Tom's Voice In To Kill A Mockingbird

Secondly, Tom’s voice is ignored just like the innocent fragile songbird. In the 1930s black people are ignored on the basis that they are viewed as compulsive liars and generally unpleasant people. At the end of the novel Atticus says ““The witnesses for the state have presented themselves to you gentlemen, to this court, in the cynical confidence that their testimony would not be doubted, confident that you gentlemen would go along with them on the assumption-the evil assumption-that all Negroes lie, that all Negroes are basically immoral beings, that all ***** men are not to be trusted around our women, an assumption one associates with minds of their caliber. Which, gentlemen, we know is in itself a lie as black as Tom Robinson’s skin,

a lie I do not have to point out to you. You know the truth, the truth is this: some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some ***** men cannot be trusted around women, black or white. But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men.” Atticus is trying to convince the jury that views on black people are wrong. The vast majority of the population of the book have racist mindsets, Atticus tries to change this by telling the jury and members of the court that some black people do lie but this does not mean that all black people lie and are immoral. Tom Robinson and the mockingbirds voices are not heard throughout the novel. No matter what Tom Robinson says in court the jury will always find a way to be on the white man's side “It couldn’t be worse, Jack. The only thing we’ve got is a black man’s word against the Ewells‘. The evidence boils down to you-did—I-didn’t. The jury couldn’t possibly be expected to take Tom Robinson’s word against the Ewells”. Tom Robinson is accused of something that he’s never done, but no one cares, he’s taken to prison. Atticus tells Jem “In our courts, when it’s a white man’s words against a black man, the white man always wins” (Pg.220). This quote is meaningful because it shows the Delicateness of a mockingbird and how black people were treated back then by the whites.Toms voice is taken jokingly and not serious by the white people, just like the mockingbird's voice.

Lastly, Tom Robinson was not taken seriously by his community because of the color of his skin, he was shot and killed “They shot 17 bullet holes in him.” (Pg.235).

Tom was shot by 17 bullets for no reason, they killed him so they could prove to the others that they would chose a white man word over a black man's anyday. Likewise, mockingbirds are killed for no reason too, just for personal enjoyment. After Tom’s death, Mr. underwood writes an editorial that describes Tom’s death as the “senseless slaughter of a songbird”. This means that the innocent and warm hearted Tom was judged by the color of his skin and was misjudged by people in Maycomb, just like how the mockingbird was killed by people. Tom realizing that he’s going to be stuck in prison forever tried to make a run for it “we had such a good chance. I guess Tom was tired of white men’s chances and prefered to take his own”. (Pg.236). Tom tried to escape just like a mockingbird that escapes from it’s cage to only be shot by men. The people in Maycomb never understood that what they did to Tom was wrong and never knew that Tom was trying to escape from his death, this can relate to the mockingbirds that get killed by people without them noticing that they mean no harm and that they’re only here to bring us happiness with their music. Tom Robinson lives like a mockingbird, he’s an innocent, kind, loving person who is destroyed by evil

people.