What Are The Similarities Between African American And Ewells

Compare Contrast African Americans vs The Ewells
People have always judged and had prejudices towards others. In Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” the African Americans and a family named the Ewells are looked down upon by the rest of the town. They differ greatly though in why. They share a common class and financial status. However, The African Americans vary from the Ewells in how they came to the lower class and their lifestyle.
Like the African Americans of the South, The Ewell family also suffered the position of a low class group. Jem puts it very well chapter 23, “There’s four kinds of folks in the world. There’s the ordinary kind, like us and the neighbors, there’s the kind like the Cunninghams out in the woods, the kind like

the Ewells down at the dump, and the Negroes.” Jem attempts to categorize the vast subject of social class into four small groups to teach Scout. Both the Ewells and the African Americans live in poverty and are lower class. Because of this, they are looked down upon by the other people in Maycomb County. Also, they are treated differently because of their class. The Ewells are looked down upon because they live in a dump and none of them work. While both the Ewells and African Americans are low in social order, how they got there differs immensely.
The only reason African Americans are in the lower class is because of the color of their skin.

They are portrayed as kind and respectful and never talk bad about the white people. Meanwhile, the Ewells earned every bit of where they are right now. The African Americans should not be in the low class of poverty, but are placed there because of their color. In chapter 23, Atticus states, “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 carrying their resentments right into a jury box.” What Atticus is saying is that Tom Robinson or any black person did not put themselves in the position they are in. Yet still people carry their stereotypes and resentments into court. Although the Ewell’s are considered the “white trash” of the town, even they are considered higher and better than the African Americans. The low class white people are better than the high class African Americans just because of the color of their skin. While their social hierarchy differed, both groups knew the feeling of poverty far too

well.
Both of these groups live in the poor part of town near the dump.

“…Walter Cunningham was sitting there lying his head off. He didn’t forget his lunch, he didn’t have any. He had none today nor would he have any tomorrow or the next day. He had probably never seen three quarters together at the same time in his life.” On the first day of school, the Cunningham’s boy didn’t bring a lunch. It was not because he forgot, but because he could not afford it. Jem places the Ewells and African Americans below this family. These groups have it much worse off than the rest of the town. Another instance is at the African American church. The pastor takes up a collection for Tom Robinson’s wife, Helen, while Tom is in jail and on trial. The African Americans lifestyle is similar to the Ewells in that of poverty, but work ethic sets them apart like black and

white.
Self pride goes back far for the African Americans and they take pride in having an honest work ethic. On page 30, Scout tells Atticus that she doesn’t want to and doesn’t have to go to school, giving the example of Burris Ewell. Atticus responds by telling her it is sometimes better to bend the law in certain circumstances instead of enforce them. He then gives these three examples of how the Ewells live and why they are an exception, “None of them have done an honest day’s work in his recollection…They were people but they lived like animals…when a man spends his relief checks on green whiskey, his children have a way of crying from hunger pains. I don’t know of an landowner around here who begrudges those children any game their father can hit.” Lifestyle was a enormous difference between these two. The African Americans dressed well and went to church, while the Ewells lived like pigs. Providing for their families and community was also an important aspect of their lives unlike Bob Ewell. When Helen needed money to feed her children the entire church pitched in to help. Also the African Americans were honorable. They never back talked a white person and were always respectful to whoever they might be with. Finally, their morals set them apart greatly. A good example is the immorality of Mayella Ewell. She attempted to kiss a black man and then twisted the story around and lied. Tom Robinson had come to help her everyday because he saw how much work she had to do. Their lifestyles affected their relationships with their community and overall affected how their lives turned out.
Differing in work ethic and how they arrived in the lower class, African Americans and the Ewells both lived in poverty. While both of the groups lived in the lower part of town, how they got there was immensely divergent. Living in a world of prejudice and poverty could get to oneself, but the African Americans continued an honest work ethic. Dale Carnegie made prejudice seem very plain and simple, “Even god doesn't propose to judge a man till his last days, why should you and I?”