The author of the story “To Kill a Mockingbird”, Harper Lee, had show us how the colored people were treated to each other in a community; specifically one of the main character, Scout, in her own hometown in Maycomb, Alabama. At the time, she had no idea about what racial discrimination was, and she didn’t know that it was in her community. Soon, she realized that her community was nothing but the same type of people, heavily judged each other throughout the story. The most common discrimination appears in the story is racial discrimination. The author also mention in the story that it’s not only in Maycomb, and it’s happening in a bigger scale. When Scout and Jem found out their father is going to represent a black man named Tom Robinson, who is accused for raping and beating up a white woman.When they’re in the trial, Jem challenges the court system by saying that, “No, sir, they oughta do away with juries. He wasn’t guilty in the first place and they said he was.” (Lee, 295). After that trial, Scout and Jem are being insulted from other people because of Atticus’s role in the trial and what they said to defend Tom Robinson. His actions are …show more content…
The book shows us about the stereotypical view in people’s eyes in the past about man and woman. For example, Mrs. Dubose many times made statements like, “What are you doing in those overalls? You should be in a dress and camisole, young lady! You’ll grow up waiting on tables if somebody doesn’t change your ways- a Finch waiting on tables at the O.K. Cafe- hah!” (Lee, 85). I think that this sexism majority aimed to women and girls. They were constantly told what was proper and lady-like and what they should dress to look like a lady. They also got told how to walk like a lady, many things else that they got taught to be like a mature lady. The actions tell us that it affects both genders and the elders are trying to pass those actions to later
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.
“We see the town of Maycomb in its worst light, willing to execute an innocent man for a crime he did not commit rather than question their belief in black inferiority and their social taboos about interracial relationships” (Felty 299). This quote may seem extreme, but it is completely accurate in Scout’s hometown Maycomb, Alabama. In the town of Maycomb, prejudices and discriminations are a common idea in the life of its citizens. This is shown in various ways. For example, African Americans are treated as lower class citizens because they are discriminated by white people. Scout perceives these prejudices and discriminations in different ways throughout the book. Scout’s views on the prejudices and discriminations in her society evolve
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
Racism presents itself in many ways in the town of Maycomb. Some are blatant and open, but others are more insidious. One obvious way that racism presents itself is in the result of Tom Robinson’s trial. Another apparent example is the bullying Jem and Scout had to endure as a result of Atticus’s appointment as Tom Robinson’s defense attorney. A less easily discernible case is the persecution of Mr. Dolphus Raymond, who chose to live his life in close relation with the colored community.
In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, many different themes come into view. One major theme that played a big role in the character’s lives is racial prejudice. Racism is an unending problem throughout the book. The song “Message from a Black Man” by The Temptations has many similarities to the theme of racial discrimination. Therefore, both the novel and the song prove that racism was a great obstacle for some people at a point.
The story To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee portrays many different scenarios of racial discrimination. Discrimination occurs in the book and many people are affected by the racial slurs and other occurrences. In the story, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, Atticus Finch, and Tom Robinson are all people that are discriminated against or are affected by discrimination. Racial discrimination is a major part of To Kill a Mockingbird.
Prejudice is a real life problem in the world. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee describes the prejudices found in a small American town in the 1930's. Race, social class, and gender are examples of prejudice.
The differences in social class and distaste between the blacks and the whites are clear in the small town of Maycomb. So clear that most of the town’s children are quickly catching on. This racial discrimination is also known as ‘Maycomb’s disease.’ When the news had gone around town about Atticus fighting for Tom Robinson, the disease got even worse. Children at school were taunting Scout telling her Atticus is a “nigger lover”. It wasn’t until Atticus said “It's never an insult to be called what somebody thinks is a bad name. It just shows you how poor that person is, it doesn't hurt you.” (Lee, 108) that Scout realized how discriminatory those people were. She also experiences this at Calpurnia’s church when Lula tells Calpurnia "You ain't got no business bringin' white chillun here—they got their church, we got our'n. It is our church, ain't it, Miss Cal?" (119) This is where Scout’s shift of view begins as an adult problem begins disrupting her little happy world and she realizes she can’t do much about it.
In the time around 1931, slavery had been abolished for almost seventy years, and many Black were living in society just like everyone else because they had the right to. Still, people didn’t treat them like they belonged, despite the government officially declaring it so. The majority of Whites made sure they had nothing to do with Blacks, for they might also face being disrespected or looked down upon. In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, many outcomes may have resulted differently because of people of the town of Maycomb’s racism towards Black. Tom Robinson got an unfair white jury. Aunt Alexandra ended Scout and Jem’s going to church because it was a black church. People did not care how Tom was treated because he was “only a black.” The town turned against Atticus for defending a black man. Racism in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird affected the events by not giving black people as much chance of being taken for their word of innocence, which demonstrated not only an unjust legal system for persons of color, but an unfair system in other aspects of life as well.
In “To Kill a Mockingbird” there are many examples of racism. During the 1960s when the book was published, racism was acceptable and Black people were constantly dominated and ridiculed by Caucasian people. This novel written by Harper Lee is based on racism against Black people and the refusal of people to treat everyone equally.
Discrimination based on race is a huge part of this story, particularly based on skin color. Tom Robinson is the main point of this type of discrimination, as he’s a black man who’s been accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a white woman. Atticus explains to Jem how the jury is unfair by saying "There's something in our world that makes men lose their heads --they couldn't be fair if they tried. In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins.
The Various Forms of Discrimination in the Novel To Kill a Mockingbird In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, we see several forms of discrimination. For most people, when they hear the word discrimination, they think of racism, ageism, or something else similar. These are all some of the most common forms of discrimination, but they are not the only forms of it that exist. The types of discrimination I will mostly be talking about are sexism, racism, and classism. The first form of discrimination I will talk about is how people tell Scout that she has to wear dresses all of the time, and that she has to have perfect manners.
The black community is treated the worse in Maycomb because they always do what they can to help the white people and the white people just mistreat them. Some of the ways white people mistreat or disrespect the black community is by using their church as a place to gamble, segregation and more. Segregation is another example of racism in To Kill a Mockingbird because they separated whites from blacks. One example of this is when Francis, Scout’s cousin, keeps telling Scout that Atticus is ruining the family by defending a colored man.
Sexism is not as common a topic in comparison to racism, but does play a role in the development of the novel. This type of discrimination is expressed towards women from men and women alike. Men feel compelled to protect women from unsightly things, (Lee 221), and the women in Maycomb have the mind set that, to be a lady, they must conform to society's expectations of them. They believe they must dress, act, and speak a certain way to appease the community. Aunt Alexandra is a big believer in acting the way society expects her to and attempts to impose these values on her niece, Scout, who becomes mortified, as she has always been a tomboy and prefers spending time in the dirt. “Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of my [Scout's] attire. She said I could not possibly hope to be a lady if I wore breeches; when I said I could do nothing in a dress, she said I wasn't supposed ...
How would you feel if you were in Maycomb being treated with so much disrespect? Racism, class, and gender are some of the forms that will be talked about, and these are the different forms of discrimination used in “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Atticus, Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, Scout, Jem, the Ewells, Mr. Dolphus Raymond, and the Black Community are all being discriminated in “To Kill a Mockingbird.” These people will be talked about in this essay. Also think about how you would feel if you were judged even if you are a kid.