To Kill a Mockingbird : Discuss Your Opinion Of The Ewells The Ewells play a significant part in this story of "To Kill a Mockingbird". In the first chapter, Scout mentions the Ewells to us that the "Ewells started it all". Scout means that the Ewells had an affect on the residents of Maycomb. The story will involve an allegation of rape and the way black and white issues (the prejudice that runs through the whole of the story) are covered. Burris Ewell, the son of Bob Ewell, shows how bad his living conditions are. He has head lice and is very dirty. Scout describes him as: "He was the filthiest human I had ever seen. His neck was dark gray, the backs of his hands were rusty, and his fingernails were black deep into the quick". He does not care that he is dirty or he has head lice. He cannot read, write or spell his name. He has no mother and Mayella Ewell brings him up. From the very beginning of the story, the Ewells are portrayed badly. Scout learns from her father that she had to go to school but the Ewells do not. Atticus explains that the Ewells are not regular people and this goes back three generations: "None of them (Ewells) had done an honest day's work in his recollection. He said that some Christmas, when he was getting ride of the trees, he would take me with him and show me where and how they lived. They were people, but they lived like animals." This quote shows us the prejudice that the Ewells experience from other people in Maycomb because of their low social position in the town. We learn about the Ewells mainly in the court case when Mayella Ewell has accused a black man, Tom Robinson of raping her. From the court case we learn that Bob Ewell is ignorant and quite crude in his use of ... ... middle of paper ... ...the lower class whites and blacks and it is because of this that the Ewells felt threatened by the blacks. The verdict was inevitable as the history of slavery meant that the jury was always going to find Tom guilty and Mayella the victim. Whichever way he acted he would have been found guilty in the eyes of white people. If he tried to defend himself against a white woman's advances the situation would be seen to be of his making and therefore his fault. If he ran as he did it would be taken as an admission of guilt. He was in an impossible position. I think the author took the easy way out in dealing with a difficult character, Mr. Ewell. The Ewells are simply reacting to how people and life has treated them. Perhaps after Mr. Ewell's death there will be light and hope for the future. "Mayella's flowers at the Ewell residence can now begin to flourish".
In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, the most important character trait portrayed by Bob Ewell is prejudice. Throughout the book, Bob Ewell demonstrates how prejudice has been kept alive through ignorance and fear. First, by blaming Tom Robinson for beating Mayella. During the trial, Bob Ewell stood up and pointed his finger at Tom Robinson "I seen that black nigger yonder ruttin' on my Mayella"(84)! Bob Ewell emphasizes Tom’s race over everything else. He doesn’t care who he is as a person all he cares about is the color of his skin. Towards the end of the trial, Atticus has one last chance to prove the Ewells wrong. Atticus asks: “About your writing with your left hand, are you ambidextrous, Mr. Ewell? I most positively
It is Mayella's deceit that brings Tom Robinson to trial. Though she may not be forgiven for this lie, Atticus and Scout feel sympathy for her because of the terrible poverty in which she lives. Whenever Scout feels sorry for Mayella we do as well as we are viewing the trial from her point of view.
Imagine a world where anyone who was born with brown hair got to give orders to anyone born with blonde hair. If you're born with brown hair, you could have better careers and the better education whereas the blondes wouldn’t even been given a fair court trial. If something like this happened overnight, there would be a huge uproar, but what if it happened over time and generations grew to accept it? Eventually, people would start to argue that brown haired people were naturally superior to blondes. If you were living in a tiny town in the Deep South, such as Maycomb, you’d have even less of a reason to question the status quo. Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird is trying to teach his kids, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view- until you climb in his skin and walk around in it.” Furthermore, the largest forms of discrimination in the novel are racism and classism.
...hed the last race and made his way home the end of the ceremony may begin.
