Throughout the books Huckleberry Finn, Othello, and To Kill a Mockingbird certain characters challenge what the status quo was at that time. They go against what the norm was and go against what other characters think. This causes controversy and is a major part of the plot in all three books. The main way that these 3 books challenge the status quo for that time is through race. Many of the characters are against what is viewed as normal and have views that were known as radical at that time. The main way their views are different is certain white characters view black people in the books in a positive way and are willing to associate themselves with them even though that is against what most people thought was right. Throughout each …show more content…
Atticus Finch is the main character that defies the status quo on race in this book. He views a black man equal to a white man which is against what a majority of the people thought during this time. The text states, "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 came crashing down on her afterwards,"(20.44-45). This quote explains the status quo for the time. It shows how people do not believe that white and black people should interact in a relationship and when this happened the white people were ashamed and called it rape. They were ashamed because a white woman liked a black man. Atticus, however, has different views on this topic. He says this in a conversation with Scout,"You aren't really a n****r-lover, then, are you?" "I certainly am. I do my best to love everybody... I'm hard put, sometimes—baby, it's never an insult to be called what somebody thinks is a bad name. It just shows you how poor that person is, it doesn't hurt you," (11.107-109). He explains that he loves everyone no matter what skin color. This is against the status quo because most white people disliked black people. It explains that he challenges the status quo for this time and has his own beliefs. Atticus also tries to teach his kids these beliefs in that everyone should be treated equally and he does not want them to be influenced by what other people say about him or how they treat African
The main conflict is between the blacks and the whites and for generations the blacks have been enduring continuous racial abuse from the white. 1. For instance, when Atticus gets involved in Tom 's case as the defendant lawyer, he faces a lot of criticism from his dear ones. Thomas Robinson is a negro who is accused of rape by a 19 year old white girl named Mayella Ewell. "I guess it ain 't you fault if Uncle Atticus is a nigger-lover besides, but I 'm here to tell you it certainly does mortify the rest of the family - he 's ruinin ' the family, that 's what he 's doin '" (110). Francis Hancock feels ashamed of Atticus 's actions and feels it is ruining the Finch family 's image with the agreement of other family members such as Alexandra. Atticus is a man who believes in the justice system, believes everyone is equal, and believes that faith would take a turn to help him get the negros freed. 2. During the trial period, Mr. Gilmer (the rival) shows no sense of decency towards Tom whereas, Atticus 's behavior towards Mayella was kind, he treated her with respect by addressing her as Miss. Mayella. "...The way [Mr. Gilmer] called [Tom Robinson] 'boy ' all the time an ' sneered at him an ' looked around at the jury every time he answered-" (266). Mr. Gilmer 's main argument was that there was no way any person of that descent would do work without the intentions of a reward as pay back, he kept looking back to
What does it mean to be a good parent? The most common definition of a good parent is one who makes their children feel valued and loved, by teaching them the difference between right and wrong. At the end of the day, the most essential thing is to create a nurturing environment where your children feel like they can mature into confident, independent, and caring adults. Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird defines what a true parent really is thought hardships and struggles throughout the book. The story is set in the Depression era of a little town in southern Alabama that is struggling with thick prejudice on a colored rape case. The story is told through a character
Imagine yourself doing something that was completely unspeakable of in your society. Now, what if I told you it was something that came down to a concept as simple as black and white? Racial injustice is the biggest problem that is faced throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Atticus Finch was put on the spot many times and during these many occurrences we see his moral and ethically inclined personality show. For this reason, Atticus is indeed a hero to a modern audience because he demonstrates an approach to situations that would better society. Not only does he expresses this through sticking to his conscience and morals; but Atticus also shows courage and puts himself and his reputation at risk in order to accomplish the results he wants to achieve.
Scout Finch, the youngest child of Atticus Finch, narrates the story. It is summer and her cousin Dill and brother Jem are her companions and playmates. They play all summer long until Dill has to go back home to Maridian and Scout and her brother start school. The Atticus’ maid, a black woman by the name of Calpurnia, is like a mother to the children. While playing, Scout and Jem discover small trinkets in a knothole in an old oak tree on the Radley property. Summer rolls around again and Dill comes back to visit. A sence of discrimination develops towards the Radley’s because of their race. Scout forms a friendship with her neighbor Miss Maudie, whose house is later burnt down. She tells Scout to respect Boo Radley and treat him like a person. Treasures keep appearing in the knothole until it is filled with cement to prevent decay. As winter comes it snows for the first time in a century. Boo gives scout a blanket and she finally understands her father’s and Miss Maudie’s point of view and treats him respectfully. Scout and Jem receive air guns for Christmas, and promise Atticus never to shoot a mockingbird, for they are peaceful and don’t deserve to die in that manner. Atticus then takes a case defending a black man accused of rape. He knows that such a case will bring trouble for his family but he takes it anyways. This is the sense of courage he tries to instill in his son Jem.
Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird depicts the story of an egalitarian man living in a racially prejudiced society. In the town of Maycomb, Alabama, most people are racist towards African Americans, leaving only a few people believing that racism is unethical. Atticus Finch, a respected man, fights for the equality of a colored man in a trial. In addition, he also looks upon his children as if they were his peers. Throughout the novel, Harper Lee portrays Atticus Finch as egalitarian to establish that when one is faced with unjust circumstances, then one should overcome hindrances and do what is honorable in order to reveal oneself as respectable in society.
Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” takes place during the 1930’s in the fictional and quiet town of Maycomb, located in Maycomb County, Alabama. The town of Maycomb is described as a tired old town that moves very slowly and its residents have nothing to fear but fear itself. Being in set in the South during the 1930’s the story does tackle racism and inequality for African Americans as racism was becoming more and more prominent in the 1930’s. The fact that the story takes place in a backwater county in Alabama makes the the injustice even more prevalent. The story goes through the early years of the main characters Jem and Scout so the exact time is always changing, however, the more important and intense parts of the story takes place
To Kill a Mockingbird is a story about equality. In the setting of this book (Maycomb, Alabama) the inequality of races is completely normal to people’s everyday lives. The disrespect of African-Americans in this book is an ordinary occurrence that most people have grown up accustomed to, but there are some who don’t wish to be a part of this discrimination. One of these people being Atticus Finch, the father of Jem and Scout. Atticus uses the world around him to teach his children how to give all people respect no matter what their race or social class is. Atticus Finch is a good-hearted, moral lawyer in the discriminatory town of Maycomb Alabama. Amongst the blabbermouths and discriminatory townspeople of Maycomb, Atticus wants his children to be different from them, and to learn how to respect the dignity of everyone using the changes in their lives to teach them.
The passage I have chosen is from the book, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. In this passage Atticus Finch is trying to teach his children, Scout and Jem, the real or his definition of the word courage. He is explaining to his children that courage is more than just men with guns. He says to not connect courage with fighting, but to associate it with standing up for what you believe in. It takes little character to point a gun and pull a trigger, but it takes a whole lot of courage to accept a difficult challenge in which you can ultimately be defeated in. It made me realize that courage goes beyond a physical act, it shows one's integrity and strength. I learned that a person is courageous when they follow their own beliefs and stick to
In To Kill A Mockingbird Atticus Finch is one of the top lawyers in Maycomb. He is not afraid to defend anyone. In the book, Atticus must defend a black man named Tom Robinson who is accused of rape. It is very hard to win a case of white vs. black, and Atticus knows this, and he know that they are treated unfairly which is what he tell Scout, “As you grow older you’ll see white men cheat black men everyday of your life, but let me tell you something and don’t forget it- whatever a white man does that to a black man no matter who he is, or how fine a family he comes from, he is trash”(Lee.223) Atticus is a very wise man and he sees the harsh and unfair treatment of blacks, and also he knows that even black people are humans, which is what he tries to teach his son, Jem, and his daughter, Scout. That is why he takes on a seemingly impossible case of a black man’s word against a white man’s. Atticus teaches the kids that even if someone is of high class, it is not okay to treat anyone with disrespect. If a man does do that, that man is “trash” as Atticus would say. The lesson that he teaches to Jem and Scout is something they carry and learn more about throughout the book.
In our culture a hero shows courage and integrity. A hero doesn 't need a cape or a special power. A hero is someone who makes an impact in someone 's life. Heroes are people like the front of the line D-Day soldiers or the first responders in the 9-11 attacks. As a famous hero once said "A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." This hero’s name is Jackie Robinson. Being threatened, cursed at, and treated badly, Jackie Robinson didn’t fight back and continued to play the game of baseball. Mr.Robinson helped future generations live with peace. In Harper Lee 's book,To Kill A Mockingbird, Atticus is a hero. Without using any superhuman powers, Atticus shows courage, responsibility, and integrity without fighting back.
Atticus Finch is the most significant character, in To Kill a Mockingbird, who challenges racial prejudice as he does not follow the norms, in Maycomb, of being racially prejudice towards others. At first, Atticus Finch is reluctant to take on Tom Robinson’s case; however in the end, he willingly accepts. Unlike the majority of Maycomb residents, Atticus is not racist and makes no distinction upon race, he sees Negroes, just like Tom Robinson, as the same equality as any other person in the Maycomb community. For this reason, he believes they should be trea...
“Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it is a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee 94). This quote, delivered in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, introduces the mockingbird which is incorporated symbolically throughout the novel. The mockingbird, in presenting its gifts of music and beauty, is the symbol of Atticus’s practice of altruism because he believes in society’s responsibility to protect those who are vulnerable and innocent.
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee shows a misunderstanding in society by demonstrating to us how society isn’t perfect. From a child’s point of view children incorporate misunderstanding by learning from their personal experience. I wasn’t aware of how bad our Earth was being destroyed. A similar event happened when Napoleon helped France and everyone thought that Napoleon was France’s savior but what France didn’t expect was that Napoleon had other ideas and was ambitious and planned on destroying cities and killing people in order to obtain power. Nowadays racism isn’t seen as much but people still discriminate and judge people by how they act, look or how economically stable people are.
To Kill a Mockingbird is the novel penned by an acclaimed author Harper Lee. It researches the matters of race and class in the 1930’s. Scout Finch who is the main character, shares her views on situations around her.
How does it feel when one grows into adulthood? How does it feel to abandon the comfort of childhood and crash into maturity? Jeremy Finch has an extraordinary youth experience. From arrogantly antagonizing Boo Radley to slowly putting the pieces together of the ‘big picture’ of what was happening in Maycomb county. Three major events within the scattering of subplots and happenings that helped Jem mature is the entire ordeal of the radley tree, whe Jem stands up to Atticus in front of the mob, and the attack after the play.