To Judge A Mockingbird
Paragraph 1 Introduction
“Judgment can kill.” quote unknown. The power that judgment from others can hold over a person is incredible. It can influence any decision a person makes and the way a social society functions.
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee describes a small town much like real life in that the people make decisions based on the judgement.
The novel To kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is about judgement and reveals that people make decisions based on society’s invented guidelines.
Paragraph 2 first body paragraph
Dolphus Raymond in To Kill A Mockingbird understands society's guidelines and uses the judgment of one subject to justify another in order to protect himself and his family.
Walking to the
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courthouse Jem Scout and Dill spot Dolphus Raymond with a paper bag they assume it is whiskey. Later, during the trial, Dill runs out crying only to encounter Dolphus Raymond who does his best to comfort the children leading him to give Dill a drink of the liquid in his bag. The children discover that it is not whiskey but only cocacola. They are extremely surprised as before they thought the reason he married a black women was because he was always drunk however they learn that he truly loves her and just uses being drunk as front to justify his marriage. “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 won’t change his ways.
He can’t help himself, that’s why he lives the way he does.”(268)
This quote comes from Dolphus raymond explaining to the kids why he pretends to be a drunk. He does it so people judge him for drinking and not for his interracial marriage. Acceptance by others plays a major role in the way people act. One will flat out lie about themselves in order to feel accepted in their community. Because if one is not accepted they are cut off from a supply of resources and people all because of the judgment the community would hold against them. Pretending to be something one is not happens frequently as it is an easier alternative than having to worry if one will be judged or
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not. Dolphus Raymond choses how he wants to be judged to some degree as does Mayella Ewell and her father by using a triail. Second body paragraph Mayella Ewell brakes one of the time honored societal rules causing her father to stop at nothing to avoid the judgment of the town. Mayella Ewell kissed and went after a strong black man, Tom Robinson.
Her racist father then proceed to charge Mr. Robinson with a number of false crimes to hide what truly happened. As a result, a trial for Tom Robinson took place to decide whether or not he was guilty. This led Atticus to explain to the jury why Mayella and her father charged an innocent man.
“She was white, and she tempted a Negro. She did something that in our society is unspeakable: she kissed a black man. Not an old Uncle, but a strong young Negro man. No code mattered to her before she broke it, but it came crashing down on her afterwards. Ch 20
Atticus says this to the jury to explain that Mr. Ewell charged Mr. Robinson because he was already the lowest in society a white man could be and did not want to be associated with any black people seeing as he thought they were of an even lower class. Disobeying society in making judgemental choices does have consequences. Because no matter how accepting one is, there is always something someone can do to break that acceptance making themselves alienated. Even though people should be able to make life choices without judgment, that do not harm others the reality is that that is an unattainable societal
goal. Braking these guidelines, like the one's Mayella faced, can be done as Atticus does it when he defends Tom Robinson Third body paragraph Guidelines created by judgement will always exist in life because they are needed to keep one's self in check. After Tom Robinson had been accused for raping and beating Mayella Ewell, Mr Robinson is defended by Atticus Finch. Mr. Finch goes about the case as he would any other case which is seen by many of his peers as awful. This is due to Mr. Robinson being black. But despite all the abuse Mr Finch receives from the town, he continues to fight For Tom Robinson and does the best job he can. After Mr. Robinson is convicted the entire balcony, mostly black, stands in respect for Mr. Finch as he exits the courthouse. “All around us and in the balcony on the opposite wall, the Negroes were getting on their feet” (283) The Black community standing on their feet for Atticus Finch would not have affected whether or not Mr. Finch took the case seriously. He was more concerned about his own personal judgment of himself based on his actions which is why he took the case in the first place. For most people, they mostly concern themselves with the judgment of other people. However something more important is one's judgment of themselve. Most due this by wondering if they could be content with their decisions after the event. For even the strongest willed people they have their own morals of which they need to follow because if they did not they would not be able to judge themselves positively. The realistic truth that follows self judgment is that the way one judges themselves is often used to judge other people putting them to another's unfair guidelines creating negative judgment. Atticus did what most could not by sticking to his own moral guidelines and disregarding the social requirements. He did so without imposing his views on others and only served the case because he felt that was the right thing to do. This was what caused the Black community to stand for him because they did not know of any other lawyer who would do the same for their community. In conclusion The novel to Kill A Mockingbird is an example reflecting real life judgment and social guidelines. Dolphus Raymond, Mayella Ewell and Atticus Finch all prove society's guidelines within the novel with their actions. Dolphus Raymond does it by showing how he controls the judgment to a tolerable extent, Mayella Ewell by showing how far judgment can push people’s actions and Atticus Finch by describing the different views of judgment and how it can transcend. At any given time in society it is important to recognize how judgment affects one's being. This novel highlights that by showing how Jem and Scout learn about the importance of judgment and social guidelines.
