The Trial in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

1127 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Theme racial and class discrimination in to kill a mockingbird

The Trial in To Kill a Mockingbird

The trial of Tom takes up a great deal of space in the novel because it gives Harper Lee a chance to do an in-depth exploration of characters and situations. The people involved in the case are Bob and Mayella Ewell, Tom Robinson and Atticus Finch. The alleged rape of Mayella by Tom allows Harper Lee to look in detail at issues of racial and social prejudice in Maycomb.

Bob Ewell is the villain of the novel and, as a result of the trial, he tries to get revenge on Atticus and his family. In the trial itself he is revealed as a very unpleasant character. We learn that he drinks and sometimes leaves his family for days, he is violent and he may even be committing incest with Mayella. Atticus establishes that he is left-handed and that Mayella was probably beaten up by a left-handed man - it seems that he, and not Tom Robinson, beat up Mayella after he saw Mayella trying to kiss Tom. Bob therefore lies during the trial and is prepared to sacrifice the life of an innocent man for the sake of his daughter's reputation. His unpleasant behaviour during the trial and his assumption that everybody will be on his side against a black man convince the reader that he is a thoroughly unpleasant character.

Mayella Ewing also lies in court but for different reasons to her father. She is the only responsible member of one of the poorest families in Maycomb. She looks after herself and her brothers and sisters and even tries to bring some beauty into their lives by growing geraniums. Her family is so poor that white people will have nothing to do with her and, at that time, it was not possible for her to be friendly with black people. Scout calls her "the loneliest person in the world". Tom Robinson passed her house every day on his way to work and, according to Scout, he was probably the only person who was ever nice to her. Tom's evidence at the trial shows that she had planned to make a pass at him for a long time. It took her nearly a year to save enough money to send all her brothers and sisters into town to get ice creams.

Show More
Related

  • Bob Ewell Quotes

    621 Words  | 2 Pages

    One of the characters in To Kill a Mockingbird is Bob Ewell. Bob Ewell is a selfish drunk who doesn't know how to control himself. He beats his children and he can’t hold a steady job for long. He is obsessed with revenge for Atticus for making him look like a fool at the trial of Tom Robinson, whom Ewell’s daughter is accusing of rape. Because of his false testimony, he can never be trusted again in front of the whole courtroom. He will do anything to get back at Atticus, and is willing to go as far as going after his children. He also has a grudge against the judge in the trial, and against the wife of the accused. Bob is crazy and delusional and is trying to gain back his reputation by taking down all the people that went against him in

    Read More

  • Mayella Ewell's Power In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1071 Words  | 3 Pages

    Since she was not taught respect from her father, she would not know much about it. “Won’t answer a word you say long as you keep on mockin’ me,’ Mayella said. Mayella is not one of those other people in the small town of Maycomb that lives in a nice neighborhood. Mayella lives behind a garbage dump with her father and siblings. During the trial of Tom Robinson, Scout describes Mayella’s home.

    Read More

  • The Major Differences Between Two Film Versions of Romeo and Juliet

    1694 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Major Differences Between Two Film Versions of Romeo and Juliet The major differences between the two movies Romeo and Juliet who were

    Read More

  • Victim or Villain? Mayella Ewell in To Kill a Mockingbird

    734 Words  | 2 Pages

    One of the major events in Harper Lee’s award-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird is Tom Robinson’s trial. It is based on the Scottsboro Case that took place in 1931 in Alabama, in which several black men were accused of raping two white women. Both the Scottsboro Boys and Tom Robinson are unfairly judged, however, because of prejudice against colored people. The racial discrimination makes whites’ testimony more believable even when it contradicts itself. The same happens in To Kill a Mockingbird. As we delve deeper into the case and get increasingly closer to the truth, it is quite suprising to see that Mayella Ewell is the true villain rather than a victim. She shall and must bear full responsibility for her actions because she makes the decision to tempt Tom Robinson, gives false testimony in court that directly leads to Tom’s death, and has been well aware of the consequences of her behaviors.

    Read More

  • Differences Between Romeo And Juliet Play And Movie

    531 Words  | 2 Pages

    Have people ever wondered which is better actually reading the the Romeo and Juliet play that's about true love or being lazy and watching the movie first and go off that ? There are major differences in comparison from the actual play from 1595 to the movie that was made in 1969. That Zeffirelli had chosen to changed while directing the Romeo and Juliet Movie were scenes like the balcony,the fighting, and the very end of Romeo and Juliet Scenes. Why did he do it no one really knows why he did.

    Read More

  • The Author's Character in A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O'Connor

    1037 Words  | 3 Pages

    O’ Connor was born the only child to her parents in Savannah, Georgia. Her father was a real estate agent and her mother was born into a very prominent family. When O’ Connor was twelve years old, her family moved back to her mothers hometown of Milledgeville, GA where her father was also the mayor of for a couple of years. Milledgeville was known as the ‘crazy’ town in Georgia. Milledgeville was home to one of the largest mental institutions in the United States. At the time this story was written, the hospital had 13,000 mentally ill patients hospitalized there. She was surrounded by crazy people. The influence of living in Milledgeville helped her in writing her stories.

