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Historical context in the novel to kill a mockingbird
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Dillon Tan Jiunn Jye Mr. Keddy ENG3U 20th October, 2016 The hopeless existence of social inequality . One of the common ways authors tend to express their message and emotions is through writing novels, which in most cases was inspired by their life experiences and stories that they consider significant. This can be applied to Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill a Mocking Bird” as well, as she tries to convey the existence of social inequality in her childhood, in which she transforms her experiences into a novel which she portrays the existence of social inequality, the importance of moral education, and the coexistence of good and evil. In the book of “To Kill a Mocking Bird”, the story follows a young girl “Scout Finch”, her brother, and her friend, …show more content…
One of the sources of her influence originated from the close relationships established between her peers and herself to which she expresses them smilarly in the novel. One of them would be the character would be Charles Dill from the novel. The character of Dill was majorly modelled from one of Lee’s childhood friends she had. During a young age, Lee befriended an eccentric young boy named Truman Capote. They both lived next door to one another as neighbours in Monroeville, Alabama, where they met at an age of give. Soon after that, Truman’s mother moved to New York City permanently, where Truman and Lee were only able to see each other in the summers during his return in the summer (14 things you didn’t know about Harper Lee and Truman Capote’s Friendship). Both of them would play together and watch Harper Lee’s father, Amasa Coleman, who was a lawyer do anything that relates to his job (Charles Baker “Dill” Harris). Similarly, to Charles Dill, Dill met Scout at a young age. They were both would play together with his brother during the summer. Likewise, both were only able to see each other in the summers during his return, as both Truman and Dill lived somewhere else (Lee, 17). Similarly, to Harper Lee and Truman, they would watch her father work related to court, where he would try to confront the mobs that were suspected to lynch …show more content…
Lee’s source of such hatred came from the social movement during the great depression, as many racism, discrimination and social inequality towards the black were present during the time of her childhood. When lee was 10 years old, Lee read a news of a white woman falsely accusing a black man named Walter Lett for raping her without having her permission to do so. Before the trial, many people wanted to lynch him in prison while in captivity, and with luck he did not suffer any fatal damage After the trial, Walter Lett was unable to prove his innocence, which he was kept in prison due to the lack of evidence. His jail sentence was extended to a life sentence in prison, which he eventually died in prison due to a sickness known as tuberculosis (Alabama town uses "Mockingbird" to learn from the past) Similarly in the novel, to Walters case, Tom Robinson, a black man was also accused of rape by a white woman. Atticus Finch agrees to defend him in a trial, in order to prove his innocence. Just like Walter Lett, during his captivity in jail, people tried to lynch him before the trial, and Atticus Finch was able to confront the mods from lynching him. Correspondingly, Atticus was also unable to prove Tom’s innocence in the trial due to the lack of evidence, which Tom eventually got shot due to his attempt of escaping from prison
The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is set in Alabama in the 1930s, and concerns itself primarily with the interrelated themes of prejudice and empathy. These themes are explored as the story follows Scout Finch as she learns lessons in empathy, ultimately rejecting prejudice. While all characters in Lee’s novel learn from their experiences, not all are able to grow in the same manner as Scout. The idea of a positive role model, typified by the character of Atticus Finch, and the ramifications of its absence, is a concept that Lee places much emphasis on. The isolated setting is also pivotal in the development of characters. Lee uses the contrast between characters that learn lessons in empathy and compassion, and characters that cling to the ideals of a small town, to explore factors that nurture or diminish prejudice.
“They recognised in each other “an apartness,” as Capote later expressed it,” (Shields). This passage refers to Harper Lee and Truman Capote. Each known as brilliant writers who are well established in the world of literature. The two were childhood neighbors and close friends, growing up together in Monroeville, Alabama (Shields). They kept this friendship even as adults, but they did have thier differences. While Capote welcomed fame, Lee ran from it, which may be part of the reason they drifted apart later in life (Keneally). Even though their friendship was not as strong when Capote passed, Harper Lee has impacted Truman Capote’s work and life, and he has hers.
To Kill A Mockingbird is a cultural and classic novel wrote by Harper Lee. A connection people believe is that the novel is based off of Harper Lee’s childhood. There are reasons to believe that there is a connection between the book and the author's life.
There is no doubt that Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is a famous novel known for its themes, most of them containing wise life lessons, racial inequality being an obvious and important one. Firstly, racism illustrates the lack of justice and people’s views on prejudice in Tom Robinson’s case. Secondly, the novel touches base on diction notably the racial slurs used. Finally, with racism being a theme of the novel, it affects the characters’ personalities. Harper Lee uses life lessons, diction and characters throughout the novel because it develops the main theme of racism in To Kill a Mockingbird.
