Economic Classes in To Kill a Mockingbird
“There’s four kinds of folks in the world. There’s the ordinary kind like us and the neighbors, there’s the kind like the Cunninghams out in the woods, the kind like the Ewells down at the dump, and there’s the negroes.” (Lee 258).When Jem proclaimed this social idea to Scout in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, it showed how much of an influence the different economic classes have on the people of Maycomb County. In the novel, Scout and Jem Finch are raised by their father Atticus, a lawyer who is very respectful and understanding. Atticus’ outlook on life is shown when he accepts the Cunningham’s payment in things grown from their farm instead of money, when Atticus helped them with an entailment. The Finch children are also raised with the help of Calpurnia, the family’s African American cook, and spend the summer with their best friend Dill Harris. Dill comes to
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Maycomb County every year when school lets out and ends up enduring one of the most difficult summers with them, the summer of Tom Robinson’s case. When Mr. Ewell, a white unemployed father of eight children, accused Tom of raping his daughter Mayella, Atticus was chosen to defend the African American man, which erupts in controversy all over town. Along with the help of Miss Maudie, Mr. Raymond, and Aunt Alexandra, Jem and Scout undergo and withstand the most challenging summer of their lives. Economic class affects the events in the novel by forcing the characters into specific social levels in Maycomb County, and by predetermining their perspectives. The highest class in Maycomb County, known as the “ordinary” class to Jem, consists of the Finch family, Aunt Alexandra, Miss Maudie, and the neighbors living around them. In this class some of the members, such as Alexandra, have a strict view of who is included in their class and therefore who they should associate themselves with. Aunt Alexandra’s views are shown when Scout proclaims that she is going to invite Walter Cunningham, a farmer’s son, over for dinner. Aunt Alexandra threateningly states, “We’ll see about that” (Lee 255) and after being question by Scout she says that although they are good folks, “They’re not our kind of folks” (Lee 255). She continues on saying, “You can scrub Walter Cunningham till he shines, you can put him in shoes and a new suit, but he’ll never be like Jem” (Lee 255). Aunt Alexandra even goes to the extent of calling Walter trash and declaring to Scout, “You can’t play with him” (Lee 256). Despite Alexandra’s narrow-minded perspective, there are other members of the “ordinary” class, such as Atticus, that are more permissive, showing respect and gratitude to all residents in the Maycomb community. When Atticus is assigned to defend Tom Robinson from the accusations of beating and raping nineteen-year-old Mayella Ewell, he does so without hesitation, disregarding the fact that Tom is an African American man. Atticus’ actions of protecting Tom bring hate and unpredictability upon the Finch family, yet he persists on telling his children that “no matter how bitter things get, they’re [the neighbors] still our friends and this Maycomb is still our home” (Lee 87). Miss Maudie supports Atticus, saying that they are “making a step -- it's just a baby-step, but it's a step” (Lee 246) in breaking the barriers between people based on class and race. The “ordinary” class of Maycomb may be divided on some issues, however, “Their various and decided eccentrics are never judged; they are gossiped about but tolerated. Nothing… can divide them” (Phelps 169) because they are the highest and most respected class in Maycomb. The class just slightly below the “ordinary kind” are the farmers. This class is perfectly depicted by the Cunningham family. “The Cunninghams never took anything they can’t pay back--no church baskets, and no scrip stamps” (Lee 22). In spite of the fact that the Cunninghams were very poor, they always found a way to pay back everything, whether it was with money or things from their farm. When Atticus helped Mr. Walter Cunningham with his entailment, he could not afford to pay in cash. However, over the year he paid Atticus in things from his farm such as stovewood, hickory nuts, smilax, holly, and turnip greens. On account of the Cunninghams being in this class, Walter Cunningham has been held back in school, remaining in the first grade because, as he told Atticus, “I’ve had to stay out ever’ spring an’ help Papa with the choppin’...” (Lee 26). This leads him to have a disadvantage when it comes to school and education. Walter Cunningham had also not learned proper etiquette, which Scout observed when Walter joined the Finches for dinner and “poured syrup on his vegetables and meat with a generous hand” (Lee 27). Because the Cunninghams and other families in this class are much less fortunate than the “ordinary” class, it leads Aunt Alexandra and others to believe that these families are inferior when in actuality, the “ordinary” class and the farmers “are separated only by [their] table manner and education…” (Phelps 174). Farm families in Maycomb County are forced into a social and economic class that form preconceptions and limit their potential. The Class below the farmers is the the kind who live down by the dump. The Ewell family makes up this class. Atticus tells Scout that “the Ewells have been the disgrace