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Ethical issues in killing a mockingbird
Moral values when trying to kill a mockingbird
Moral values when trying to kill a mockingbird
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The prejudices present in the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, display the views of the Old South. Defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a prejudice is an adverse opinion formed without just grounds or before sufficient knowledge. A significant prejudice present is sexism against women. The segregation of social classes is also exhibited in the novel. Most importantly, racism plays a dominant role in To Kill a Mockingbird. Although very common in the South, the prejudices displayed are morally wrong. One important prejudice present is sexism against women. For example, Scout is criticized for her tom-boy ways. Aunt Alexandra is always nagging Scout about her beloved overalls. Scout finds the dresses she is expected to wear ugly and uncomfortable. She would rather hang out with Jem and Dill than stay inside with her aunt. Another example of sexism is the mistreatment …show more content…
In Maycomb, there are four distinct social classes. First are the regular Maycomb neighbors like the Finches. Next are the hard-working Cunningham’s, who make the best with what they have. Following the Cunningham’s is the Ewell’s, who Atticus describes as the disgrace of Maycomb for three generations. Finally is the class of Negroes, who live in a shanty town near Maycomb. Aunt Alexandra forbids Scout to play with Walter Cunningham, a poor boy whom attends school with Scout. She sees them as too poor to associate with the likes of Scout and Jem. Aunt Alexandra states that, “…they’re good folks. But not our kind of folks” (224). Although disrespectful and vain, the Ewell’s are still mistreated. The Ewell children are only expected to go school for one day a year. Burris Ewell is conceived as a troublemaker before he even causes a problem. He turns out to be a terrible child, but he never had a chance to prove otherwise. Far worse off than the Ewell’s, the black population in Maycomb were persecuted as
While the women in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird come in a variety of personalities and backgrounds, all of their lives are led by one constricting factor; their gender. Scout's upbringing as a young woman greatly contrasts that of her brother Jem. Jem is educated as a young boy growing into a man while Scout’s journey is taken as a woman. The manacle of womanhood is but a concept if one does not consider the harsh faults and inhibiting limits of men or rather the struggle for “masculinity” that men are similarly constrained. Though she is repeatedly told to have ladylike manners and to dress in more feminine way, Scout mostly denies this norm but is still able to become a young
In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird three characters, Scout, Jem, and Atticus Finch, experience the many hardships and difficulties of human inequality in their community, Maycomb County. Scout, the narrator, gives insight to readers about the many different characters of Maycomb, yet two are alike in many ways. Mayella Ewell is a 19-year-old girl who is considered white trash and lacks education, love, and friends. Dolphus Raymond is a wealthy white man who is married to an African-American and has mixed children. Although these characters may seem different, they share many of the same advantages and disadvantages of human inequality.
Three students kicked out of a high school for threatening to bring a gun to school. Why would they? Because people were prejudice against them because other students thought they were “losers”. Moral: You shouldn’t not like a person because they aren’t like you. Prejudice was far much worse in the time period of To Kill A Mockingbird. But, Prejudice is the reason for much social injustice. Three characters named Nathan Radley, Atticus Finch, and Aunt Alexandria show us this in the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird.
Another form of prejudice that is found in To Kill a Mockingbird is religious prejudice. This form is first shown when the children are with Miss Maudie while she is tending to her garden. Jem, Scout and Dill kept asking questions about Mr. Radley. Miss Maudie tells them about Mr. Radley’s religious beliefs, calling him one of the “foot washing Baptists”, believers. that believe that anything that gives you pleasure is a sin (Les 49).
Growing up in a prejudiced environment can cause individuals to develop biased views in regard to both gender and class. This is true in Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, where such prejudices are prevalent in the way of life of 1930s Maycomb, Alabama. The novel is centered around the trial of a black man who is accused of raping a white woman. The narrator, a young girl named Scout, is able to get a close up view of the trial because her father is defending Tom Robinson, the defendant. The aura of the town divided by the trial reveals certain people's’ prejudices to Scout, giving her a better perspective of her world. Throughout the story, Aunt Alexandra’s behaviors indirectly teach Scout that prejudice is a disease with deep and far reaching roots.
This essay will focus on exploring the theme of prejudice in Harper Lee’s novel - ‘To kill a mockingbird’ , published in the four years after the renowned bus boycott of Montgomery, , it resonates with the feelings and attitudes prevalent at the time. A variety of different types of prejudice are exposed to us throughout the progression of the novel, arguably the most significant being racial and class prejudice. I shall focus my essay on exploring how these types of prejudice are explored in the novel.
