Ahead of Her Time: Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird

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The novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is thought to have been way ahead of her time of literature and went places were books of that time did not go, and still do not go. Lee went head at the lifestyle of the 1930’s in Alabama, and talked about racism and prejudice as many others stayed away from that topic. In the novel there were many different times where Lee brought out the dark side of the “dirty thirties” she shows prejudice and racism at its worst moments. Lee has her main characters of Jem Finch, and Scout Finch experience prejudice and racism as the book goes on and mainly in the second part. In the second part of the novel the characters find racism when Calpurnia takes the kids to her church, what the find out about Mr.Dolphus Raymond, and then at the end of the trial.

In chapter 12 Calpurnia takes the children to her church as Atticus is away. As Calpurnia takes the children up to the front doors of the church most of the blacks’ part and make a pass way for them to walk up. Although there is one person who does not believe that the Finches should be allowed to be in the black church, and she will make sure that her views are known and her name is Lula. Lula said “You ain’t got no business bringin’ white chillum here-they got their church, we got our’n. It is our church,…”(Lee,119). To this quote the Jem, and Scout are taken back by this remark as they thought that they were welcomed everywhere. In this situation they may not see it but they are being treated like the blacks where they enter the white community. The children find out that later that Lula is the only one that does not want the children at the church and they are welcomed at the church and that only Lula is the only one of the blac...

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...ust because of their race and peoples perceived prejudice of the person. Lastly this shows the most common kind of prejudice and that is white people against the blacks.

All in all Harper Lee’s book To Kill A Mockingbird was and is still ahead of its time in the sense that it shows racism and prejudice. The examples above are only 3 of a possible hundred to pick from in the novel. What this shows is that there are many different kinds of racism and it is not always white people of the black people, there are many different kinds of prejudice and racism. This brings out that because of the fact that prejudice comes in both ways it is almost impossible to stop people from being prejudice. So in conclusion racism and prejudice comes in all forms and can come from anyone at anytime, and it has gotten into places that some people never thought it could have gone.

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