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Essays on to kill a mockingbird the movie
Essays on to kill a mockingbird the movie
Essays on to kill a mockingbird the movie
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Harper Lee has a number of characters that contribute to the novel and violent scenes in To Kill a Mockingbird, some that have meaning and some that do not. Some characters that appear often and some that have a minimal role in being seen in the novel, but the characters that do not appear often seem to have the biggest impact on the novel. There are three characters that are looked down on by society around them, one because of race and two because of their morals. Society disregarded these people simply because they were afraid that they could be like them and the unknown. Lee uses violence and alienation to help depict the things that are wrong within the small society.
Mr. Dolphus Raymond, a man who pretended to be the town drunk so that he could be with the woman that he loved. Mr. Raymond is a white man that happened to fall in love with a black woman. Living in Southern Alabama one could not be with an African American if they were white. He would walk around Maycomb County with a coke bottle in a paper bag and just drink from that every day. “When I come to town, which is seldom, if I weave a little and drink out of this sack, folks can say Dolphus Raymond’s in the clutches of whiskey—that’s why he won’t change his ways. He can’t help himself, that’s why he lives the way he lives the way he does” (Lee, 268).
He came from a rich white family that likely had slaves in the past and knew that if he was not acting like a drunk that society would shun him for being with an African American woman and having interracial children with her. However, he figured that if he acted as the town drunk no one would shun him because he would not know any better. Mr. Raymond showed that it was okay to do what was different from ...
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...be remembered as individuals acting not as a group. Lee uses this group to show that everyone is willing to be a part of a group regardless of how much harm it causes, but the second it becomes and individual matter they all turn away and let the legal process take place.
In Conclusion, Harper Lee uses a number of alienated characters to help her show that it is okay to be your own person and love who you want to love. As well as showing that sometimes being afraid of the unknown and taking the time to try to know someone can go a long way in terms of saving ones’ life. The violence throughout the novel also plays a major role in assisting with the novel because it showed that people will act one way in groups but completely different in another.
Works Cited
Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. Reprint. New York City: Grand Central Publishing, 1982. Print
one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it is a sin to
In chapter 14, “Lessons from the Barbershop and Lawn-Mowing Clients”, Roberts discusses how his childhood business, when he was enrolled at Dunbar, was negatively impacted when it became known that Terrence was a member of the Little Rock Nine. Nearly all of Terrence’s clients were white and he noticed that “as long as [he] presented [himself] as one who would work hard and stay within the bounds of socially prescribed behavior” that he would be able to work as much as he wanted (133). However, as it emerged that Terrence was a member of the Little Rock Nine, and therefore a rebel, he found out that many of his clients, including “one woman in particular, Mrs. Montgomery…could not, in good conscience, hire a black person who harbored thoughts of being equal to her” (134). Then, Roberts provides an intriguing counterexample by speaking about his “Uncle Leady, returning from a stint in the Korean War” (134). When visiting the same white woman, Mrs. Montgomery, “he insisted that he be allowed to enter through the front door,” which was typically reserved for whites only, yet “she had agreed” (134).
Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. New York, New York: Grand Central Publishing, 1960. Print.
Childhood is a continuous time of learning, and of seeing mistakes and using them to change your perspectives. In the book To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee illustrates how two children learn from people and their actions to respect everyone no matter what they might look like on the outside. To Kill A Mockingbird tells a story about two young kids named Scout and her older brother Jem Finch growing up in their small, racist town of Maycomb, Alabama. As the years go by they learn how their town and a lot of the people in it aren’t as perfect as they may have seemed before. When Jem and Scout’s father Atticus defends a black man in court, the town’s imperfections begin to show. A sour, little man named Bob Ewell even tries to kill Jem and Scout all because of the help Atticus gave to the black man named Tom Robinson. Throughout the novel, Harper Lee illustrates the central theme that it is wrong to judge someone by their appearance on the outside, or belittle someone because they are different.
"To Kill a Mockingbird." Sparknotes LLC. 2003. Barnes & Noble Learning Network. 2 Nov. 2003 .
