Mark Twain once said, “the very ink with which history is written is merely fluid prejudice”.
Mark Twain was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. Twain thought prejudice was a common problem.
One of the major themes in To Kill a Mockingbird is prejudice. As this book takes place half a century after the Civil War, there is a lot of racial, social and religious prejudice going on.
One of the major themes in To Kill a Mockingbird was racial prejudice.
Tom Robinson is a victim of prejudice because of his race. He was accused of raping a young girl. Being a colored person in Maycomb during the Great Depression was difficult. During, these times a white person’s talk was believed to be superior to a colored person.
One of the major
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influences of To Kill a Mockingbird was the trial of the Scottsboro boys. As Alan Blinder, a reporter from New York Times writes in his article Alabama Pardons 3 ‘Scottsboro Boys’ After 80 Years, “ Within weeks of the reported rapes, an Alabama judge had sentenced eight of them to death following their convictions by all-white juries. The trial of the youngest defendant, Roy Wright, ended in a hung jury amid a dispute about whether he should be executed, and he was never retried.” One of the major themes in To Kill a Mockingbird is social prejudice.
The Cunninghams are victims of social prejudice in the novel. The Cunninghams are poor farmers and scrape along with what they have. People in Maycomb are prejudice against the Cunninghams because of their lack of wealth, although they are respectable because they find natural ways to pay people back. The Great Depression impacted the Cunninghams were hit hard because they were largely reliant on agriculture.
Marymede Catholic College states, “Rural, southern towns in the United States were hit hard because they were largely reliant on agriculture. Problems with the economy had a flow-on effect to all parts of society. People lost jobs, marriages broke down, banks failed, people became homeless, businesses folded, birth rates fell, people got depressed and many people went hungry. This explains the situation of poor farmers like the Cunninghams in To Kill a Mockingbird who have no money to pay a lawyer but pay instead with produce like hickory nuts and turnip greens.”
One of the major themes in To Kill a Mockingbird is religious prejudice.
Miss Maudie was being religiously prejudiced to the
Baptists. Harper Lee writes in her novel about a character named Miss Maudie who remarks,“did you know some of 'em [footwashing Baptists] came out of the woods one Saturday and passed by this place and told me, me and my flowers were going to hell.” Erik Wong, a student of Stanford University explains, “the period after the Revolutionary War saw a lot of infighting between the various states and Christian denominations. Virginia, which was home to the largest portion of Anglicans loyal to the Church of England, was the scene of notorious acts of religious persecution against Baptists and Presbyterians. Anglicans physically assaulted Baptists, bearing theological and social animosity. In 1771, a local Virginia sheriff yanked a Baptist preacher from the stage at his parish and beat him to the ground outside, where he also delivered twenty lashes with a horsewhip. Similarly, in 1778, Baptist ministers David Barrow and Edward Mintz were conducting services at the Mill Swamp Baptist Church in Portsmouth, Virginia.[2] As soon as the hymn was given out, a gang of men rushed the stage and grabbed the two ministers, took them to the nearby Nansemond River swamp, and dunked and held their heads in the mud until they nearly drowned to death.
Harper Lee wrote a story to express the different kinds of prejudice in the 1930’s in Maycomb County, Alabama. The thesis has been explained by using actual quotes from To Kill a Mockingbird, and then gave logical explanation on how it was relevant. Prejudices affect the world even today and still they are something that is a horrible thing.
