To Kill A Mockingbird Social Inequality Essay

Life is not always fair for everyone. People can have advantages and opportunities immediately waiting for them, while others can have bad luck and almost no support. Some people have their fate determined simply by their: appearance, ethnicity, and how they are living their lives now, rather than how they want to live in the future. Social inequality can influence the opportunities a person has to achieve an objective in life or in a story. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, protagonist Scout observes the inevitable effects that social inequality has on lives through the members of her community.
Harper Lee demonstrates the adverse effects of social inequality through major character Tom Robinson. Tom’s main role in the story

is when he is accused of raping a women named Mayella Ewell. Despite a very gallant and intriguing defense in court by his lawyer, Scout’s father Atticus, he is unsuccessful as Lee states, “A jury never looks at a defendant it has convicted, and when this jury came in, not one of them looked at Tom Robinson” (Lee 282). Although Atticus makes a convincing case, in reality, Tom never stands a chance. It seems impossible that the jury would take the word of a black man over a white woman. The racist community of that time would always give the advantage to the white person. Through clever and important word choice, the author is able to hint that Tom is most likely innocent and that the judge knows this and is therefore hesitant to find him guilty. An example of this is when Atticus states, “‘She (Mayella) was white, and she tempted a Negro (Tom). She did something that in our society is unspeakable: she kissed a black man’” (Lee 272). The use of the word ‘unspeakable’ is effective because it is a strong word that reveals the severity of the event and therefore why Tom has no chance in the case, even though he is actually innocent. The author also acknowledges that it is unusual for the trial to take so long multiple times in the story. Then she explains that the judge is hesitant and not overly confident in her decision; instead of loudly proclaiming the word “guilty”, the judge apparently mumbles something and the trial is over. The emphasis on these two details reveals that the jury and judge had to make a controversial, difficult decision that could have swayed in either direction. Word choice and the way the scene is created explain to the reader that Tom is in fact innocent. This is important because it displays an extremely terrible effect of social inequality as an innocent man can have his life taken from him simply because of the color of his skin. This also demonstrates how people can be hesitant to voice their true opinions because they are fearful of the response they could receive. The author uses other characters and events in the story to highlight examples of social inequality and emphasize their importance.
Harper Lee exemplifies more harmful effects of social inequality through the Ewell family. The Ewell family also lives in Maycomb county and includes the father named Bob, daughter named Mayella who is the victim in the trial, and seven other siblings. The family is known for being extremely poor and one of the lowest classes of white people as Lee states, “Maycomb’s Ewells lived behind the town garbage dump in what was once a Negro cabin” (Lee 227). During this time period in the south, black people are treated horribly and are not respected. Even though the Ewells are not black, they are viewed as the next lowest class of people. The Ewells are seen as a disgrace to the community and are constantly teased and mocked, even in court when Mayella’s testimony is viewed as crazy and overly emotional. Once again the negative effects of social inequality appear in the story as the Ewell family is treated cruelly and seen as inferior people compared to the rest of society. The author uses direct characterization to portray the family as she uses bold adjectives in her descriptions of them. An example of this is when one sibling of the Ewell family is described by Scout as she states, “‘He was the filthiest human I had ever seen. His neck was dark gray, the backs of his hands were rusty, and his fingernails were black deep into the quick’” (Lee 35). The author does not leave much room for interpretation and informs the readers exactly what the family is like through this graphic description. The author does this to emphasize specific traits and descriptions of a character. This can make it easier for readers to learn about who the characters are and how they fit into the plot of the story. The theme and examples of social inequality appear throughout the entirety of the novel as they help keep the story connected.
Another example of Harper Lee exhibiting damaging consequences of social inequality is through a different scene with major character Calpurnia, who is the Finches’ housekeeper and main feminine influence on their lives.

Calpurnia plays a large role in the children’s lives, but is disrespected by their Aunt Alexandra when she comes to stay with the family. Aunt Alexandra arrives at the house and states, “‘Put my bag in the front bedroom, Calpurnia’” (Lee ). Aunt Alexandra demands that Calpurnia take her bag and talks to her as if she is completely beneath her. She sees Calpurnia as a lowly black servant who is not worthy of her time, as Alexandra is just another example of their racist community. Alexandra does not think that Calpurnia is a good motherly influence on the children because she is black. Scout and Jem still have their childhood innocence however, and do not see her in that way. In reality, Calpurnia is a positive influence on the children; she is a kind person who acts like a mother. She is also somewhat educated and can offer advice to them. Alexandra would never acknowledge this because of the overwhelming amount of racism in the community. Instead, Alexandra feels that Calpurnia is unfit to raise the kids and that it is her place to intervene and live with the family, as she replaces Calpurnia as the their motherly figure. This scene is important as it again displays the theme of social inequality and racism in the story and how these opinions are shared by multiple characters in the

book.
As aforementioned, in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, protagonist Scout discovers the unavoidable results of social inequality as it impacts the lives of many people from her community. The theme of social inequality appears multiple times in the story when Tom Robinson and the Ewell family go to court and when Calpurnia and Aunt Alexandra interact in Scout’s home. Harper Lee more accurately describes and therefore helps the readers better understand the characters and their roles in the story by using writing techniques such as diction and word choice. The author then conveys the effects that social inequality can have on people in real life as she uses these characters and events from the story. The effects can go from one extreme to the other as a man can lose his life when Tom is accused of rape and killed or a person can be made fun of when the Ewell children are called “dirty” and “poor”. Whether the consequences are life threatening or not, they are still destructive and need to be avoided as social inequality needs to be nonexistent in the story and in real life.