of Maycomb for three generations” (Lee 33). Bob Ewell, who is the father of eight motherless children, spends all of his relief checks buying whiskey and leaving his children little to eat. Because of this Bob, is allowed the special privilege to hunt in the off-season so his children do not starve. The Ewells and others in their class are “truly the discards of society” (Phelps 174), which is shown every year as Scout says, “Nobody had occasion to pass by [the Ewells] except at Christmas, when the churchers delivered baskets, and when the Mayor of Maycomb asked us to please help the garbage collectors by dumping our trees and trash” (Lee 194). Scouts first encounter with one of the Ewells is when she attends school and Burris Ewell argues with the teacher before storming out of the school and never returning. Burris embraced his family's class and never tried to make anything of himself, which “ensures that Burris Ewell, unlike Walter Cunningham, will never move for the margins of Maycomb into the world of the Finches and their neighbors” (Phelps 175). Unlike Burris, his sister Mayella Ewell tries to improve herself by keeping clean and decorating a corner of her family’s yard with red geraniums, “cared for as tenderly as if they belonged to Miss Maudie Atkinson” (Lee 194). When Mayella Ewell and her father accused Tom Robinson of beating and raping her, they go to trial and it is discovered that Bob Ewell abuses Mayella when “she says what her papa do to her don’t count” (Lee 221). However, because of her lack of social interaction Mayella agrees to follow her father’s lead and keep quiet about what was happening at home. Because of the Ewells economic class, Maycomb turned a blind eye on the family and their “disregard for the Ewells results not only in neglect, but also in abuse” (Phelps 179). The lowest class in Maycomb county is the African American class. The only difference between this class and the Ewell’s class is the color of their skin. This is evident during Tom Robinson’s trial, when Bob Ewell was being questioned. “All the little man on the witness stand had that made him any better than his neighbors was, that if he scrubbed with lye soap in very hot water, his skin was white” (Lee 195). A very influential member of the African American class is Calpurnia, the Finches Cook. Calpurnia interacts with both the “ordinary” class and her own class, and she “treats white folks with traditional, if not deserved, respect” (Phelps 180) which makes her very well known in Maycomb. Even Judge Taylor knew Calpurnia, saying “it’s Calpurnia, isn't it?” (Lee 235) as she entered the courtroom to pass a note on to Atticus. During Tom Robinson’s case, The Finch children and Dill, who had been watching from the African American balcony, stepped outside after Dill became upset from hearing the way Tom was treated. Outside of the courthouse they met Dolphus Raymond, who is known as the town drunk. Dill first learned about Mr. Raymond when he saw him sitting with African Americans, which was irregular for a white man to do, but Jem then explained to him that he chooses to live with them and has “a colored wife and all sorts of mixed chillun” (Lee 183). Dill also learned that Dolphus Raymond is an alcoholic, which makes up for the way he lives. However, as the children talked to Mr. Raymond they learned that what he was always sipping out of a sack was not alcohol, but Coca-Cola. When Scout asks why he does this, he says that people have a difficult time understanding why he would choose to drop down to the lowest class in Maycomb rather than be a member of the “ordinary” class, so he pretends to be “the town drunk” to give people a reason for his peculiar way of life. In spite of all of these people in Maycomb, the group that is most affected by economic and social classes are the children. These children all started out innocent and oblivious to all the levels and classes that make up the town they live in. However, as they grow older and start to mature, they see Maycomb for how it really is and are forced to adapt to its ways. “Children like Jem and Scout develop their own personalities and find their places in society by copying the behavior of people in similar social positions, [and] by learning social norms associated with particular socioeconomic classes” (Best 541-42). Scout sometimes has a difficult time understanding the different classes, such as when she had a conversation about Walter Cunningham with Aunt Alexandra and because “Scout speaks from innocence [and] naivety… we see her as untainted by Aunt Alexandra's class consciousness and free of condescension” (Phelps 174). However, as the children of Maycomb grow older and start attending school, they begin to learn and “know the social status and reputation of their peers and their peers’ families” (Champion 4). On Scout's first day of school she has to explain to the teacher that Walter is a Cunningham and what being a Cunningham means. Also in school that day, when she sees Burris Ewell, “Scout learns that the Ewells are dirty and trashy and are therefore also to be looked down upon” (Best 543). When the children in Maycomb learn about the classes that make up their town, it creates barriers between them and forms the perspectives they will have towards one another in the future. The economic classes in the novel lead to preconceptions of characters, and create barriers between the different types of residents in Maycomb.