22). People mindlessly respond to avoid their true emotions. Truthfully, I was not fine, but exploding inside with nervousness. However, I didn’t attempt to burden anyone with my lack of confidence, so I told this untruth. Even though white lies may be harmless, they can lead to other deceptive lies labeled by the authors as gray, red, blue and colorless lies. Why do we tell lies? Interestingly, according to the (Banaji and Greenwald, 2013), “evolutionary biologists have proposed that Homo sapiens is indeed hard-wired to tell lies,” (page 25). Furthermore, we want to appear favorable to our friends and family and this may pressure us to justify our lies. According to (Banaji and Greenwald, 2013) it is referred to as “impression management,” by social psychologists (p.27). Thus, lies allow others to see us as we want to be seen, such as I wanted the group to see me as a confident person who could handle obstacles and superbly interact with
Often in life people prejudge others, but their view changes as they get to know the person. In to kill a mockingbird by Harper lee Jem and Scout prejudge Boo Radley and their father Atticus. Jem and Scout believe their father has absolutely no skill. Throughout the book the kids get to see more of his skills. Boo Radley is considered a monster in Maycomb and Scout and Jem use the town’s judgment as their own. After learning more about Boo and getting to know him they realize he is opposite of what they thought. Because Jem and Scout are influenced by other people’s opinions they are able to learn from their mistakes and develop a new perspective on people.
The first character to discuss is Tom Robinson, he was accused of raping and beating Mayella Ewell. Atticus gave the jury much proof of why Tom Robinson was innocent while the opposing case was lacking proof,
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is a remarkable novel following the childhood of Jem and Scout, the son and daughter of Atticus Finch. Living in a small and drama filled town of Maycomb County they encounter a great deal of people who do not stand by their word. Hypocrisy occurs throughout this novel first by a man named Dolphus Raymond, then by two women Mrs. Merriweather and Miss Gates.
Atticus wants his children to ignore what everybody thinks of him when defending a negro. During a conversation between Jem and Atticus, tells Jem,” As you grow older, you'll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, whenever a white man does that to a black man, that white man is trash.” (223). At the court Atticus is sure that he will lose but wants to make a statement to this racist society. He wants this county to treat black people just how they treat white people....
Tom Robinson is a kind black man whom Atticus is defending against the charge that he raped Mayella Ewell. Atticus knows that he will lose because Tom is black, but he also knows that Tom is innocent and that he has to defend him. Tom Robinson is portrayed as a hard-working father and husband in the novel and he was only attempting to help Mayella since no one else would, but she made advances that he refused and her father saw them. On the witness stand, he testifies that he helped her because, "'Mr. Ewell didn't seem to help her none, and neither did the chillun.'" (256). Even though Tom helps Mayella out of kindness and pity, Mayella is trapped and must accuse him of raping her to save her own life. Shortly after being wrongfully convicted
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.