    Read More

  • Ethical Dilemmas in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird

    1983 Words  | 4 Pages

    Black and white, right and wrong; do decisions that simple and clear even exist? Does a decision ever mean gaining everything without giving anything up? Many characters in To Kill A Mockingbird are forced to make difficult, heart wrenching decisions that have no clear right answer. Harper Lee presents many of these important decisions in To Kill A Mockingbird as ethical dilemmas, or situations that require a choice between two difficult alternatives. Both of these alternatives have unpleasant aspects and question morals and ethics. A person is put in an awkward position, with their mind saying contradicting things. These dilemmas are presented in many different ways. The decisions in the beginning of the book are simple and can be solved quite easily, yet they are symbolic of later decisions. Other dilemmas place adult-like decisions in the lap of a child. One dilemma concerned a man burdened with the strict traditions of the South. Then there are the two biggest dilemmas, Atticus' decision to take the case and Heck Tate's choice between truth and the emotional well being of a man. Lee's ingenious storyline is established by these crucial and mentally arduous choices faced by the characters.

    Read More

  • Malignant Melanoma

    4345 Words  | 9 Pages

    ...r, et al. "NRAS and BRAF Mutations Arise Early During Melanoma Pathogenesis and Are Preserved Throughout Tumor Progression." Clinical Cancer Research 9 (December 15, 2003): 6483–6488.

    Read More

  • Who Was Responsible For Tom Robinson's Death

    1031 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the novel we see the abusive behaviors of Bob Ewell towards people, especially to his daughter Mayella. When Bob Ewell saw what he did from the window he screamed “you goddamn whore, I’ll kill ya” (Lee 198). This inferred that Bob Ewell was talking to his daughter and not Tom, who later testified that when Bob yelled this he was looking right at Mayella. Atticus also makes a case on page 127 about how no one, not even Bob, called a doctor to check on Mayella. By not calling a doctor it proved Bob Ewell was only concerned for himself, not even for the own well-being of his daughter, he was a selfish and horrible father. Also, the Ewell family was one of the lowest whites in Maycomb they had no money and no education, the children only attended the first day of school every year. Bob Ewell wanted the people of Maycomb to view them higher than they do now, but was too lazy to do it himself. Mr. Ewell believed that pinning his own abusive behaviors on Tom Robinson would make people believe he saved their town from dangerous man, and they would now think highly of him. Bob Ewells selfish behavior and poor parenting skills lead to him being a responsibility in the death of Tom

    Read More

  • Overview of Malignant Melanoma

    909 Words  | 2 Pages

    Malignant Melanoma is a type of malignant cancer that affects the melanocytes. A melanocyte produces the pigmentation in our skin and melanin gives us the color to our skin. These cells occur in the skin and can be found in other parts of the body. It is important to realize that melanoma can begin in any part of the body that can contain a melanocyte. Melanoma is considered less common than other skin cancers. It is a cancer that can be very dangerous if not detected early. Although in most cases it is diagnosed in time and can be cured. Many people are diagnosed with this cancer and it is said that 160,000 cases are diagnosed a year. ( ). In men a common site is on their back and for a woman is on their legs.

    Read More

  • Melanoma Essay

    1138 Words  | 3 Pages

    Melanoma is a very serious type of skin cancer. The cancer starts in skin cells known melanocytes. Even though melanoma primarily affects skin cells, it also can grow in the eyes (uveal melanoma). Melanocytes are made up of melanin, which provides skin color and protects the deeper layers of the skin from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays.

    Read More

  • Vitamin C By Linus Pauling

    2191 Words  | 5 Pages

    Melanoma is a very metastatic form of cancer that can go from stage 1 at diagnosis to an almost untreatable stage 4 in as little as a month. Furthermore, chemotherap...

    Read More

  • Melanoma

    518 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first sign of melanoma is often a change in the size, shape, or color of an existing mole or the appearance of a new mole. Men most commonly develop melanoma on the trunk, particularly the back, and women on the legs or arms. Melanoma develops in a manner similar to other cancer types. A cell's DNA genes, which control cell division and reproduction, become damaged. The damaged genes cause the cell to divide and grow without control or order, eventually becoming a malignant tumor.

    Read More

  • Skin Cancer

    1231 Words  | 3 Pages

    Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the United States. There are two different types of skin cancers: Melanomas and non-melanomas. To understand both of these terms a little better you need to be aware that your skin is divided up into 3 layers: the epidermis, dermis, and subcutis. The top layer, the epidermis, is very thin and serves to protect the deeper layers of the skin. The epidermis is also composed of basal cells, which in turn divide to form squamous cells and melanocytes. Melanoma skin cancer develops from the melanocytes and non-melanomas skin cancer develops from the basal and squamous cells.

    Read More

  • Romeo and Juliet Movie versus Play

    612 Words  | 2 Pages

    One of the most celebrated plays in history, “Romeo and Juliet”, was written by William Shakespeare in the late 16th century. It is a story about two lovers that have to meet in secret because of an ongoing family feud. Tragically, because of their forbidden love Romeo and Juliet take their lives so they can be together. In 1997, a movie was adapted from the play “Romeo and Juliet”, directed by Baz Lurhmann. However, as alike as the movie and the play are, they are also relatively different.

    Read More

More about The Trial in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Open Document