To Kill a Mockingbird is a story about a black man named Tom Robinson who is imprisoned and on trial for raping a white woman. Throughout the novel Harper Lee explores the theme of imprisonment in many forms such as restriction because of age and/or gender, because of one’s past, and because of social circumstances such as racism. The novel’s main character Scout, feels frustrated by the restrictions placed on her because of her age and her gender and finds ways to express herself in spite of these restrictions. In contrast, Arthur Radley (Boo) allows his past to imprison him inside his house both physically and mentally. Finally, Mayella Ewell is restricted by her society’s expectations that white women are not allowed to be attracted to black men. Ironically even though Tom is the one in jail, Mayella is also imprisoned by the rules of segregation and has to claim she was raped instead of admitting she was attracted to him. She is beaten and shamed for her desires and urges to be with Tom. To summarize, these four characters show the many ways we can be
The novel To Kill A Mockingbird, written by renowned author Harper Lee, was published on July 11, 1960. Her novel received the prestigious Pulitzer Prize and has become a modern-day American classic novel. The book’s setting is in Alabama and occurs when widespread racism and discrimination are high in the South. The name of the book arises from the common belief and saying that, ’It is a sin to kill a mockingbird’. To Kill A Mockingbird is narrated by Scout Finch, about her father, Atticus Finch, a well-known lawyer who fights to prove the innocence of a black man (Tom Robinson), who is unjustly accused of rape, and about Boo Radley, her mysterious neighbor who saves both her and her brother Jem from being killed.
Alexandra is obsessed with heredity and educating Scout and Jem of their superior family background - she will not allow Scout to bring home a Cunningham to play, nor will she allow her to visit Calpurnia at her home. Everyone in Maycomb has a particular “streak” (pg 143), mean streak, drinking streak etc. There is a lot of pigeon holing families (pg 145).
Throughout human history, prejudice has caused more violence than almost anything else. Prejudice and discrimination still happens till this day. Sometimes children can also be taken of their innocence with the horrors of prejudice which is true in the case of Jem and Scout. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch says, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (39). People often fail to examine a situation from someone else view because their opinions are biased. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows readers just how damaging prejudice really is when it is caused by rumors, race, and another man’s beliefs.
Sexism is not as common a topic in comparison to racism, but does play a role in the development of the novel. This type of discrimination is expressed towards women from men and women alike. Men feel compelled to protect women from unsightly things, (Lee 221), and the women in Maycomb have the mind set that, to be a lady, they must conform to society's expectations of them. They believe they must dress, act, and speak a certain way to appease the community. Aunt Alexandra is a big believer in acting the way society expects her to and attempts to impose these values on her niece, Scout, who becomes mortified, as she has always been a tomboy and prefers spending time in the dirt. “Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of my [Scout's] attire. She said I could not possibly hope to be a lady if I wore breeches; when I said I could do nothing in a dress, she said I wasn't supposed ...
First of all, Bob Ewell shows discrimination against Tom Robinson through the claim of his daughter’s rape committed by Tom, which was proven to not have happened, and the use of the derogatory term “nigger”. Secondly, Miss Maudie shows racism to the African American population by referring to an African-American in Nathan Radley’s collard patch as a “negro”, a derogatory term. Thirdly, Nathan Radley shows discriminatory racism toward the same African-American in his collard patch mentioned in the previous sentence by shooting at him, which was a failed attempt, and referring to him as a “nigger”, an offensive insult directed at African-American people. Finally, Aunt Alexandra shows sexism toward Scout by implying that she isn’t a “proper lady” unless she wears and does whatever Aunt Alexandra perceives as ladylike. In conclusion, there are many, many examples of discrimination towards people of all walks of life in To Kill A Mockingbird, the most prominent of them being racism and sexism. Discrimination is a horrible thing to be inflicted with and the human race should all work together to exterminate it from its source: us. We must keep an open mind to accept people of all races, religions, genders, sexualities, cultures, and personalities to make the world a more welcoming and friendly place for
Harper Lee introduces Scout as an insensible tomboy caught in the midst of contrite prejudicial conception. She has not yet discovered what is right and wrong due to various misconceptions that the people of Maycomb influence her with. ?Don?t say nigger, Scout. That?s common? (75). This particular quote is said by Atticus, Scout?s father, while referring to Scout?s racial ignorance towards African Americans. This quote portrays her social standing at the beginning of the novel as she tends to act ignorant by speaking with rude racial terms. ?Why reasonable people go stark raving mad when anything involving a Negro comes up, is something I don't pretend to understand? I just hope that Jem and Scout come to me for their answers instead of listening to the town. I hope they trust me enough?? (92). This quote expressed by Atticus describes Scout?s mental and emotional state near the dawning of the novel. Scout is given influential lessons through the form of words on what to think therefore she is misguided by false pretenses. These ?pretenses? may be misleading, consequently Scout is basing her beliefs about prejudice on the conceptions of others instead of what Scout truly believes. Although Scout?s ...
The novel TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee has numerous accounts of racism and prejudice throughout the entire piece. The novel is set in the 1930's, a time when racism was very prevalent. Although bigotry and segregation were pointed in majority towards blacks, other accounts towards whites were also heard of, though not as commonly. There are acts that are so discreet that you almost don't catch them, but along with those, there are blatant acts of bigotry that would never occur in our time. Lee addresses many of these feelings in her novel.
Overall, the reader can connect sexist issues in “To Kill a Mockingbird” to the present day world. Women are still expected to follow rules that society has set for them. Advertisements with unrealistic beauty standards are shown millions of times everyday. Women are still expected to stay at home and cook and clean while men go to work. Scout is a very brave girl who is