Never judge a book by its cover. It is a metaphorical statement, meaning you should not presume the worth or value of something, by external looks only. Throughout John Ball’s novel, In the Heat of the Night, it is demonstrated that you should never judge a person by the colour of their skin. Such racism is evidenced by prejudice, arrogance, and ignorance. In the town of Wells, the population is largely white, with a few blacks scattered among them. There is a small part of the town, the poor shabby side, sectioned off where the blacks live. They are all poor and can't afford to live in nicer homes, and this is the way the rest of the citizens want to keep it. The white people want to be in charge of everything the blacks do. So when the black detective Virgil Tibbs comes along, the whole of Wells has an extremely hard time trying to accept an educated and wealthy black man. Each of these ideas …show more content…
When you talk to another adult, Virgil Tibbs in this instance, calling him boy shows you have little respect for that person. Also, you think of that person as lower than yourself, as shown in this quote: “Incidentally, Virgil is a pretty fancy name for a black boy like you” (36). Chief Gillespie has called Tibbs a boy, meaning he thinks of himself higher than Tibbs. And by disrespecting Tibbs repeatedly by calling him by his first name over and over, it shows that Gillespie holds very little respect for the black detective. To insult Tibbs further, he asks, “what do they call you around home where you come from?” (36). The black detective replies with: “They call me Mr. Tibbs” (36). This quote proves that Tibbs is accustomed to the respect that his fellow colleagues back in Pasadena give him. The way Chief Gillespie communicates with Tibbs, shows that Gillespie thinks that he is a lot better than this black
“Our Civilization is flinging itself to pieces. Stand back from the centrifuge” (Bradbury, 84). The novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a comment on the habit of mankind to destroy itself, only to pop right back up from the ashes. The main character, Guy Montag, represents the parts of mankind that are becoming aware of this, through awareness, change through tragedy and obligation to spread both the former.
Plainclothes cops even pretend to be Clerks in the store, and they are so certain that he is black, looks unsettling that they even ask him to “holler” if he wants steal something, and they are ready catch him any minute. Additionally, Young writes about “Crowds gather/& wonder how/the spotlight sounds.” Here, “spotlight sounds” actually refers to the response from the narrator or black men to other’s attentions or treatments. Ironically, people do not listen to black people’s voice, and they simply judge from one’s skin
In the 1950 novel Fahrenheit 451, AUTHOR Ray Bradbury presents the now familiar images of mind controlING worlds. People now live in a world where they are blinded from the truth of the present and the past. The novel is set in the, perhaps near, future where the world is AT war, and firemen set fires instead of putting them out. Books and written knowledge ARE banned from the people, and it is the firemen's job to burn books. Firemen are the policemen of THE FUTURE. Some people have rebelled by hiding books, but have not been very successful. Most people have conformed to THE FUTURE world. Guy Montag, a fireman, is a part of the majority who have conformed. BUT throughout the novel Montag goes through a transformation, where he changes from a Conformist to a Revolutionary.
Namely, he gets his message across to his audience with the use of imagery. Even so, he says that when he’s out walking the streets of Brooklyn at night, he finds that women “set their faces on neutral”, place their purses “across their chest bandolier style”, and “forge ahead as though bracing themselves from being talked” (Staples 543). With this use of imagery, Staples is able to place an image in the reader’s head of a young women walking the streets- alone, tense, and skittish- all because of man who, unbeknownst, means no harm to her. This denotes the theme of racial profiling in society because it shows the woman’s fear of an African American walking the streets, whom of which has not made one advance or threatening move towards the woman. The woman’s ability to assume the worst in the blink of an eye shows how society has been drilled with the influence of stereotypes and racial profiling. This leads to the fact that an innocent man is being ridiculed for the color of his skin while he had done nothing to cause such actions. Moreover, the description of the woman’s reaction to Staples makes the audience pity him because of his innocence in the cruel and unfair situation and unwillingness to be anybody other than an innocent bystander. Additionally, Staples’ use
In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird Atticus Finch, a well-respected defense attorney in Macomb County, made a life-altering decision to whole-heartedly defend a benevolent black man, Tom Robinson, who was wrongly accused of rape. Many conflicts arose because of Atticus’s choice to defend a black man against a white man’s word. Despite the towns cowardice and ridicule, Atticus stays true to what is right. “They're certainly entitled to think that, and they're entitled to full respect for their opinions... but before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience” (140). Throughout the story Scout, Atticus’s daughter, transforms from a trouble maker always looking to pick a fight with anyone she disagreed with, into a young lady who was able to follow her father’s example and “consider things from his point of view... you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it” (30). Through Atticus’s wise, unchanging character, the theme is revealed. The bond between Atticus and Scout teaches her the one thing that he was trying to do all along: Don’t just fight; stand up and fight for what is right, no matter what the cost.
Twelve Angry Men, is a play written by Reginald Rose. The play is about the process of individuals and a court case, which is determining the fate of a teenager. It presents the themes of justice, independence and ignorance. Rose emphasises these three themes through the characters and the dialogue. Justice is the principle of moral rightness or equity. This is shown through juror number eight who isn’t sure whether or not the boy is actually innocent or guilty, but he persists to ask questions and convinces the other jurors to think about the facts first. Independence is shown through both juror number three and ten. They both believe that the defendant is guilty until they both realise that they can not relate there past experiences with the court case. Ignorance is shown throughout all the jurors during the play, it is also brought out through the setting of the play.
