Introduction: Being peaceful and togetherness is one of the fundamental human goals/ values - but even then, Racism is present to this day. Racism is a theme authors often put into stories, to show conflict and tension between the minority and majority - a problem still present to this day. This theme is evident in the texts; To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, Recitatif by Toni Morrison, Country Lovers by Nadine Gordomor , and the film version of The Help directed by Toni Morrison. The theme of racism is strongly present in these texts - from this I can analyze how racism corrupts our morality, how it is seen from different perspectives (the minority and the majority), and how it affects relationships.
Racism corrupts our morality:
…show more content…
The Ewell’s take advantage of Tom’s situation, Bob Ewell decides to accuse him of raping his daughter Mayella, even though he was only helping.This leads to an immediate loss for Tom - as even though he is innocent, the racist jury will always win through. However if this was the other way around ( a white man convicted of raping a young black girl) he would be let off easily - at least not as brutal a punishment compared to black people. “The only thing we’ve got is a black man's word against the Ewells'. The evidence boils down to you-did--I-didn't. The jury couldn’t possibly be expected to take Tom Robinson's word against the Ewells'?" Says Mr. Underwood as he talks to Scout and Jem about the court case.This quote indicates that they know Tom Robinson is innocent - however he can never win against a white mans word. Racism comes in a package with segregation , with these two combines humans’ moral compasses are …show more content…
At times we are so comfortable in our positions that we tend to bring others down to make sure we can keep living - life seems like a competition. The idea of white supremacy vs. black discrimination - and how it came about. Why is colour such an important factor of how people treat each other?
In The Help, the main character Skeeter is an educated young white woman - she is a bit unusual as she actually wants a proper job unlike her friends who are socialites. She challenged what was normal back then, unafraid to venture out and explore life on the other side. Skeeter interviews the coloured maids in each of her friend’s house - carefully thinking of the consequences if they stick up for themselves, they were hesitant. They wanted change - and in small amounts they started to speak
Racism is evident in the book To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Throughout the story whites are constantly challenging blacks, and vice versa, because blacks want to be seen as equals and not as a lesser race.
Tom Robinson is a hard-working African American in the town of Maycomb, Alabama. However, his life takes a tragic turn when he is accused of raping Mayella Ewell, daughter of the town’s least respected citizen, Tom Ewell. When he goes to court , even with the very capable Atticus Finch as his lawyer, his future looks grim. Regardless of the information that Tom Robinson and Atticus had provided that proved Tom as innocent, he was still found guilty. The reader can then conclude that the only explanation for this is that Tom Robinson was guilty not of rape, but of his being black. During the trial, Atticus states that, “She was white, and she tempted a Negro. She did something that in our society is unspeakable: she kissed a black man. Not an old uncle, but a strong young Negro man. No code mattered to her before she broke it, but it comes crashing down on her afterwards.” Atticus also states that, "Which, gentlemen, we know is in itself a lie as black as Tom Robinson's skin, a lie I do not have to point out to you. You know the truth, and the truth is this: some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some Negro men are not to be trusted around women—black or white. But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men. There is not a person in this courtroom who has never told a lie, who has never done an immoral thing, and there is no man living who has never looked upon a
One of the storylines in the novel is the Robinson-Ewell trial. Tom Robinson is an innocent African-American, accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a lower-class white girl. At the trial hearing, everyone is able to tell his or her side of the story before Tom is allowed to speak. All stories, however, offer two different versions of Tom and Mayella’s relationship. Moreover, Mayella and Bob Ewell tell the jury what they expect to hear, about Tom being a monster. They explain that there was no reason for his actions against Mayella. According to them, along with the rest of Maycomb, it's just expected that a black man would rape any white woman if he had the opportunity. The Tom spoken of by the Ewells shows the stereotypes that justify whites to be superior to blacks. However, Tom tells the jury about his innocence. He pr...
Throughout the novel Harper Lee explores the racism, prejudice, and the innocence that occurs throughout the book. She shows these topics through her strong use of symbolism throughout the story.
or accept any other opinion. In my essay I am going to write about the
In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Kathryn Stockett’s The Help, and the Scottsboro Trial the African-American community was degraded while the rest of society would not speak of any racial tensions because of their belief that they were contributing to their own communities. In The Help the African-American women of Jackson, Mississippi would take care of the white children, to a point where the children may even consider their “help” of a part of their family than their own parents, along with trying to take care of their own families. In To Kill a Mockingbird Tom Robinson is convicted of the rape of Mayella Ewell on the assumption that all black men are evil and can do no good. In the Scottsboro Trial, nine African-American teenagers
The novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee is a simplistic view of life in the Deep South of America in the 1930s. An innocent but humorous stance in the story is through the eyes of Scout and Jem Finch. Scout is a young adolescent who is growing up with the controversy that surrounds her fathers lawsuit. Her father, Atticus Finch is a lawyer who is defending a black man, Tom Robinson, with the charge of raping a white girl. The lives of the characters are changed by racism and this is the force that develops during the course of the narrative.
