Opening Statement for Mayella Ewell Good morning, my name is Sam Schyma and it’s my pleasure to serve as a prosecutor in Maycomb County. This case is against Mayalla Ewell. On November 21, the defendant Mayalla Ewell accused Tom Robinson of rape. Ladies and gentlemen, this case is about a woman whose lies got an innocent man killed for doing the neighborly thing and she thought she could get away with it. This crime occurred because Mayella Ewell kissed a black man and she was trying to protect herself. I have five pieces of evidence from the court case that can prove Mayella lied during the trial. The first is “He chunked me on the floor an’ choked me’n took advantage of me” (Lee 205). The second Mayalla said, “Reckon I did, hollered for all I was, kicked and hollered loudly as I could” (Lee 205). …show more content…
He hit me agin an’ agin” (Lee 205). The next piece of evidence is when Atticus asks, “Is this the man who raped you?” and Mayella says “It most certainly is” (Lee 211). The last piece of evidence I have for you is that Attucust asked Mayella if she recalled getting hit in the face and she said “No, I don't remember if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me” (Lee 210). I am proposing this because Mayella's story and her father's story are different. She also can't recall if Tom hit her in the face. Another reason would be, even if Tom did hit her, how would there be bruises on the right side of her face if Tom's left arm was incapacitated by a cotton gin when he was little? If the defense says she isn't lying, I will say she's trying to hide the fact that she kissed a black man and is trying to protect
During the trial for Tom Robinson, Atticus is questioning Tom on what Mayela had done while he was with her. Tom Robinson explained she was kissing him on the side of the face and was explaining how she had never kissed a grown man before. “......She says what her papa do to her don’t count….” (Lee, Chapter 19). Given this quote from the book, it is implying that Mayella’s father sexually assaults her because he is the “man of the house” which seeing that Mayella is female, it renders her powerless against Bob. Mayella’s gender takes away her power greatly. “...Mayella Ewell was beaten savagely by someone who led almost exclusively with his left….” (Lee, Chapter
Mayella (white), goes to court against Tom Robinson (African American), where Mayella is accusing Tom Robinson of rape. When Atticus asks Mayella questions, Atticus mishears Mayella. An example of Mayella’s lack of power is when Atticus closes his argument by describing Mayella’s injuries during the court case. “Mayella Ewell was beaten savagely by someone who led almost exclusively with his left.”
Let us put each other in the shoes of the jury, friends, and family observing in on a discrimination case. Jem and Scout the son and daughter of a lawyer named Atticus Finch get a taste of what the real world is like when, Tom Robinson a poor black man who is married and has kids is falsely accused of raping and assaulting a white woman named Mayella. Mayella Ewell is a young girl considered to be “white trash” who is all by herself to take on the role raising her little siblings while her father Bob Ewell, who is an alcoholic, abuses her. The question arises, is Mayella Ewell Powerful? Mayella Ewell is powerful in this discrimination case because of her race as white woman, her higher class than Tom Robinson, and her gender as a female.
One of the major events in Harper Lee’s award-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird is Tom Robinson’s trial. It is based on the Scottsboro Case that took place in 1931 in Alabama, in which several black men were accused of raping two white women. Both the Scottsboro Boys and Tom Robinson are unfairly judged, however, because of prejudice against colored people. The racial discrimination makes whites’ testimony more believable even when it contradicts itself. The same happens in To Kill a Mockingbird. As we delve deeper into the case and get increasingly closer to the truth, it is quite suprising to see that Mayella Ewell is the true villain rather than a victim. She shall and must bear full responsibility for her actions because she makes the decision to tempt Tom Robinson, gives false testimony in court that directly leads to Tom’s death, and has been well aware of the consequences of her behaviors.
Many people can dispute whether Mayella Ewell is powerful or not. Some people preserver Mayella as an impotent figure because of her indigent status. While other people believe Mayella is a Strong and influential person because of her white womanhood. Mayella Ewell testifies Tom Robison a Black man of illegibly raping her, he was wrongfully found guilty. Since the book takes place in the 1930s segregation plays a big role in this court case. The white jury discriminates against Tom Robinson, showing no mercy even though the evidence clearly states he is innocent. Does this mean Mayella has authority? Mayella exhibits her sovereignty through her testimony, social code and guilt. Mayella`s selfish decision resulted in a horrifying repercussion for Tom Robinson.
...a white man harming a black man, the black man would be guilty of assaulting the white man. Thusly, there was little to no chance that the jury would believe anything Tom Robinson said. Mayella used the town’s racism to her advantage to get out of her sticky situation.