Sam Woods is a very important character in the novel In the Heat of the Night. He is a racist, and throughout the novel you will notice many changes in his attitude towards Negros.
The author George Elliot once said “don’t judge a book by its cover.” Appearance can be very misleading, and you shouldn't prejudge the worth or value of something by its outward appearance alone. This philosophical idea has been included in many works of literature, including the timeless classic To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee. The novel takes place in the town of Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930s. Many citizens of Maycomb tend to make judgements based on outward appearances alone. In the novel, Lee uses minor characters such as Boo Radley, Mrs. Dubose, and Tom Robinson to convey the book’s theme of prejudice.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”-Martin Luther King Jr. This quote shows how racism is like darkness and hate and love and light are the only way to drive racism out. The story takes place at the time of the great depression. Scout lives in a very racist and judgement city in the south. A black male is accused of raping a white woman. Scouts dad Atticus gets appointed to be the defendant's lawyer. Racism is an antagonist in To Kill A Mockingbird because the white people of Maycomb discriminate the blacks and make them feel lesser. The theme racism can be harmful to everyone is shown by many characters throughout the book.
...tty clothes and how Virgil is able to afford the types of clothing that coloured people wear. Finally, while Virgil was entering the jail cell Oberst made a racist comment “’put him someplace else I don’t want no nig-“’ (61). He is typically saying that he could not stand being in the presence of a coloured man. In brief, Harvey Oberst is a typical racist, who does not approve of coloured people.
Thomas Gray, a poet from the eighteenth century, coined the phrase “Ignorance is bliss” in his poem, Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College (1742), and three centuries later, this quote is commonly used to convey the message that sometimes, being ignorant of the truth can cause happiness, and knowledge can actually can be the source of pain or sadness. However, in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, this phrase is taken very literally, and knowledge is feared to the extent where books are considered illegal. Throughout The Hearth and the Salamander, Guy Montag, the main character, experiences a drastic change wherein he begins to realize that there is power in knowledge, and that this intelligence has the potential to be worth more than the so-called “bliss” that ignorance can bring.
Throughout the events of the trial in Maycomb, Atticus’s most important advice for Scout is that “you never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” (Lee, 30) As the society’s prejudices surround Scout and Jem, Atticus encourages them to cultivate respect within themselves; not only for other races, but for everyone. Throughout “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Harper Lee traces out Scout’s growing respect for outsiders, for her aggressors, and eventually for Boo Radley.
Initially, the readers are ladened pompously with symbolism and second “hidden” meanings that bear heartfelt morals, most of which are practically thrown at them. This blatant use of allegory comes off as if Lee is attempting to sell her book as a meaningful and important work of literature. The most obvious usage of allegory is in the case of Bob Ewell, who is one of the main focuses of the trial. He is racist, poor, irate, and manipulative; often referred to as white-trash. If the peruser were to take a moment and think on these traits, they would be greeted with thoughts of the Deep South and states like Alabama and Georgia. Mr. Ewell is Harper’s physical manifestation of the Deep South. Even the way he talks is strongly reinforced by hackneyed beliefs of the way southerners spoke then, saying things like “Wadn’t no need to,” and “What’s so interestin’,” to portray his own ineptness and accentuate his Sout...
Atticus unbound himself from the unspoken fundamentals of the county, he defended a black man. Although his own race was against him, he unabatedly believed Tom Robinson’s testimonies. In a time where money and race were factors that adjudged one's life, a poor, white man was seen as more important than a rich, black man. Born into a world divided by the black and white spectrums, Atticus saw the people less in colour and wealth, but simply as human beings whose paths should only be decided by their love and generosity; “As you grow older, you’ll see white men cheat black men every day of your life...whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that man is trash.” (Lee 295). Atticus taught Scout that essential goodness is beyond skin colour, and money isn’t a guide to character. Atticus fought against his society for the benefit of others. A heavier censorship also loomed over Guy Montag’s society. With time, books were replaced as technology prevailed, speed limits grew faster, and firefighters became fire-starters. Unlike any other citizen in his community, Guy found a sudden interest in books, ironically he was raised to be against knowledge like every other person in his city. Montag began to wonder what made books so important, he pondered the question as it scratched at the back of his head; “There must be something in books, something we can’t imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don’t stay for nothing.” (Bradbury 48). As the unhappiness grew, Montag began to realize the faults in his society, he didn’t agree with the laws and chose to fight against his previous beliefs; “it was a pleasure to burn.” (Bradbury 1). However, as Montag burrowed deeper into books, his principles
Compare and contrast the relationship of the detective to his or her community in Devil in a Blue Dress and Corollary In Walter Mosley’s “devil in a blue dress”, there is a clear cut distinction between the white and black man, this distinction is portrayed as something that is somewhat negative and looks at the situation from the eyes of a black man named Ezekiel “Easy” Rawlins and how he is changed from a simple day to day laborer into an effective detective.