Mayella Ewell is white and therefore her claims against a black man are automatically believed. The vast majority of the people in the town feel that the incident occurred and harass Atticus for his legal support of Tom. “Francis looked at me carefully, concluded that I had been sufficiently subdued, and crooned softly, “Nigger-lover . . .”(Lee 84). This statement came from Francis Hancock when he first realized Atticus was Tom’s lawyer. Atticus would not have to go through all of this harassment if he refused to accept this role, but he wanted to help Tom Robinson. This is a clear case of discriminatory language, as Francis was showing his hatred for African Americans by using such a derogatory term. Atticus can control his emotions very well in response to these scenarios, unlike Scout. The things people are saying do not affect him one bit. “According to Miss Stephanie Crawford, however, Atticus was leaving the post office when Mr. Ewell approached him, cursed him, spat on him, and threatened to kill him” (Lee 217). Bob Ewell is Mayella Ewell’s father and he wanted to see Tom Robinson convicted. Atticus was able to walk away from this provocation without reacting in a negative manner. He was strong enough to ignore this negativity. During the trial, the jury and the judge also displayed a prejudicial belief system. The unfair attitudes and ideas of the townspeople towards were
To Kill a Mockingbird: Race Relations Racism is a problem that has been around for multiple centuries. In To Kill a Mockingbird, it demonstrates how racism can affect one person even in the court of law. In this story, the case of Tom Robinson is told. It is obvious that Robinson is a victim of racist people that see him guilty only because of his race, African American. From the beginning, it seems obvious that Robinson does not have a chance of winning his case, whether he is guilty or not.
The evidence clearly exhibits that Tom is innocent, but because of his race and color, he was still pleaded guilty with no exception. The decision of the jury was solely out of racism because at that time period, it was very uncommon for a black person to be considered right, especially in this situation. On page 220, it says,” In our courts, when it’s a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins.” Even according to Atticus, Tom’s Lawyer, he knows that the chances are very slim for them to win the case, even if Tom was being completely honest. In the song, it states,” Yes, your skin is white… does that make you right? ; Tell me: how can a color determine whether you’re wrong or right?” This quote relates to when Tom was telling the full truth during the case, but the jury believed Mayella over him just because of the difference in complexion. His situation is symbolic of the hypocrisy of racism in
One of the widely recognized controversies in American history is the 1930s, which housed the Great Depression and the post-civil war, the ruling of Plessy versus Ferguson and the Jim Crow Laws, and segregation. While textbooks detail the factual aspect of the time there is only one other literature that can exhibit the emotion experienced in the era. To Kill a Mockingbird is the acclaimed novel that displays the experiences of the South, through inequality and segregation, social class differences and the right to fairness. The novel’s experiences are narrated through a grown Scout, who appears as a little girl in the novel, offering her innocent views on the happenings in Maycomb County. The most observed aspect of the novel is race and racism; with Tom Robinson’s trial being the prime focus of the novel, the issue of race is bound to be discussed throughout the novel is race, racism and segregation; with Tom Robinson’s trial being the focus of the novel, the issue of race is heavily represented throughout the novel. With Mockingbird being a common book among English Language Arts and Literatures classrooms, the topic of race is bound to surface amid a young, twenty-first century group of student of students with the inevitability of this discussion, the question remains on how to approach the conversation as an educator. As an educator, one should seek to establish the context of the times, prepare the students for the conversation and examine the other characters and situations similarly to race. Educators must also be introspective before examining their students’ feelings, so that they are not surprised by their emotions and can also express their feelings to their students. The discussion should target a goal, one of examin...
Tom Robinson is at the stand being questioned by Mr. Gilmer. Dill starts to feel sick because of how Mr. Gilmer is treating Tom. The narrator explains, “Well, Dill,after all he is just a negro” (Lee 266).This piece of evidence shows that prejudice is used as an antagonist in the novel by giving an unfair trial to Tom Robinson. The quote states “he is just a negro,” which shows that the trial is unfair just because of the towns racial views on people of color. The jury is all white and the case is black versus white. The jury is very biased towards the case. The prosecuting lawyers and defending lawyer are giving their closing statements. Atticus ends with a powerful speech that prove Tom is innocent and his views on race. The jury thinks over all the evidence for a long time and come to a verdict. The author of To Kill A Mockingbird quotes, “Guilty...Guilty...Guilty...Guilty…” (Lee 282). This quote shows the jury is very prejudice. There is more than enough evidence to prove Tom did not rape Mayella and that Bob Ewell beat her. Even though there is enough evidence to proves Tom’s innocence the jury’s verdict is guilty just because of their hate and their prejudice towards African Americans. Ultimately, prejudice is being used as an antagonist is very thoroughly shown throughout the entirety of the
In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, racism is a major theme. Atticus Finch, the narrator’s father, defends a negro, Tom Robinson, in the court of law against a white man, Bob Ewell. Robinson had reportedly raped a young white girl, Mayella Ewell. But according to Robinson he had gone to help Mayella, as he often did, with work around the house. As he starts helping Mayella, she tries to get Tom to kiss her and will not let him out of the house. Bob Ewell sees this and chases Tom out of the house and accuses him of raping his daughter. Atticus goes against almost everyone in Maycomb County’s opinion in defending Tom Robinson. Throughout the course of the novel, racism effects many characters such as Tom and Helen Robinson, Scout and Jem Finch, and Mayella and Bob Ewell. All these characters had there lives
Tom Robinson’s trial, and in fact his entire life, was badly affected by racism. It is truly a testament to the corruption of society when a person who has earned a bad reputation is held in higher esteem than a person who was born with it, as is the case with Bob Ewell and Tom Robinson. Even though Tom was obviously honest in his testament, the jury sided with Bob Ewell because he was white. They made this decision despite the fact that the Ewell family was widely known to be a worthless part of society. Jem, not being racially prejudiced, could not understand this mentality. As Atticus pointed out, “If you (Jem) had been on the jury, son, and eleven other boys like you, Tom would be a free man.”
"The only thing we've got is a black man's word against the Ewells'. The evidence boils down to you-did-I-didn't. The jury couldn't possibly be expected to take Tom Robinson's word against the Ewells'.