Yet he took the case with no hesitation. Atticus knows the difference between what is fair and what is true justice. He is well aware that whites and blacks have many differences with one another, but is also educated enough to know that there truly is no diversity in equity, and tries to teach everyone including his children this. ”You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view- until you climb into his skin and walk around it.(30)” Atticus is encouraging Scout to respect everyone and consider their true potential without considering false accusations in this quote. He applies what he teaches to his children to the people attending the Tom Robinson trial. Atticus is just one man, but with an unprecedented amount of sense of pride, intelligence, and justice. He reflects the image of the town’s people by showing them what they’ve allowed themselves to become based on their beliefs. He genuinely expresses their deepest consternation. In this quote he tells the audience what they are afraid to hear, but need to hear, “She was white, and she tempted a Negro. She did something that in our society is unspeakable: she kissed a black man. Not an old uncle, but a strong young Negro man. No code mattered to her before she broke it, but it came crashing down on her afterwards.(272)” After stating his point and releasing the profound truth Atticus causes for Mayella and Bob Ewell to lose their composure. Nevertheless people of most of the white people of Maycomb continue to refuse to believe that a white woman kissed a black man. But they undoubtedly believe that a black man with a useless left hand beat and raped an “innocent” white woman. Atticus could have predicted the outcome from before he even took the case and refused to defend Tom Robinson. But he
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
Atticus recognizes this and tries to make known the importance of equality. Atticus makes it evident that if everyone was equal, then this trial would never have happened. He also uses ethos when saying “Our courts have their faults, as does any human institution, but in this country our courts are the great levelers, and in our courts all men are created equal.” He uses ethos in this way because he knows that his audience knows that what he is saying is very much a lie. Atticus knows that every black person ever tried for a crime in the American courts has probably been tried guilty.
Tom Robinson’s trial, and in fact his entire life, was badly affected by racism. It is truly a testament to the corruption of society when a person who has earned a bad reputation is held in higher esteem than a person who was born with it, as is the case with Bob Ewell and Tom Robinson. Even though Tom was obviously honest in his testament, the jury sided with Bob Ewell because he was white. They made this decision despite the fact that the Ewell family was widely known to be a worthless part of society. Jem, not being racially prejudiced, could not understand this mentality. As Atticus pointed out, “If you (Jem) had been on the jury, son, and eleven other boys like you, Tom would be a free man.”
Many students believe that Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is a commentary on social issues in 1930’s America. However, over time new themes for discussion have grown from the novel. The courage and leadership of characters in To Kill a Mockingbird have become common subjects discussed by today’s students. In this way, Lee’s novel has evolved to meet the changing ideology of humanity. At the time of the novel, standing up against common customs and beliefs was unacceptable, a violation of societal rules. Several characters in To Kill a Mockingbird express outrage at the collective belief system of their community and show resilience in the face of persecution, much as many current leaders face when espousing unconventional views or actions.
The one place where a man ought to get a square deal is in a courtroom, be he any color of the rainbow, but people have a way of carrying their resentments right into a jury box”(Lee 220). This is how Atticus described the trial to his son Jem because he could not comprehend how unjust the trial was unfolding on a daily basis. The proceedings were not equitable towards Tom Robinson because everyone should have realized at the trial that he had not done anything wrong. In the end, Atticus lost the trial. Not because the jury and judge thought Tom Robinson had committed the crime, but simply because he was black and they were racist.
Everybody in the town of Maycomb looks down on Atticus because he is defending a black man in court. All evidence in the case shows Tom Robinson innocent, but he is still charged guilty because of the all white jury. The actual rapist was Mayella's father. In the end of the book, Tom is shot so that he wouldn't be found innocent.
Many students believe that Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird displays social issues in early America. In this time standing against common customs was unacceptable, a violation of society. People believe that today courage has overcome adversity that was displayed in early America. Courage is the common subject of To Kill a Mockingbird, which allows Lee’s novel to defy the changing times of humanity. These morals are bound to the “impartiality” and “fairness” taught to people as children, but become unavoidably invisible though selfish actions. The characters in To Kill a Mockingbird express audacity along with resilience in the face of cowardice.