In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird she reflected Maycomb County as “a small town community, [where the] inhabitants of Maycomb know each other and label one another” (Champion 3). Harper Lee “strived to present a ‘realistic’ portrayal of small town southern life” and does so by allowing a cross-section of Maycomb, Alabama to speak their lives in the language characterized by their social class. (Hovet 190). The events and situations in the novel occurred around 1933, yet in 2016 there are still major issues relating to social barriers and unfair treatment between economic classes. Many Americans believe that there is still a superiority of whites in the United States, and that there is an unbalanced distribution of wealth among the social classes. Even though Maycomb County is a fictional town, its economic classes resemble those of today's, and its affects of predisposition and lack of communication still
apply.
The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, takes place in the 1930s in a small Alabama county called Maycomb. The novel is about the Finch family of three. Atticus, the father, Scout the older brother and Scout the younger sister, who acts like a tomboy. Scout may be a lady, but does not like to act like one, she likes to play and get dirty with her brother. Being young, both children learn lessons throughout the novel by many different residents, such as, Calpurnia, the maid, Miss Maudie, the neighbor, and their father, Atticus. In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird various citizens in the town of Maycomb play an important role in the lives of Jem and Scout Finch
Jem and Scouts’ father, Atticus, is very misjudged by their children. They believe that Atticus is a very semantic man that goes to work, comes back, and has no skill whatsoever in sports. Scout criticizes Atticus by saying “Atticus did not… or do anything that could possibly arouse the admiration of anyone”(118). This demonstrates that Jem and Scout are not satisfied with Atticus’s physical and amusing skills. They thought of him as an old man in his fifties that had no energy left, and had a routine of going to bed and reading in the living room instead of running around. Later, they visit there across the street neighbor, Mrs. Maudie to talk about how boring their Dad is, when Mrs. Maudie says” ‘Well, he can make everybody’s will so airtight can’t anybody meddle with him’… ‘Well, did you know he is the best checker-player in this town? Why down at the Landing when we were coming up, Atticus Finch could beat everybody on both sides of the river”(120). This establishes that they find out that their Dad isn’t so useless anymore. Even though the children find out all these activities he is excellent at, sometimes even the best, they are still not overly impressed. After Calpurnia calls the cops on the dog, Tim Johnson, The sheriff and Atticus arrive at the scene “ ‘Take him, Mr. Finch’. Mr. Tate handed the rifle to Attics; Jem and I nearly fainted…’’d you see him, Scout? ’d you see him just standing there?...’n’ all of a sudden he just relaxed all over, an’ it looked like that gun was a part of him’”(126-129).
To Kill A Mockingbird displays an environment where one must be inhumane to another in order to become socially compatible. Maycomb has established a hierarchy where social compartmentalisation is the way of life. Men with a profession and a career are superior, while the farmers are near the bottom of the social strata and are considered inferior. No matter which remarkable qualities Negroes possess, they are always s...
Childhood is a continuous time of learning, and of seeing mistakes and using them to change your perspectives. In the book To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee illustrates how two children learn from people and their actions to respect everyone no matter what they might look like on the outside. To Kill A Mockingbird tells a story about two young kids named Scout and her older brother Jem Finch growing up in their small, racist town of Maycomb, Alabama. As the years go by they learn how their town and a lot of the people in it aren’t as perfect as they may have seemed before. When Jem and Scout’s father Atticus defends a black man in court, the town’s imperfections begin to show. A sour, little man named Bob Ewell even tries to kill Jem and Scout all because of the help Atticus gave to the black man named Tom Robinson. Throughout the novel, Harper Lee illustrates the central theme that it is wrong to judge someone by their appearance on the outside, or belittle someone because they are different.
