triumph over evil. This can be supported through the characters of Arthur “Boo” Radley, Jeremy “Jem” Finch, and Tom Robinson.
The book, To Kill a Mockingbird, is an American classic and has been a staple in high schools for many years. The main storyline that this novel follows is of Scout, a young girl, living in the sleepy town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s. It follows the case of Tom Robinson, an African American man, and how he was accused and convicted of rape. In prison, Tom was shot and killed because he was said to have tried to escape. While Mayella is the one who is saying that Tom raped her, the real person who should be to blame is her abusive father. As is quite apparent, Bob Ewell is the person who is most responsible for the death of Tom Robinson.
Throughout the book To Kill A Mockingbird Lee discusses the effects of ignorance and the toll it takes on people such as Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, Scout herself, and many more. Through her examples of sexism, prejudice, and racism, from the populist of poverty stricken Southerners, she shows the readers the injustice of many. The victims of ignorance are the ‘mockingbirds’ of the story. A good example of this injustice is the trial of Tom Robinson, who is falsely accused of raping a white girl and is found guilty. The book is from the point of view Scout, a child, who has an advantage over most kids due to her having a lawyer as a dad, to see the other side of the story. Her father tells her in the story, “you never really know a man until
I am reading “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee and I am on page 304. This section of book is about Tom Robinson’s case, and how people from all over the county come to watch. Supposedly Mayella got raped by Tom. As the trial goes on Mayella is called to the stand and says she was raped. Atticus has only one witness, Tom Robinson, the man who “raped” Mayella. During the trial Dill starts to cry so Scout takes him outside where they meet Mr. Dolphus Raymond. During the trail Cal comes and tells Atticus the kids are missing. She soon finds out that they are in the colored section, and brings them home. In this paper I will be predicting the verdict of the trial and predicting what will happen in Tom’s case.