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Who would want to kill an innocent and harmonious mockingbird? In Harper Lee’s book, To Kill a Mockingbird, the townspeople of Maycomb do just that. The theme of injustice presents itself early on in the book when Scout and Jem first hear cruel and false rumors of their mysterious neighbor Boo Radley. And the same theme continues to linger throughout the novel. The citizens of Maycomb never ceased to unfairly persecute the mockingbird, or innocent victims, of the story. The theme of injustice existed in the story through the conjured up rumors about Boo, Atticus and the racist townspeople, and most of all the trial of Tom Robinson. The first mockingbird to experience injustice, Boo Radley, received his persecution by simply doing nothing. Since he never left his home the people of Maycomb saw him as strange and different. They conjured up false accusations about him and developed him into this evil horrifying person. “Inside the house lived a malevolent phantom…Any stealthy small crimes committed in Maycomb were his work” (10). Misunderstood by the people of Maycomb, Boo experienced …show more content…
injustice simply because he decided not to live among corrupt men. Quick to judge, the citizens of Maycomb could not understand his behavior and instead outcast him as the town creep. While the children held these beliefs at first, thoughtful gifts given by Boo himself led the children to believe Boo Radley was as harmless and innocent as a Mockingbird. By simply staying at home Boo proves the point that one does not necessarily have to do anything to suffer injustice. Another character both harmed and effected by the injustice of the town is Atticus.
Many people of the town possess tunnel vision and, as Atticus would say, are unable to look at things from someone else’s point of view. Because of this the community unfairly persecutes Atticus for defending Tom. Sometimes people disrespect the actions of others, whether they are doing right or wrong. With Atticus this is no exception, unlike Boo who received persecutions for doing nothing, Atticus was mistreated for doing what was right. From not only the more racist townspeople like Mrs. Dubose, but also from his own family does Atticus receive such disrespect and mistreatment. “I guess it ain't your fault if Uncle Atticus is a nigger-lover” (110). Throughout the story Atticus remains well respected by a majority of the community yet he still received injustice for doing what he knew was
right.
In the novel, ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee some characters suffer in the hands of justice and fairness more than others. Many characters in the novel are discriminated against such as Calpurnia, Dolphus Raymond, Helen Robinson, Burris Ewell and more. However I will be focusing on the discrimination against Tom Robinson for his race, Walter Cunningham for his low socioeconomic status and Boo Radley for the rumors and supposed mental instability he holds. I chose those three because they are the most prominent and I will discuss how the discrimination against the characters therefore leads to their injustice or unfairness.
In Harper Lee’s, “To Kill A Mockingbird” a true definition of the mockingbird is shown, a symbol extremely important to the novel. In the beginning of the novel, Boo Radley is condemned – not because of his own actions but the misdeeds of those around him. Many stories were forged to generate a bad vibe for the name Boo Radley to the point that his house was essentially taboo. Later on Tom Robinson is proven as the Ultimate Mockingbird, Tom is just an average negro who tried to help out a white person, which was obviously a bad decision. Another definition of a mockingbird is innocence, which is evident in Atticus’ daughter Scout. The unwritten law, “It is a sin to kill a mockingbird” is often overlooked and also obeyed in Maycomb County.
Sometimes, people discriminate one thing, but strongly oppose the discrimination of another thing. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, this issue is very much expressed throughout the story. This thought-provoking story takes place in Maycomb, Alabama during a time when there’s a rape trial against a falsely accused African American named Tom Robinson. There is also a discrimination, of sorts, towards a man named Boo Radley, by three young children named Jeremy “Jem” Finch, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, and Charles “Dill” Baker Harris. Both Boo Radley and Tom Robinson are similar in their own ways through their inherent goodness.
Injustices There have been many famous pieces of literature, but one that stands out is the 1960's classic To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee. Lee, who only wrote one book in her life time, wrote of prejudice, injustice, and racism in the 1930's. To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in the Deep South in the 1930's. To Kill a Mockingbird is a story in which a black mad is accused of doing something he didn't do. During the whole story some of the two of the main characters, Jem Finch and Jean Lousie Finch, grow up in there mind
In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, many notable themes arise, but the most prevalent theme is undeniably the theme of man’s inhumanity to man. At the beginning of the novel, we are introduced to Scout Finch, who is naive and oblivious to the discrimination that occurs in Maycomb. However, through many events and through meeting many characters, we soon begin to realize that the world may not be so nice after all. Our suspicions are only confirmed once we witness the terrible injustices that occur during the trial.
The story “To kill a Mockingbird” takes place in an old tired town in Alabama during the Great Depression. In the story the main conflict involves a black crippled man, Tom Robinson, accused of raping Mayella Ewell, the daughter of Bob Ewell. The Ewells were the lowest of the low in Maycomb; they lived in the town dump and had no education. The Accusation of Tom Robinson was caused by the Ewell’s in an effort to better their lifestyle and increase their rank in the town. Although the story is told from Scout’s eyes, the whole story revolves around this questionable trial and shows that being vulnerable and innocent is a dangerous characteristic to have and can easily be taken advantage of.