Cunningham was a poor farmer and part of the mob that seeks to lynch Tom Robinson at the jail. They have their kids go to school, but they don’t have a bunch. His son, Walter Cunningham was a classmate of Scout’s but he has not passed first grade yet because he skips school every spring to help his father on the farm chop wood. Mr. Cunningham was really poor, but he worked firmly to keep his farm which was right outside of Maycomb. Like most farmers during the Great Depression, he owed oodles of money and paid it off by bringing any crops or plants he could spare from his farm and giving it to Atticus. One night the Finches invited Walter to dinner and he devoured it all and he drenched his food in syrup that was on the table. This shows how the Cunningham family is not always able to access their food. The kids will always be wondering where their next meal will be and when they will have it. The kids don’t always have their lunch with them, too. Instead of paying people back by the money they do it by giving materials they
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 largest, and most crippling events of the 1930s was the Great Depression. Preceded by a decade of wealth and a carefree attitude, the crash of the economy came as a shock to everyone involved. In the article, “Standards Focus: Historical Context, The Great Depression”, the author points out that “People’s life savings suddenly disappeared, and as a result, people could not afford to pay their house payments or buy food, clothing, or other necessities.” (Secondary Solutions). This shows how helpless families were, and that it was impossible to stand up to corrupt ideas. This idea of poverty are also used by Harper Lee when she describes that the Cunninghams are a family in terrible conditions. In school, Scout tries to defend Walter Cunningham, a son in the Cunningham family, and explains that “Walter Cunningham was sitting there lying his head off. He didn’t forget his lunch, he didn’t have any. He had none today nor would he have any tomorrow or the next day. He had probably never seen three quarters together at the same time in his life.” (Lee 26). The Cunningham family is a dramatic example of the daily struggle of everyone in town to live a decent life. Harper Lee used this idea in her writing because it shows the everyday person had little to no influence on events that were occurring in Americ...
In the 1930’s many African American men were wrongly accused of rape and murder. The issue of racism is brought up in the book “To Kill a Mockingbird” when Scout overhears her teacher saying that it's a great thing that this is happening to Tom Robinson because the black men are getting too comfortable thinking that they’re mighty. Racism didn’t only affect Tom Robinson, but it also affected those who supported him. The lives of Scout and her family are changed when Scouts father who is a lawyer, steps in and defends Tom Robinson. Atticus’ lawsuit affects Scout and his children in several ways. As kids who were raised to respect everyone, and not judge people by their race they seem to be the outcast in school because of this. The children in Scouts, school are not accustomed to people respecting African-Americans and as a result they taunt and harass Atticus’ children. As a result of the violence towards Scout, Scout responds to violence with violence. However, Atticus is not happy with the way Scout is handling her problems. Racism is a reoccurring theme throughout the course of the story and affects all of the main characters in several ways. Maycomb as a whole is affected because of racism and many become outcasts such as in Mrs.Dolphus Raymond's
America is the proud author of many timeless novels. Fitzegerald’s The Great Gatsby, Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, and Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men all reveal a glimpse into previously unseen worlds to their audiences. But few of them has so profound an impact as Nelle “Harper” Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. This captivating novel enthralled the country and made it reexamine its preexisting perceptions about childhood, bravery, and morality. In spite of the importance of these concepts, the most far-reaching theme is how prejudice and education coincide, or, more accurately, how prejudice and a lack of education coincide (Theme 1). In To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee explores how a normally rational person’s ability to reason can be tainted by prejudice, even subconsciously. Rarely do the characters in Lee’s novel make an effort to be cruel, but in the 1930s South, prejudice was less about an active effort to hurt others, but instead was an affliction brought about by an unconscious combination of upbringing, culture, and social or economic status.
How would you like it if someone walked up to you and berated you based on the color of your skin? A characteristic like that isn’t even something you can control, so an insult of that nature can leave one furious and oppressed. Discrimination is inevitable in any culture, throughout history, in modern times, and even in ancient times. For example, the oppression and murder of 6 million Jewish people during the Holocaust, the African Slave Trade which occurred for multiple centuries, and more recently, the “ethnic cleansing” of Rohingya people in Myanmar, brought on by the government of the Asian nation, all of which are tragedies doomed to happen when history repeats itself and people do not learn
Walter Cunningham a normal young boy despite one thing, he has no money. Though all people during the Great Depression were suffering through hardship, the Cunningham's couldn't bear a quarter. Notwithstanding they had no money, Walter indicates pride, but everyone else still discriminates, his label is poor. To young children who picked up this the richer, older generation, a man with no money is a man with no worth. The discrimination is the wealthy against the needy, the upper-class believe to be superior. Moreover, this concludes that the society Maycomb, County represents is not just racist but additionally bigoted for irrational
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.
