Two of a Kind- When History Meets Literature: the Similarities of a Difference

In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the trial in the novel is one of the most important incidents that takes place in the text. It is very important to our understanding of the text as a whole as it shows the racial discrimination in that time period of the 1920 – 1930’s and how society in the 20th century has improved and has become more accepting of different races throughout the world as a whole. The topics that will be discussed in this essay are the trial and how it represented a prejudiced society, what happened after the trial and the effects that the trial had on the children.

The act of prejudice is one that everyone experiences. Whether it be, a person who is distributing hate, or a person who is receiving hate, everyone has contact with it. Although it is present all over the globe, it is prominent in the United States. Both in the present and the past, endless acts of discrimination have taken place and left a monumental impact on the country. The effect that it leaves can be seen in the novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee. In this story, sexism, racism, and isolation, are demonstrated in the small Southern town of Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930’s. As the story progresses, Lee compares these concepts to one another and uses them to make a statement about the problematic nature in America.

Bravery is not inherent, it is rather acquired from the circumstances or situation faced in the life. People face lot of problems in their lives and to cope with those situations and move in with one's life is the sheer example of being brave.  The same has been depicted by both the authors in their respective books. First by Kaye Gibbons in her very famous book "Ellen Foster" where in the protagonist is shown as homeless girl with no one to take care of, yet she finds a way to live her life and find herself a house worth living. Second, by Mark twain in his

During the 1930’s depression, there was a great divide between black and white America. There were many communities and groups who had been exposed to the same treatment and persecution as the Negroes in To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper Lee has used a small town setting, such as that in To Kill a Mockingbird, to illustrate America’s views on white supremacy and the inferiority of the black race. The author has illustrated view that are expressed world-wide through her characters in Maycomb county.

Although some people think that the problems of civil rights is gone, it is more present than ever. Racial discrimination is occurring in many ways and prejudice is a huge contributing factor which many people don’t realize. In her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows a family in the South during the 1930’s, experience prejudice at the extreme. Young Scout, who is the narrator, lives in Maycomb, Alabama where there is a lot of racism. Because of this, many problems erupt when people try to change the towns ways. Scout grows throughout the book as she experiences many events that test her strength. In the novel, Lee uses the characterization of Scout to demonstrate that innocent children who witness cruelty, often question

The novel To Kill a Mockingbird was written by Harper Lee and was published in 1960. This novel is included in various curriculums to enable students to take this well-written novel to identify the themes and messages and be educated from their literature. Prejudice is defined as a preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience. The different forms of prejudice that will be analysed are racial, class and social, thus, leads to the citizens of Maycomb to marginalises characters and treat them as an insignificant. It is evident that many characters in this novel suffer from different types of prejudice, which creates a sense of marginalisation. Tom Robinson, Mayella Ewell and Arthur Radley are the important, main

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.

Despite the fact that bravery and strength are similar concepts, they are also very different.

Bravery does not measure how big or small the situation might be, but it defines the person who is overcoming their fear. Each

To Kill a Mockingbird (TKAM) by Harper Lee, based in 1930’s Alabama, follows Scout, a six year old girl, as she navigates through the moral jungle of the racist south while her father defends an alleged black rapist. Although it is often glorified for pioneering new racial awareness but in this new reality of racism, that is 2017, it fails to provide students with a proper education of the issue at hand. Scout, being one of the many white main characters, explores racism but lacks the ability to properly educate today’s ninth graders. Therefore, TKAM should not be a core 9th-grade book at BHS because it negatively portrays people of color and mismatches today’s classroom.

In the riveting coming-of-age novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, the author Harper Lee projects the idea of acceptance of all people, through the eyes of a child. Harper Lee combats the prejudice of social standing when she proves that some of the poorest people have the best of character traits. While racism of African Americans is first and foremost in this novel, the acceptance of white people into the African American community shows racism can be beaten from both point of views. Finally, the disabilities that Arthur Radley portrays, is forgotten, when his actions help him soar above the bigotry of the people of Maycomb County. The most obvious topic is the overt racism based on a person's skin color, however, Harper Lee takes us beneath the skin to show that discrimination occurs in other ways.

“To Kill a Mockingbird” is the book which gives us the perfect view of prejudices that were present in the South of the USA at the beginning of 20th century. What interests us the most is whether these prejudices managed to find their place in today’s world.

Literature and fiction can be dangerous to use alone as a historical source. However, in looking at it with an analytical and open mind and incorporating it with textbooks, readers can gain tremendous knowledge from literature. Looking at the portrayal of a topic by an author is important. All authors write with specific audiences in mind, and with an intention or point. Understanding the point that authors strive to convey can reveal a great deal about opinions and perspectives of the time period. Literature is absolutely essential to world history. The insights in fiction go far beyond that of textbook learning. Gender roles, the role of the court, and romances are effectively portrayed in fiction, and convey insights that are different from those in a textbook.

"Was there ever a war where only one side bled"(118)? This perspicuous question was raised by George R.R. Martin, an epic fantasy writer and author of the New York Times bestselling novel, A Clash of Kings. I chose this novel because I appreciate merciless world-building novels such as Beowulf or Lord of the Rings. Moreover, this novel is the second of the legendary book series known as A Song of Ice and Fire. This story takes place in a medieval setting with potential for an endless amount of possibilities. The novel predominately focuses on a variety of families that all share the common goal of sitting on the Iron Throne. The story is presented from nine separate points of view, eight of them coming from characters with a royal background. Each character has a remarkable in-depth backstory and a unique reason for their placement in the War of the Five Kings. The majority of the story occurs in the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, where the Lannisters and the Iron Throne are located. The other portions of the novel take place in Winterfell with House Stark, Castle Black with Jon Snow, and Essos with Daenerys Targaryen. The novel picks up immediately where its predecessor, A Game of Thrones, concluded with King Robert

3. Concurrently with my anthropological interests and in spite of them, for a number of years, I practised the poetics and the theory of the literary history process in the area of teaching (seminars and lectures) using the traditional structuralist approach. This allowed me to maintain a rigorous methodological basis, even when I was inclined towards anthropological questions.