What Is The Theme Of Racism And Discrimination In To Kill A Mockingbird

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

Finally, Atticus teaches his children about racism and morals by defending Tom Robinson. Atticus knows he will not win the trial but decides to defend Tom in a case of personal moral

From this, one can see that Scout is still in a juvenile state of mind. Furthermore, one can see how the beliefs of the townspeople have been transferred to Scout, who had taken them as they are considered the social norm. She unknowingly accepts their racism when she thinks of Dolphus Raymond as a “sinful man” because he associates himself with black people and “…had mixed children and didn’t care who knowed it.” (201) She does not understand why he freely displays his transgression to the town when it is acknowledged as a wrong thing to do in Maycomb. However, Scout slowly starts to develop her own sense of right and wrong and create her own judgments of others. Boo was once the monster of her childhood, but after witnessing his cordial and courageous actions, she realizes that “he hadn’t done any of those things…he was real nice.” (281) In the end, Scout matures and sheds her childhood nickname to become the young lady called “Jean Louise” by family and friends. (211, 224, 229) This change in Scout is a result of her loss of innocence and is a focal point in the novel to give a thought-provoking perspective on the events of the book.

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

The kids decided to go into the courthouse and watch the trial because they wanted to see what was going on. Jem and Scout certainly learned of racial prejudice as Tom Robinson is unjustly accused and charged with physical assault upon Mayella Ewell. Outside the courthouse, Dill becomes sick and cries; he is upset that Mr. Gilmer has interrogated Tom in the hostile manner that he has. Having observed Dill, Mr. Dolphus Raymond observes from behind a tree thats that's one example of them coming of age in the court

In chapter 21 and 22 scout, jem and dill lose their innocence when they are in the courtroom and the jury determines if Tom robinson is guilty. In this chapter of the book the kids see white people with a different perspective due to the injustice of tom robinson.The injustice of tom robinson changed the kids it changed them by losing their innocence.It made jem and scout realize that not everyone is good as they thought they were.The kids eyes were opened to many things that they weren't suppose to find out at a very young age.

In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird a major theme is the loss of innocence. Whether from emotional abuse, racial prejudice or learning, Boo, Tom, and Scout all lose their innocence in one sense or another. The prejudice that each character endures leads to their loss. Through the responses of Boo, Tom, and Scout, Harper Lee shows how each character responded differently to their loss of innocence.

While Tom Robinson lost his innocence in the courtroom, Jem and Scout, Atticus’s children, were put through event where their innocence was lost. Throughout the novel Jem and Scout witness and go through a lot of things no kid should have to go through. When Atticus was hired to defend Tom Robinson not only did the backlash of the town affect Atticus but it was rubbing off onto his children. Jem and

“...If you can stand in Bob Ewells shoes a minute, I destroyed his last shred of credibility at that trial, if he had any to begin with. The man had to have some kind of comeback , his kind always does … He had to take it out on somebody… You understand?” The kids realized just because somebody did something to hurt you doesn’t mean you have to do something to hurt them. When you are hurt by somebody you should move on and just let it go which Atticus was trying to teach Jem and Scout.

Jem, Scout, and Dill goes to listen to Tom Robinson’s trial at the court. During the trial, they witness how Tom Robinson was being accused of raping a white lady. They got to learn about the racism and prejudice that was happening in their town. The author mentions, “It was Jem’s turn to cry. His face was streaked with angry tears as we made our way through the cheerful crowd.

Atticus is the town’s most respected lawyer. He is not wealthy, but he is well off in the community and is very kind towards everyone. As a single parent, he faces the world, raising his two children with his maid, Calpurnia, who experiences better conditions and responsibilities than other African Americans of her time, due to Atticus’ beliefs. He has a reputation for being an open-minded, fair man, and a unique personality that is overflowing with honesty. He has been assigned a case of defending a black man who is apparently accused of rape. Now Atticus is both loved and unloved by the townspeople. Since they live in the South during the 1930’s, Atticus gives a lot of advice to his children, Scout and Jem. Atticus tells Scout and Jem that they should not say anything about a person especially when they do not know that person. Atticus describes what he means in a quote “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view – until you climb into his skin and walk around it”(Lee 39). Atticus defends a black man named Tom Robinson, who is accused of raping a girl. Atticus has the confidence and the courage to defend Tom and prove that he is innocent. Scout does not believe that her father is nice enough or has the courage to defend Tom. Atticus proves that

To Kill a Mockingbird took place when slavery was illegal, but African Americans were not treated equally. They lived in a separate part of town, attended their own church, and it was very easy for others to accuse and sentence them to crimes that they never committed. When Atticus had defended Tom Robinson, Scout had seen firsthand how cruel her neighbors could be with their mobs, gossip, and biased guilty verdict at the trial. She had a lot of trouble comprehending why people could hate someone because of the color of their skin when they were teaching them not to hate someone based on their religious beliefs like Hitler had. At the trial she told Dill, “Well, Dill, after all he’s just a Negro” (pg 203). Scout had told him this while trying

Due to the racism in our society today and back then, it has caused injustice regarding ethnicity. The central idea of To Kill a Mocking Bird is that the citizens of Maycomb should have stood against racism. This book is based on scouts view of the world, the trial of Tom Robinson, and how racism affects the town of Maycomb.

The moment where Tom Robinson is found guilty, is not only heartbreaking for Scout and Atticus who believed in his innocence, but it is also heartbreaking for the audience who wants the best for our protagonist. The filmmakers beautifully manipulate the audience’s emotions, we feel anger at the white jury who cannot see pass their prejudices and Bob Ewell the one who should be convicted, but we also feel sympathy and pity for Tom Robinson and for Scout who experiences the real world for what it was at the time. These emotions are crucial to the representation of the theme of racism. Due to the historical feelings of America in the 1960s, the film needed to show the cruelty and use strong emotions, but also logic in order to reach the hearts of those who encouraged segregation.

The simplicity of ignorance can cause a chain reaction of events that spirals downward as it continues. It starts with the “blissful” state, the ignorance that leads to injustice, which in turn brings forth furious controversy. Racism and sexism are found all over the world, and are addressed throughout powerful literature. “To Kill a Mockingbird”, a novel by Harper Lee, exhibits a powerful theme of how ignorance regarding gender and race leads to injustice, shown by the biased court case of Tom Robinson, the treatment of Calpurnia in both black and white groups, and Scout always being told to “be a lady” whenever she wants to be herself.