...ne of his biggest secrets, he states, “I want to try to give [people] a reason… If I weave a little and drink out of this sack, folks can say Dolphus Raymond’s in the clutches of whiskey-that’s why he won’t change his ways. He can’t help himself that’s why he lives the way he lives” (Lee, 200). Dolphus Raymond knows prejudice, injustice, and racism are very well alive in the community. He doesn’t want to be judged by his community and he finds the only way to escape the torment of the society’s judgements is by pretending to be drunk. Scout learns about the judgemental society she lives in. Moreover, she learns not to judge others before knowing their stories. Clearly, the events of the Tom Robinson trial are very important to Scout. The trial causes Scout to mature before her time, but also enables her to learn the truth about the untold and dark secrets of life.
Sum up, the social relationship between these people here, this old town Maycomb is complicated and pretty tense. This novel has taught us so much, thanks to Harper Lee – one of the greatest writers of all time. It has opened our eyes wider about racism at that time and compared it to nowadays it has become so much better. People are equally, no matter what skin color you are, what religion you have, or where you’re from, what you’re appearance looks like, we are all equal, and we are all the same – human. So instead of treating badly to one another we should all united and make the world a better place.
Harper Lee’s only book, To Kill a Mockingbird, is the stereotypical tale of childhood and innocence, yet it successfully incorporates mature themes, like the racism in the South at the time, to create a masterpiece of a work that has enraptured people’s minds and hearts for generations. According to esteemed novelist Wally Lamb, “It was the first time in my life that a book had sort of captured me. That was exciting; I didn’t realize that literature could do that” (111). Scout’s witty narration and brash actions make her the kind of heroine you can’t help but root for, and the events that take place in Maycomb County are small-scale versions of the dilemmas that face our world today. Mockingbird is a fantastically written novel that belongs on the shelves for classic literature that everyone should take the time to read and appreciate for their execution of style and the importance of their content.
Ultimately, the minor characters in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird are crucial in rendering the novel a masterpiece. Their individuality is refreshing yet meaningful, as they break the stereotypes that attempt to limit a prejudiced society. Scout herself is deeply influenced by the characters she meets, and the experience only increases her wisdom. Also, the symbols portrayed through minor characters speak volumes about humankind- not only of our flaws but of the promise of change and redemption. In truth, minor characters are of utmost importance in any story, because the world an author creates is only as good as the characters that populate it.
Lee, Harper. "Chapter 11." To Kill a Mockingbird. Philadelphia: Harper & Row, 1960. 113. Print.
My attitude to racism has developed in the course of the narrative. Mr Dolphus Raymond continues to elaborate on my feelings while he talks to Scout and Dill during the court case. He is a sinful man according to the community as he is has fathered mixed children. To contemplate this felony he pretended to be a drunk: "Secretly, Miss Finch, I'm not much of a drinker, but you see they could never, never understand that I live like I do because that is the way I want to live.
the black man in the South in the early 1900's. This story deals partly with racial
The author behind the influential and famous novel To Kill A Mockingbird is a woman by the name of Harper Lee. This ingenious woman made magic with only her inventive mind, creative imagination, past experiences and passion for kindness and equality. She was born and raised in a time of prejudice and racism but she always found a way to keep her goodness intact. She never let herself get corrupted or influenced by frivolous and uneducated people. Harper Lee’s influences as a child and views of society as an adult inspired her to fight against the world’s prejudice outlook on life by writing To Kill A Mockingbird, a novel that argues against society’s biased views toward racism.
Harper Lee addresses prejudice, tolerance, and the courage it takes to make a societal change. For instance, Harper grew up hearing the reactions and suffrage taking place during the Scottsboro trial. She takes inspiration for her novel by including an all white jury, rushed trials, and an attempted lynching in her retelling. Both the Tom Robinson trial and the Scottsboro
Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird: The Significance of a Mockingbird In a society surrounded by corruption, racism, and cruelty it is rare to find purity. Innocence is constantly being destroyed. For this reason, the harmless citizens need to be treasured and protected. Harper Lee’s classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird portrays the injustices of the 1930’s that expose the innocent to the malice of the society’s intentions. Some characters in the novel are characterized as harmless and pure and are symbolized by mockingbirds.