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To kill a mockingbird movie review essay
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Racism is a relevant subject in society today as it was in the past, where there were different kinds in the past, through colour and gender. Although there is a different meaning behind racism in the two texts, To Kill a Mockingbird and Mississippi Burning, where coloured people are discriminated against purely because of their skin colour, but not judged based on their skills or humanity.
In the setting of the movie and book, the white community judge only by appearance, racism in society is relevant to the book by harper lee and the film, Mississippi burning, directed by Alan Parker. Mississippi burning is a film about three civil rights activists, two white boys and one black boy, who were killed by members of the Klu Klux Klan. FBI agents
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were then called in to help with the investigation. Through the film there are many demonstrations of racism, when black people are terrorised by the KKK, by the burning of churches, beating up and bombing houses. When the FBI agents attempted to find out the truth behind the murders they were threatened and the KKK sent warning messages to them. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird there are also many examples of prejudice and discrimination. The most significant is Tom Robinson’s trial. Tom Robinson, a black man, was charged for the rape of a white girl, Mayella Ewell. He was inevitably sent to prison where he attempted to escape and died. Despite all the evidence in favour of Tom Robinson, he was still found guilty. Atticus, Tom Robinson’s lawyer, was threatened by Bob Ewell, after the trial, who spat on him. While Atticus was Tom Robinson’s lawyer, he became known as a “nigger lover” by the other people in Maycomb. Between the books To Kill a Mockingbird and the film Mississippi Burning, they show racism in two unique ways, from To Kill a Mockingbird, where racism is shown explicitly through Maycomb, a small town, through the eyes of scout.
The growth of racism is proportional to the growth of scout. To Kill a Mockingbird is an example of showing how active racism was during the 20s and the 30s. Life was very different to now, where previously there were still African American slaves that where not recognised or considered equal to the white community. While in the movie, Mississippi Burning, racism is portrayed through the media and also with various film techniques, symbolism and dialogue. The town’s society erupts when the case escalates to be displayed in the media. Racism is symbolic through the white knights of the KKK, who were veteran fighters of the confederate army during the civil war, who were dedicated to stop invaders of black people, Jews, or gays, which is evident in the movie. The most significant racial event that happened in To Kill a Mockingbird was the Tom Robinson trial, where he was accused of the rape of Mayella Ewell, who is described as extremely poor. At the end of Tom Robinson’s trial, it is obvious that he was convicted purely because of his skin colour and that if the community would blame anyone, they would easily pick a man of colour. The connection between the mocking bird and the story is that Tom Robinson is an innocent being, similar to the mockingbird and the story is that Tom is an innocent being, similar to the mockingbird, he has done nothing to bring these troubles upon himself, his only flaw was being too nice to Mayella Ewell and the victim of racial prejudice. A form of discrimination against Tom Robinson was when the Maycomb community formed a mob against him while he was in jail to ensure that he died no matter what the courts verdict was. This example is shown in To Kill a Mockingbird because when the trial was actually in place,
the suspicions that Tom Robinson was innocent were confirmed. The similarity between To Kill a Mockingbird and Mississippi Burning, is the key figure Martin Luther King, a pioneer in the civil rights movement said “Men hate each other because they fear each other, and they fear each other because they don’t know each other, and they don’t know each other because they are often separated from each other.” This quotes shows that one thing leads to another and the pattern continues. This is an effective way because we know the result of why the men hate each other. The problem of racism is wide spread during this 21st century generation, in the novel Tom Robinson is the key symbol of racism within the book To kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee was trying to express what discrimination for what really is, a problem in society that affects all types of people in different religions and race. In relevance to today’s society, adults are the main teachers of discrimination due to children learning by example, it is an adult’s responsibility to change so it will positively influence their children. There is a clear case of prejudice and discrimination in both the film and the book. The FBI agents are compared to Atticus, the one who defended the blacks, while Bob Ewell is compared to the KKK, the ones who disrupt the black’s lives. The film and novel both have many aspects in common- both are portraying a world full of racially discriminated and prejudiced people of colour. Both the film and the novel are meaningful, and they are to teach us how to make morally upright judgements and how not to be prejudice against someone. In the film Mississippi Burning, the African American people are badly treated and gunned down by the KKK in their violence. Similarly, in To Kill a Mockingbird, the African Americans are also mistreated, their churches gambled in, the people themselves are looked down upon. However, the main character in the novel, Tom Robinson, proves that African Americans are no different from white people and ought not to be ill-treated. Tom Robinson was an honest and truthful man, and what he said was true. Unfortunately, he was not spared due to the jury and the judge of the trial in the story being discriminatory against African American citizens, which shows a downfall of an innocent character. Alan Parker’s political thriller examines the evilness of racism. He tells us it’s destructive. Three civil rights activists who are extremely determined to implement equity between the white people and the black people who were murdered. Just like Tom Robinson had the support of a good white man so did the three dead boys.