Atticus was appointed to defend Tom Robinson in a court trial. Tom was a black man that was being incriminated for allegedly raping Mayella Ewell (Lee, 86). Her father, Bob Ewell, accused Tom of the crime for the reason that Tom ran away from the Ewell household on the day that Mayella was allegedly raped. From the rumors they have heard about him, he seems like a mysteriously strange human being.
and disgusting (V.E.). In Lee’s fictional book, the citizens she created followed or respIn Harper Lee’s book To Kill a Mockingbird she was inspired from events throughout American history. Jim Crow laws, mob mentality, and the Scottsboro trials are all connections during this time period.The Jim Crow laws were a huge part in American history back in the 1930’s, in the book occurrences would happen when the laws were needed; especially during a trial. This was one of the first connections.The Jim Crow laws were laws that were put in place after slavery was over. Some reasons why southerners thought that the Jim Crow laws should be needed are that multiple Christians thought the white community was the superior race and believed that slavery
Nelle Harper Lee, the famous author of the worldwide bestseller To Kill a Mockingbird, was born April 28th, 1926, to Amasa Coleman (a lawyer) and Frances Lee. At the time, the family lived in Monroeville, Alabama. Harper’s family was somewhat wealthy, and they lived in upper middle class society most of their lives. Harper’s birth name, Nelle, was her grandmother’s spelled backwards (Ellen). However, in her publications, she took her middle name, Harper, to avoid being known as “Nellie”. But what numerous people have never heard - and many would be shocked to know - is that one windy, rainy night, Harper threw all her unpublished manuscripts of To Kill a Mockingbird out the window! Fortunately, she soon realized what she had done, and called over her editor, Tay Hohoff, to assist her. Hohoff sent her out in the snow and slush to retrieve her pages, which luckily had not fallen far away. But one would wonder: what would have happened if she had done the same on a slightly windier night?
It is acknowledged by many readers that there are many different social classes in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ written by Harper Lee and published in 1960. One of the most obvious social class distinctions is between skin colors, which can be seen through this novel. Since most readers’ focal point of this novel is on the distinctions between skin colors, they are unlikely to pay attention to the difference in social class within the white community. Lee wants to illustrate a contrast in white society and how characters behave differently through the uses of character foil, characterization, and the theme of society inequality in order to emphasize the differences in social classes.
In a desperate attempt to save his client, Tom Robinson, from death, Atticus Finch boldly declares, “To begin with, this case should never have come to trial. This case is as simple as black and white” (Lee 271). The gross amounts of lurid racial inequality in the early 20th century South is unfathomable to the everyday modern person. African-Americans received absolutely no equality anywhere, especially not in American court rooms. After reading accounts of the trials of nine young men accused of raping two white women, novelist Harper Lee took up her pen and wrote To Kill a Mockingbird, a blistering exposition of tragic inequalities suffered by African Americans told from the point of view of a young girl. Though there are a few trivial differences between the events of the Scottsboro trials and the trial of Tom Robinson portrayed in To Kill a Mockingbird, such as the accusers’ attitudes towards attention, the two cases share a superabundance of similarities. Among these are the preservation of idealist views regarding southern womanhood and excessive brutality utilized by police.
When Lee was six years old one of the nations most notorious trials was taking place, the Scottsboro Trials. “On March 25, 1931, a freight train was stopped in Paint Rock, a tiny community in Northern Alabama, and nine young African American men who had been riding the rails were arrested” (Johnson). “Two white women on the train,
Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird expresses the ideology that the social standard of a particular individual, classifies their status in the world. Individuals placed in social classes are labeled to create a sense of social identity. The socio-economic class an individual is born into should not be the determining factor of how the individual is regarded and treated, however, their character and personality should be a primary factor in determining how they are thought of in society.
Tom is also killed for trying to escape from jail – he is shot by the guards. Not only does a good, innocent man get killed in the novel for no reason at all, but the evil one gets his justice as well. Atticus Finch is a very well-educated man. He teaches his children the importance of moral education.
When he was offered the case of a colored person in 1939 he accepted. Atticus is dedicated to the case, in fact “...if [he] didn’t [he] couldn’t hold [his] head up in town,” since the people in it would lose respect for him (Lee). Since he would have proved to them that he doesn’t deserve the large amounts of respect they give him as a lawyer. He has yet to turn down a case, losing his client to lynchers, a very popular act towards a colored person accused of criminal activities, wouldn’t be in his best interest; causing him to stop the crazed people after his client. He stayed out at night long enough to where “[they] won’t bother [him] anymore,” Atticus was able to drive the angry people to that point (Lee 206).Atticus is dedicated to his work, enough to defend his client from killers.
The true personality of Harper Lee in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird The novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee gives way to look at the racism and sexism that was prominent in the 1930s as the readers watch Scout, Jem, and Dill deal with the harshness and cruelty of the people they know to others who are black and different. As they get older they realise that not everything is as black and white, as well as the worst kind of monsters are the ones that are hidden in plain sight. As this being the dominant theme of the story itself it also shows traces of the author through the detail and descriptions in the novel. Which presents herself purposely, as one who is passionate about the injustices in the book in the most part, unconsciously
Tom Robinson’s trial began, when he is placed in the local jail, a mob tries to take him. Atticus decides to face the mob. Jem and Scout sneaked out of the house to join him. Scout recognize, Mr. Cunningham and questioning him about his son shaming him into dismissing the mob. At the trial, Atticus provides evidence that the accusers, Mayella Ewell and her father, Bob, are lying to cover her shame and guilt. Despite the evidence pointing to Tom’s innocence, the jury convicts him. The innocent Tom later tries to escape from prison and is shot dead. Bob Ewell feels that Atticus and the judge have made a mockery out of him, and vowed revenge. He menaces Tom Robinson’s widow, tries to break into judge’s house, and attacks Jem and Scout as they walked home from a Halloween party through the woods. Boo Radley intervenes to save the children and stabs Ewell during the fight. The author begins the story with the idea of innocence with Scout not knowing the great injustices and hatred in her society. Then the loss of innocence having seen the worst and had face to face experiences with it. Finishing with