Many families such as the Cunninghams were poor during this time. “He didn’t forget his lunch, he didn’t have any.” (Lee 26). Walter Cunningham and his family don’t have an abundant amount of money, so Walter didn’t bring lunch to school because they can’t afford it. Poverty influenced their behavior, by making them into better people, they never accept anything that they can't pay back. “One morning Jem and I found a pile of stovewood in the backyard.” (Lee 26). The Cunninghams can’t pay in money so they pay back in supplies. Poverty makes the Cunninghams stronger and more friendly to others. Another character that symbolizes poverty is the Ewell family. “None of them had done an honest day’s of work in his recollection.” (Lee 40). The Ewells are poor, but they still didn’t work to earn money or trade. They lived on the town dump with varmints and trash. All the money they received went straight to alcohol. Poverty made the Ewells lazy and a disappointment to the community. Overall, poverty is throughout the book and is symbolized by the Ewell and Cunningham family. In addition, a particular Ewell, named Mayella is a symbol of domestic
In To Kill a Mockingbird the theme of poverty is expressed with characters such as the Cunninghams and the Ewells. Walter Cunningham shows up to school with clean clothes but lacks shoes and a lunch. “She stopped at Walter Cunningham’s desk. ‘Where’s
Racial prejudice is widespread in the county of Maycomb, and a prime example is the Tom Robinson case. Tom, a black man, was accused of raping Mayella, a white woman. Atticus puts forward all evidence from his witnesses that clearly proves Tom was innocent, Jem even says, ?and we?re gonna win Scout. I don?t see how we can?t? (pg 206), but Tom still received a ?Guilty? verdict. Atticus tried removing the prejudiced thoughts of the jurors by saying, ??the assumption - the evil assumption - that all Negroes lie, that all Negroes are basically immoral beings??. (pg 208). Atticus? saying insinuated the point that all of God?s children were created equal. To the jury, the only important thing was that Tom was black and the accuser was white, he never stood a chance under those conditions. These racial tensions between blacks and whites had made their way into the courtroom, a place where everyone should receive a fair trial no matter what race or colour, but an unjust verdict was reached. The prejudice that was felt towards Tom made him lose all hope of freedom, and as a result, he died upon an escape attempt. Tom was victim of racial prejudice and loss of hope.
Discrimination played a big role in the 1930s and throughout the development of the novel, and still is not completely diminished in the 21st century. Sexism, classicism, and racism all typified the many relationships in To Kill A Mockingbird, from Aunt Alexandra wanting Scout to become a lady, to Tom Robinson's unfair court trial. Prejudices are formed because of the level of ignorance people have when they believe everything they hear from their peers without bothering to be fertilized with education, leading to a division within communities, physically and mentally.
Atticus says ‘the crash [of the 30s] hit them hardest’ with regards to farmers and thus the Cunninghams. The verb ‘hit’ has connotations of pain and suffering, which describes the Cunninghams as they are known to have ‘no money’. This description implies Marxism. Their poverty may affect their later behaviour - attempting to lynch Tom. They have a mob mentality and only turn back when Scout talks to Mr. Cunningham about his life. Furthermore, Scout notes in her narration that ‘most of’ the men wore ‘overalls’, referencing that they work on the land. As mentioned, the 'crash ' of the economy crippled such men. Hence, the Marxist ideal mentioned may explain their actions and thus the novel seems to be a Marxist
The broke became poor, the rich struggled and the poor stay poor. The novel quotes ”Not exactly. The Cunninghams are country folks,farmers,and the crash hit them the hardest” (Lee pg 27 Ch 2).People in Maycomb such as the Cunninghams, were hit hard by the crash. They didn't have any money to pay or make their children lunch.