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.
Strict Social Scrapes in the Segregated South In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, a small town in Alabama exemplifies one of the many towns that has clearly defined social classes. Some of these stereotypes are determined by one’s class, nationality, and gender, and the authority that people believe they possess, which leads to conflict. During the 1930’s in the south, Mayella Ewell’s gender and class did not provide her with a voice. However, her skin color outshone her disadvantages, and allowed her to be highly respected, and this also gave her power over all black people.
In To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, housing inequality is readily apparent and is vividly described in the description of the “Negro settlement.” Even the fact that the white townspeople call it a settlement makes it clear they do not want it to be part of the town of Maycomb. The inequality goes beyond just the housing, affecting many aspects of how the African Americans are forced to live.
In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee tells the story of the struggle of a white family facing discrimination for defending a black man. Scout and Jem are two young children living in Maycomb, believing that everyone is like their father, Atticus, who embodies justice and equality. Atticus takes on the case of defending Tom Robinson, a man who is being charged with raping a white woman. Before the trial, the Finches are forced to withstand torment from the townspeople. Their beliefs are shaken when a black man is given a rigged trial and he is innocent.
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.
The world is an unfair place, high social standing is longed for by most. America in the 1930’s was not the place you wanted to be if you were not born a white, rich, man. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, the author Harper Lee illustrates the inescapability of social class and the heartbreaking reality of cultural barriers. In the summer of her fifth year, Jean Louise Finch, or “Scout” for short, discovers the true colors of the world’s injustices for the first time accompanied by her ten year old brother Jeremy Atticus Finch, or “Jem,” and her neighbor’s seven year old nephew, Charles Baker Harris, or “Dill.” Together the three children come to see there are many deep layers to the residents in every town, even a small, quiet one like
Sum up, the social relationship between these people here, this old town Maycomb is complicated and pretty tense. This novel has taught us so much, thanks to Harper Lee – one of the greatest writers of all time. It has opened our eyes wider about racism at that time and compared it to nowadays it has become so much better. People are equally, no matter what skin color you are, what religion you have, or where you’re from, what you’re appearance looks like, we are all equal, and we are all the same – human. So instead of treating badly to one another we should all united and make the world a better place.
When an old tired town does not have any good economic sources you might think that a parent won’t care about his or her children. In the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” Atticus is the father of Jem and Scout. Atticus is like middle class in his society and is as one parent he is a good father unlike the Ewells father. The Finches are a loving family and sharing because the father teaches them different things about life he tells them how a gentleman and a lady would act and should say. Also theirs other people in the novel that also help Jem and Scout understand about life and what it leads to. One thing about learning conscience is that everything in life is not a joke.
The novel includes many racist characters, but the most important ones are those that show and teach understanding and compassion. Atticus Finch is the father of Scout - Jean Louise, the narrator - and Jem, and throughout the novel teaches them the important lessons of understanding and compassion. The book begins in the summer of 1935, where the two young kids meet Charles Baker Harris, nicknamed Dill. The three spend the summer together, and Dill makes it his mission to coax Arthur Radley, who the kids call Boo, out of his house, in which he has been for over twenty years.
It is acknowledged by many readers that there are many different social classes in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ written by Harper Lee and published in 1960. One of the most obvious social class distinctions is between skin colors, which can be seen through this novel. Since most readers’ focal point of this novel is on the distinctions between skin colors, they are unlikely to pay attention to the difference in social class within the white community. Lee wants to illustrate a contrast in white society and how characters behave differently through the uses of character foil, characterization, and the theme of society inequality in order to emphasize the differences in social classes.
Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird expresses the ideology that the social standard of a particular individual, classifies their status in the world. Individuals placed in social classes are labeled to create a sense of social identity. The socio-economic class an individual is born into should not be the determining factor of how the individual is regarded and treated, however, their character and personality should be a primary factor in determining how they are thought of in society.