Racism spread like a disease through the town and children walked around easily calling blacks derogatory terms. One day after school Scout came home and explained to her father how her day went. She said that the children were calling Atticus a nigger lover. Scout addressed, “You aren’t actually a nigger lover are you?” (Lee, 124). Her father, shocked at first, replied informatively, “I certainly am. I do my best to love everybody" (Lee, 124). What Atticus meant, was that he tries to be kind to everybody no matter their skin color. Scout does not realize that calling blacks “niggers” is bad, and that you have to call them “negroes”. A reader of this novel could infer that Scout did not know that she cannot use that word because she hears kids at schools say it all the time. All of this indirectly relates to Tom and how he was a black man that was constantly being taunted by hateful terms because he was just there, like a mockingbird. He never fought back, instead he stayed
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.
“Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” (p.90) Miss. Maudie, one of the main protagonists in To Kill a Mockingbird, warns the young girl Scout that mockingbirds should not to be killed or hunted down because they represent those who are kind and innocent. So, on a broader spectrum, the term “to kill a mockingbird” symbolizes cruel and improper behavior towards people with good hearts and intentions. In the town of Maycomb, unethical behaviors, such as prejudice and gossip, are most commonly used against the “mockingbirds”. Three of those “mockingbirds” that are featured in this novel are Arthur “Boo” Radley, Tom Robinson, and Atticus Finch. Due to the depiction of the mockingbird symbol in the novel, the reader understands the consequences that immoral attitudes have towards those who are innocent and kindhearted.
A possible reason as to why the book was called “To Kill a Mockingbird” is because a mockingbird is a harmless and innocent animal. Therefore, when it is killed, peace is disturbed. In the story, Tom Robinson, a black man, was accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a white woman. Due to this, innocence and peace have been disturbed.
In a desperate attempt to save his client, Tom Robinson, from death, Atticus Finch boldly declares, “To begin with, this case should never have come to trial. This case is as simple as black and white” (Lee 271). The gross amounts of lurid racial inequality in the early 20th century South is unfathomable to the everyday modern person. African-Americans received absolutely no equality anywhere, especially not in American court rooms. After reading accounts of the trials of nine young men accused of raping two white women, novelist Harper Lee took up her pen and wrote To Kill a Mockingbird, a blistering exposition of tragic inequalities suffered by African Americans told from the point of view of a young girl. Though there are a few trivial differences between the events of the Scottsboro trials and the trial of Tom Robinson portrayed in To Kill a Mockingbird, such as the accusers’ attitudes towards attention, the two cases share a superabundance of similarities. Among these are the preservation of idealist views regarding southern womanhood and excessive brutality utilized by police.
Both Tom Robinson and Boo Radley symbolized a mockingbird; it wasn’t however, until the ending of the story that Scout had realized it. When asked if she understood that Mr. Ewell fell on his own knife she responded with “Well, it’d be sort of like shootin’ a mockingbird, wouldn’t it?” (370). Although Scout knew that Boo had killed Bob Ewell she also knew that Boo had done it to save them. Like Atticus, Boo Radley stood up for what was right even though it had been 15 years since he had been seen outside his home. Innocence, represented by the mockingbird, Tom, and Boo, is not earned, though it can be forsaken; character, however, can only be earned through courage to stand for what is right when the only benefit is the exercise of one’s own integrity, which, in Atticus’s eyes is benefit enough.
In this world, everyone has an equal right; however, many people are getting falsely accused of acts they did not commit even though they are innocent. Mockingbirds, one of the most innocent birds, sing their heart out for people to enjoy, however, they getting killed every day. In this novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, there are many racial prejudices going on. Finches stand near the top of the social hierarchy, with Cunningham and Ewells underneath. Black community in Maycomb is even below the Ewells, even if they were a hard worker; they were not treated equally. The “mockingbirds” represents the idea of innocence, so killing a mockingbird is to destroy innocence. Throughout the book, many characters are considered a mockingbird. Three examples are Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, and Mr. Dolphus Raymond. Those three characters are innocent; they are kind and were never harmful to others. However, they were destroyed through contact of evil. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, the mockingbirds symbolizes the idea of innocence, and Tom, Boo, and Mr. Raymond are considered one of it.
Hypocrisy inside To Kill A Mocking In Maycomb, the town in which Harper Lee's book 'To Kill a Mockingbird' is set, hypocrisy is prevalent in most of its citizens. Although many of the character’s morals are admirable, you soon realize that what people say and what people do are not always related.Hypocrisy, often seen as one of the vilest manifestations of the human ego, is also one of the most inevitable and foreseeable. Inside the book “To Kill A Mockingbird” hypocriticy plays a small role in the book, yet possibly larger than what is seen. It might seem harmless and simple doings of a human, but it can in fact be very intricate and inspirational.
“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest” Ellie Wiesel. Readers may find the amount of injustice in Harper lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird a little shocking. This could be why it’s such a popular book. People like the suspense of knowing someone’s right, but still being found guilty for something they did not do. There are many times throughout the book when people are powerless to prevent injustice but they still protest it. This shows that even when people unjustly punish there should always be someone to protest it. The theme of injustice is a common one in harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, whether it be through racism, misinformation, or Arrogance.