In this scene, a Mad Rabid dog, named Tim Johnson, comes through the streets of a the town of Maycomb.
The Scottsboro Trial and the Tom Robinson Trial are almost identical in the forms of racism and prejudice shown and the the actual trial and the trials outcome. The racism and prejudice is clear and is a key factor throughout both cases, which took place in the same time period. Both trials are very common when it came to the time period, the time the trials have taken place in, those who were persecuted and lastly, why they were persecuted in the first place. “All blacks were liars, and always was not to be trusted was a major part of all of these trails” was the thought during this time. Someone that was white was believed no matter what when it came to a black mans word. Both trials were perfect examples of how the white people of Alabama were above the law. They showed that they could do whatever they wanted to the black people and get away with it. Examples in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Portrayed similar factual evidence that the Tom Robinson trial and the Scottsboro Trial are similar.
Harper Lee historically criticizes the Scottsboro trials with her book, To Kill a Mockingbird. Lee uses factual information as well as altering certain aspects of the trial in order to convey her theme, how the southern culture heavily protects its white womanhood. She accomplishes this by going into detail about how badly black men were stereotyped, about racial discrepancies, and disregarding contradictory evidence.
The ¨story of Emmett Till¨ and ¨To Kill a Mockingbird¨ are very similar. Two african americans have almost the exact same story. The man named Tom robinson was killed for harassing a girls, As was Emmett Till. I will give reasons that these two murders were very similar to each other.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is one of the most successful works of fiction in American Literature. Although To Kill a Mockingbird is classified as a work of fiction, there is evidence to support the claim that To Kill a Mockingbird was modeled after the Scottsboro Trials of 1931. There are many parallels between the trial of Tom Robinson and the Scottsboro Trials. The Scottsboro Boys were nine, young, African American men who were falsely accused of raping two white women while illegally riding a train in Alabama. Harper Lee was also about six years old when these trials took place. This is the reason why Harper Lee chose to write her novel through the eyes of a six year old. The trials inspired her to write To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper
Robinson resembles a mockingbird because he does not cause any harm to the town of Maycomb. This particular mockingbird is killed when Mayella Ewell falsely accuses him of rape. Although all the evidence proves that Robinson is innocent, it is a battle between an African American and a white woman. “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 carry their resentments right into the jury box” (Lee 220). Robinson is eventually convicted because of the prejudice and racism that clouds everyone in the jury and every citizen of Maycomb. “Tom Robinson’s a colored man, Jem. No jury in this part of the world’s going to say “We think you’re guilty, but not very on a charge on like that.” It was either a straight acquittal or nothing” (Lee 219). Tom Robinson may not be guilty of raping Mayella, but he is guilty of feeling sorry for a lonely, white
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.
Racism is wrought within the whole story. For example, even though Calpernia is a female, Aunt Alexandra overlooks her good work because of her race (p. 129). Blacks, because they are considered inferior, are expected to do everything for whites. People are so biased it doesn’t matter how well a job a black person does they are still frowned upon. Furthermore, the jury declares Tom Robinson guilty even though the evidence is clearly in his favor (p.211). A human being has more color pigment in their skin so it is assumed they are guilty without question; truth is never a factor. It is easy to associate the mockingbird symbol to Tom Robinson, a harmless man who becomes a victim of racial prejudice. The Maycomb community are trying to make a fool of them selves by believing they are model citizens and good Christians, even though a small number amongst them know that they are wrong to persecute and hate due to color.