Mayella's siblings, and her usually watch as he completes her tasks. On the day of the proposed attack,Tom is now asked to fix the door. He examines the door and finds nothing wrong with it. Heck Tate is the first witness and he tells that the doctor never came to examine Mayella. It is also discovered that Tom's left arm is useless and it would've been really hard to commit a crime without a left arm. Throughout the trial, everyone attacks Tom, disregarding all the evidence that does not add up, Tom is till convicted and charged with rape. While Tom is in the stand, he says that he is not the one to come on to Mayella, instead she came on to him. Tom is automatically at fault simply because he is black. Atticus tells the court to decide simply by fate, and to think further that all blacks are criminals. Lee is merely suggesting that our justice system is against people of
As further evidence is procured, this is proven to be false. The truth is that Mayella’s father beat her for making romantic advances towards Tom. Mayella is unlike the rest of the Ewells in the sense that she likes to keep herself tidy, and lives in a more sophisticated manner than the rest of her family. This makes me infer that she is quite taciturn, and a kind-hearted person who wouldn’t lie about what happened that day if it weren’t for something taking over her conscience. Being threatened by her acrimonious father to lie about what really happened set aside what she knew to be right and pushed her to lie in the trial. Both pressure and fear make people do what they know is not the right thing to do, even though their conscience tells them otherwise. Doing the wrong thing may dispel fears or pressure that is put on for a certain instance. There are many reasons why people do what they know isn’t right even though their conscience tells them not to, but sometimes this can help them construct their values, and improve on how susceptible they are to their
Atticus had enough evidence to prove to the Jury that Tom’s right arm did not work and that would mean that Tom could not have pulled Mayella to the ground and bruised her as the policeman described. The crowd was surprised but the Jury and the Judge did not believe Atticus’s evidence. They were prejudiced and if Atticus came up with the best possible explanation the Judge still believed the Ewell family and they did not come up with a reasonable explanation about Tom. “As you grow older, you’ll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don’t you forget it whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash” (Atticus) chapter 23. Prejudice hurts people who are black and people who were different and young
Although Mayella Ewell eventually testifies against Tom Robinson on false grounds, her backstory and true nature is innocent, and her “mockingbird” only dies when her father corrupts her. First, when Scout is describing the Ewell’s living condition, the novel states, “Against the fence, in a line, were six chipped-enamel slop jars holding brilliant red geraniums, cared for as tenderly as if they belonged to Miss Maudie Atkinson… People said they were Mayella Ewell’s” (Lee 228). Being raised in the conditions that she was, Mayella’s attempts at rectifying her family’s image, even in these small, personal acts, captures the way she wishes to live and how she thinks. Caring for the geraniums and trying to maintain some semblance of cleanliness, especially when compared to the rest of her family, gives the reader
A second testimony that supports the opposite of the verdict, was the fact that Mr. Ewell never called a doctor after learning of Mayella's injuries. Following the incident, there had not been any physical examination performed by a certified physician. If indeed Mr. Robinson had committed the crime, Mr. Ewell's first instinct would have been to get his daughter checked out. Upon finding his daughter 'assaulted';, he would have wanted to have her injuries treated including the injury that might been caused by rape.
Hello, My name is Brooke Marshik, and it's my pleasure to represent the state of Maycomb and serve as a prosecutor in this particular case. On August 26, 1936, Mayella Ewell was accused of lying under oath. At the conclusion of this case, and after you have heard all the evidence, I am confident you will return the verdict guilty of lying under oath. Members of the jury said this is a case about a 19-year-old woman whose fear got the best of her. Mayella Ewell lied under oath out of fear of her father, Bob Ewell.
Good afternoon, my name is Bailey Przybilla, and it is my pleasure to represent Maycomb County and to serve as a prosecutor in this important case. Ladies and gentlemen, this case is about a woman who lied under oath to cover up for her actions. November 21, 1934, Mayella Ewell took an oath in court to not lie and broke that oath during the trial, which is perjury. She lies about Tom Robinson, a black man, attacking her to cover up for her coming on him. Mayella Ewell committed this perjury because her father caught her kissing a black man and she was also ashamed of herself for it.
Mayella is not allowed to admit that she is attracted to a black male and that she is lonely. So she allows Tom Robinson to stay up on trial and be falsely accused of raping and beating her. In chapter 18 they established that Tom Robison testifies that he could have not hit Mayella Ewell on the right side of her face because Tom's left arm was damaged with no muscle usage due to it getting caught in the cotton gin back when he was a little boy. That being said, Tom Robinson could have never hit Mayella on the right side of her face. Second, Bob Ewell is not how he seems to be.
There is perhaps no other subject tackled so incredibly in-depth than that of love. In an age of suppressing mankind’s own primal urges, love and attraction remain as two of the most basic human emotions and feelings. With multitudes of interpretations and experiences by literally every person on the planet, it’s safe to say that love is a complicated and ambiguous subject matter. That being said, a question of whether love brings people further towards or further away from enlightenment can be asked, and there is no definite answer. In Herman Hesse’s, Siddhartha, Siddhartha Gautama exhibits both answers, as not only is his relationship with Kamala very complex, the way he interacts with all the people he is close with can be examined.