One of the major events in Harper Lee’s award-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird is Tom Robinson’s trial. It is based on the Scottsboro Case that took place in 1931 in Alabama, in which several black men were accused of raping two white women. Both the Scottsboro Boys and Tom Robinson are unfairly judged, however, because of prejudice against colored people. The racial discrimination makes whites’ testimony more believable even when it contradicts itself. The same happens in To Kill a Mockingbird. As we delve deeper into the case and get increasingly closer to the truth, it is quite suprising to see that Mayella Ewell is the true villain rather than a victim. She shall and must bear full responsibility for her actions because she makes the decision to tempt Tom Robinson, gives false testimony in court that directly leads to Tom’s death, and has been well aware of the consequences of her behaviors.
The text states “ We often take responsibility in a way that goes beyond what we can reasonably be held responsible for.” (Sherman pg.154) This shows that the survivor takes the blame because they killed their loved one they just feel like that because the survivor was driving and didn’t wait or didn’t see the other driver that crashed into them. This proves that survivor's should not feel guilt for something they didn’t do because the other dumb person was drunk, or
To Kill A Mockingbird Generations of family, living in the same community can leave an identity for themselves, making them live with it for generations to generations. The Finches, The Ewells and Dill's family are three families who are all criticized and sometimes applauded for their way of living. The Ewells are “ the disgrace of Maycomb for three generations.
Keeping a mouth shut doesn't hold the world shut out, it opens up new doors to things that would never be expected. In To Kill A Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, there is are two character that is are an eternal mystery for the readers. Boo Radley, though the reader nor Scout and Jem know anything about the character all they want is to learn about him. Boo becomes a mysterious figure that many see as creepy, ghostly, but also reasonably wise. The one-time Boo appears the readers learn he is a sagacious, powerful man. Little do Scout and Jem know is that their father is also a rational being as well. The two crucial character in the story helps support the
out just fine in the end, which makes his downfall that much worse. A point that
Has evil always been around, or did man create it? One could trace evil all the way back to Adam and Eve; however, evil came to them, but it was not in them. When did evil become part of a person? No one knows, but evil has been around for a long time and unfortunately is discovered by everyone. In many great classics in literature evil is at the heart or the theme of the novel, including Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. This classic book demonstrates the growing up of two children in the South and illustrates the theme of evil by showing how they discover, how they deal, and how they reconcile themselves to the evils they experience.
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.
In To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Bob Ewell assumes the racist, biased, and unjust motivations in order to retain any scrap of dignity in Maycomb County. Bob Ewell sees that he has been bested, and that the town knows the truth, however, he is able to abuse his racial standpoint, using racism to scapegoat his actions. The town, even though they all are aware that Bob Ewell is guilty, has been racially obligated to oppress Tom Robinson, due to the racist roots embedded in the town.
You know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen. You know Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen. But do you recall the most famous reindeer of all? Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer was misperceived at first. All of the other reindeer used to laugh and call him names, but after he led Santa’s sleigh, they loved him. Misperceptions like this happen all throughout Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. As you read the novel you see original judgments made about characters transform into new conceptions and new understandings. Some characters twist your views of them on purpose, others do it involuntarily. To Kill a Mockingbird shows this happening over and over again. All you have to do is look for it.
The Cunningham and Ewell families in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee are different in various ways. One difference involves their parenting style. The Cunningham’s dad teaches the kids to be gentlemen and takes care of his kids. This is shown when Walter is nice to his teacher and refuses to take the money she is offering. He kindly says, “Nome thank you ma’am.” (19). Walter Cunningham even talks to Atticus like a man, and the Cunningham’s father always teaches his kids to never take anything they can’t pay back. On the other hand, the Ewell’s father “spends all his relief checks on green whiskey” (31) and doesn’t teach his kids any manners. The Ewell father breaks the law so he can hunt and trap food; he doesn’t make his kids go to school except
In the novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Lee writes about a small county in southern Alabama, Maycomb County, it was known as being prejudice towards the black people. In it Lee makes it possible to sympathize with Mayella with details about her life at home and characterization of Bob Ewell, along with the characterization of Mayella however Lee makes it slightly difficult to feel sympathy for her with characterization of Tom Robinson.