In her book, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee gives some examples of how people can be judged because of their social class. Most people around Scout, who is the main character, judge others prematurely because of their positions in society. Unfortunately, this bias is still visible in today’s society. This same bias is displayed in how Aunt Alexandra despises Walter Cunningham, how the town excludes Mr. Raymond because of his ties with black Americans, and in how the Maycomb Jury unjustly convicted Tom Robinson. Aunt Alexandra is living with the Finches in Maycomb, Alabama, and she is convinced that she must teach Scout how be a proper lady. Unfortunately, in an attempt to accomplish that task, Aunt Alexandra refuses to let Scout play with Walter Cunningham simply because of the Cunningham’s social standing. “Jean Louise, there …show more content…
Mr. Raymond is pitied and excluded from the Maycomb town because he spends his time with the Black community of the area. When Scout, Dill, and Jem step outside the courthouse to get away from the high tension of Tom Robinson’s trial, they bump into Mr. Raymond. This is when Dolphus shares some of his Coca-Cola with Dill, which he usually pretends is whiskey, and when Scout asked why he only pretended to get drunk all the time, he said “I try to give ‘em a reason, you see. It helps folks if they can latch onto a reason. When I come to town, which is seldom, if I weave a little and drink out of this sack, folks can say Dolphus Raymond’s in the clutches of whiskey – that’s why he lives the way he does . . . they could never, never understand that I live like I do because that’s the way I want to live.” (To Kill a Mockingbird, pg. 268) Mr. Raymond pretends to be drunk so that the people in Maycomb can believe that he lives around the Black community only because he is drunk, and not that he chooses his company
In To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Bob Ewell assumes the racist, biased, and unjust motivations in order to retain any scrap of dignity in Maycomb County. Bob Ewell sees that he has been bested, and that the town knows the truth, however, he is able to abuse his racial standpoint, using racism to scapegoat his actions. The town, even though they all are aware that Bob Ewell is guilty, has been racially obligated to oppress Tom Robinson, due to the racist roots embedded in the town.
The book notably opens with an immediate instance of self-delusion: tricking the reader into believing that Maycomb is just an old, ordinary, and quiet town through description of the town’s history, when in reality, it was teeming with prejudice and racism. The reader immediately leans about this sleepy southern town where “a day was twenty-four hours long but seemed longer. There was no hurry, for there was
Scout's perception of prejudice is evolved through countless experiences in Harper Lee's, To Kill a Mockingbird. Written in the nineteen thirties, To Kill a Mockingbird promotes the understanding of self-discovery through Scout, an intelligent and outspoken child living with respectable family in Maycomb County, Alabama. Throughout various encounters in the novel, Harper Lee causes Scout's perspective to change and develop from innocence to awareness and eventually towards understanding.
In chapter 16, Dill observed that in a far corner a bunch of African-Americans were sitting together and Dolphus was sitting with them drinking out of a sack. “Mr. Dolphus Raymond seemed to be so doing: two yellow drugstore straws ran from his mouth to the depths of a brown paper bag” (214). Later on at the courthouse, Dill starts to feel sick and runs out with Scout following him. Mr. Raymond is not too far behind and suggests that Dill take a sip out of his sack. Dill was appalled “‘Scout, it’s nothing but Coca-Cola’” (267). This shows that Dolphus Raymond gets to drink Coca-Cola everyday just to fool the people of Maycomb County into thinking he is drinking alcohol because of his life choices, and who doesn’t love Coca-Cola? At the same time, Mayella Ewell also has the advantage of being white. In chapter 21, the entire town of Maycomb is at the courthouse to see with their own eyes the case against Tom Robinson. Mayella Ewell is accusing Tom of rape, when in fact he did not rape Mayella, Bob Ewell, her father did. “‘...there’s something in our world that makes men lose their heads—they cou...
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.
One of the values of Maycomb is racism. However, there are a few that does not believe in this value, including Mr. Dolphus Raymond. Mr. Dolphus Raymond is a white man married to a black woman and has mixed children. He does not believe in society’s ideology regarding racism and knows that some citizens of Maycomb antagonize him. However, he does not care, as he prefers the colored people over white. He knows how unfair society is, from the way he gets treated. Moreover, Jem realizes the falsities of society, due to the injustice he sensed. After Tom’s verdict, Jem’s first clear sense of injustice provided a new perception on the world. When he was young, he believed that the people of Maycomb are the best folks, but the outcome of the trial changed this thought. Furthermore, Scout’s realization of the falsehood in society is with the hypocrisy of Miss Gates. She was taught by Miss Gates how Americans do not believe in persecution. However, Scout saw Miss Gates talk about the African Americans in an adverse way. Learning about the falsehood in society is part of
Growing up in Maycomb, Southern Alabama in the 1930s was not an easy thing. Amid a town of prejudice and racism, stood a lone house where equality and respect for all gleamed like a shining star amid an empty space. The house of Atticus Finch was that shining star. Jean Louise Finch, also known as “Scout”, is given the opportunity of being raised in this house by her father, Atticus. I stole this essay from the net. As she grows, Atticus passes down his values of equality and righteousness to Scout and her brother Jeremy Atticus Finch, also known as “Jem”. In “To Kill a Mockingbird”, by Harper Lee, we see Scout learns many lessons about dealing with prejudice by observing the behavior of other characters in the story.