In the courtroom that night it is revealed that the alleged crimes of Tom Robinson, a decent Negro man, most likely did not happen. As Atticus says in his closing argument, "The state has not produced one iota of medical evidence to the effect that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place. It has relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant. The defendant is not guilty, but somebody in this courtroom is” (Lee 271). Showing the clear innocence of Tom Robinson due to lack of evidence, Scout thinks that the white jury will do the right thing only to find out that they still, unfairly, accuse him of being guilty. Scout and her brother, Jem, get very upset when they hear the verdict, however, it allows them both to learn the lesson that the county is unfair towards anyone who is not white. The county demonstrates this evil racism due to the social divisions in Maycomb between the whites and the blacks and because the whites see the blacks as unworthy of rights and freedoms. It was not just the trial itself that displayed evil in the world, but the comments and arguments surrounding the case did
To Kill The Mockingbird was about a black guy named Tom Robinson who was accused of raping a young women by the name of Mayella Ewell. In the court, significant evidence was presented to the juror's that would prove that Tom Robinson was innocent. The evidence showed that a left handed male must have beat Mayella because the bruises were on the right side of her and Tom Robinsons left arm was disabled. Robinson could not have beat Ms. Ewell. Tom Robinson was still convicted and later on was shot at a prison fence while he was trying to run away. The juror's discriminated Mr. Robinson and was prejudice towards him because all though evidence was presented to them that would prove Tom innocent they ignored it because the guy was black and in the 30's discriminating blacks were heavily favored.
A small city nestled in the state of Alabama, Maycomb has got its faults, just like any other place in the world, but one of its main faults or (pg.88) “Maycomb's usual disease,” as Atticus calls it in the book is prejudice. Jem and Scout learn a lot about prejudice when a black man named Tom Robinson is accused of raping a white woman named Mayella Ewell and their father, Atticus, is called on to be his lawyer. They realize the hate that people have buried deep within their heart when they see a black man accused of doing something only because of his color. On pg.241, Scout starts understanding this and thinks, “Atticus had used every tool available to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of men's hearts Atticus had no case. Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed.” As the case continues, up until the death of Tom Robinson, Jem and Scout learn more and more about prejudice and how the hate that people have towards others causes them to take wrong actions. They also see how unfair it is that a white man can get treated better and think of himself better than a black man only because he was born white. This prejudice and the trial cause Jem and Scout to get in argum...
To Kill a Mocking Bird expresses the racist attitudes of Maycomb most dominantly in the court case involving Tom Robinson (who's lawyer is Atticus Finch) and Mayella Eule. The trial makes blatantly obvious to the reader that Tom Robinson, the black man accused of rape is innocent and yet the jury finds him guilty. It also establishes that Mayella was actually beaten by her father and although the evidence that points to this occurrence is circumstantial, it is made perfectly clear. The court case also clarifies to the reader the frightful nature and obvious abundance of racism within the small town of Maycomb.
Today, racism is still around, even though it is not as prevalent as it was when this book was written. For example, there is still unjust crimes toward African Americans, which have sparked the Black Lives Matter movement. Although racism is slowly diminishing, there is still much work to be done to completely end racism.
Subheading 3: No respect for people who have a different colour/religion One connection was noticed across the texts that To Kill a Mockingbird, Schindler’s List and Mississippi Burning had plentiful amounts of this specific aspect in contrast to the poems which were about soldiers condition not prejudice against people with different colour/religion. Mississippi Burning and Schindler’s List are similar as in both texts, it has been showed that there is no respect towards people with a different colour/religion and property Mississippi Burning has numerous violence scenes in contrast to To Kill a Mockingbird. In Mississippi Burning, the opening scene shows a burning church. There is no fire brigade nearby to stop the fire.
In the world today, racism and discrimination is one of the major issues being faced with. Racism has existed throughout the world for centuries and has been the primary reasons for wars, conflicts, and other human calamities all over the planet. It has been a part of America since the European colonization of North America beginning in the 17th century. Many people are not aware of how much racism still exist in our schools, workforces, and anywhere else that social lives are occurring. It started from slavery in America to caste partiality in India, down to the Holocaust in Europe during World War II.