Throughout the story, Aunt Alexandra’s behaviors indirectly teach Scout that prejudice is a disease with deep and far reaching roots. As Scout is exposed to Aunt Alexandra’s ideas regarding the hierarchy of society, she also begins to understand why Aunt Alexandra holds such opinions. When Aunt Alexandra comes to stay with the children, she also brings along her unending gossip about other families in Maycomb. Scout explains that “Aunt Alexandra was of the opinion, obliquely expressed, that the longer a family had been squatting on one patch of land, the finer it was” (173).
Firstly, minor characters break stereotypes to breathe life into the sleepy town of Maycomb, establishing setting. For example, Mr. Dolphus Raymond assumes the character of a drinker as a pretense for associating with coloured people, though in reality he is drinking coca cola and not alcohol, hidden the contents in a paper bag. He confesses this to Scout, saying “Secretly, Miss Finch, I’m not much of a drinker, but you see they could never, never understand that I live like I do because that’s the way I want to live” (Lee 200-201). This proves that what is most outwardly transparent and unlikeable in a character may truly be interesting and good-natured. Mr. Raymond’s secret causes the reader to look past the paper bag and ask why a man might go to such extent to hide his best qualities. It proves that, in Mr. Raymond’s eyes, Maycomb isn’t yet able to handle the truth. He must hide it behin...
Prejudice is arguably the most prominent theme of the novel. It is directed towards groups and individuals in the Maycomb community. Prejudice is linked with ideas of fear superstition and injustice.
Throughout History, men have looked down on blacks and women. But this does not justify the view that blacks and women are below white men. When people look down on blacks and women, they preform injustice. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is full of injustice. During this time period, everyone looked down on blacks and women, which makes Maycomb one in the same with the discriminators. In particular, the people in Maycomb looked down on Tom Robinson, and many others looked down on Scout. Around the Finch household, Aunt Alexandria always tries to do away with Calpurnia, the black housekeeper and cook as Alexandria says, “We don’t need her (Calpurnia) now.” (182). Injustices in Maycomb include the case of Tom Robinson, the way Aunt Alexandra treats Calpurnia, and the way people treat Scout.
Mr. Dolphus Raymond is another character who suffered from Maycomb’s racism. He was a respected, wealthy member of the community, but then he chose to live with the black community. This was considered a felony by the inhabitants of Maycomb. He knew they would never be able to understand his choice, so he made it easier for them by pretending to be the town drunk.
Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird captures the essence of racism and prejudice through the people of Maycomb as they witness the trial of Tom Robinson unfold. The county of Maycomb is the backdrop for characters who are dishonest to themselves and others about the racism that exists in the community. By way of the townspeople, Lee presents a variety of characters: some are just, while others treat their neighbors as equals Many others are uneducated, financially poor, misinformed in the status quo, and/or discriminative. In contract to the townspeople, Atticus represents “the just” among the locals as much as he represents wisdom, which breathes change. Atticus’s positions as a father, lawyer, and member of the community reveal his integrity in all roles he inhabits.
Raymond. Mr. Raymond drinks with a plastic bag to hide from his wife and his chances. “He’s got Co-Cola bottle full of whiskey in there.”(pg. 214). He’s purposely gets drunk just to hide his personality because he is afraid he will lose his friendship and love from his wife and friends. Mr. Raymond acts like he is drunk so he can hide his personal lifestyle from his friends and his wife. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Mr. Raymond explains that he feels he has to give the population some reason for his odd behavior. He acts friendly toward black people. Mr. Raymond believes it 's easier for people to handle strangeness when they have a reason to explain it. He thinks children that haven 't lost the instinct that tells them that it 's wrong for white people to give hell to black people without consideration for basic humanity of humankind. Mr. Raymond tells the children because they are not racist and they will understand. Mr. Raymond is unlike most people in Maycomb because he is not a racist. Since people have a hard time believing he could love a Negro wife and half-breed children, he lets the town believe he is
Prejudice is a strong word. In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, a black man, Tom Robinson, was accused of raping a white woman, Mayella Ewell, and was brought to trial. There were distinct views concerning Tom Robinson's innocence – views influenced by prejudice. The townspeople of Maycomb believed in Tom's guilt while Atticus and the children believed in Tom's innocence.