What Is Mob Mentality In To Kill A Mockingbird

856 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Problems with racism in literature

To Kill a Mocking Bird Historical Paper Mocking birds and racism are related? Well no, but when it comes to the book To Kill a Mockingbird racism can be found all over. In this paper I will be talking about the Jim Crow laws, Mob mentality, the Scottsboro trials, and how each of these can be found in Harper Lees To Kill a Mockingbird. The first influence on Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is the Jim Crow laws. The Jim Crow laws are laws that took place in between 1877 to the mid 1960s (Pilgrim). These laws are of segregation between blacks and whites to give blacks fewer rights. Christians and Ministers believed that Whites were the chosen people; Blacks were lesser people and only suppose to be servants, and that God Supported Ra …show more content…

Mob mentality is the actions of what people do in large groups. Mob mentality can be defined as the unique behavioral characteristics or actions that people do in big groups, usually with little amount of individual thought (Smith). One reason why people do these actions is that people often do what others are doing around them, so they don’t feel left out, or sometimes feel like they have to do what others are doing around them to fit in (Smith). Another reason people do these actions in big groups is that when there around so many other people they don’t feel like they are consequences for their actions since they are with so many other people (Smith). The longer people are doing these actions in a mob, the harder it is for people to remember why they started the mob in the first place (Edmonds). Examples of the actions are, destroying property, or hurting people (Edmonds). Mob mentality can be seen in To Kill a Mockingbird in many ways. One example of this is people in a big group vandalizing a building, or attacking someone, they feel they can do this and get away with it since they are in a big group. We see this in To Kill a Mockingbird when the mob comes to the jail cell to lynch Tom Robison (Lee 172-174). Mob mentality and Jim Crow laws were not the only thing that had an influence in To Kill a Mockingbird so did the Scottsboro

Show More
Related

  • To Kill A Mocking Bird

    985 Words  | 2 Pages

    The theme of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mocking Bird is the existence of racism and prejudice in the 1930 – 40's. Harper Lee succeeds in presenting the topic in a manner that is not overly simplistic and thus achieves the task of allowing the reader to fully appreciate the complex nature of unjust discrimination. Harper Lee's inclusion of characters such as Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, Dolphus Raymond and many others, aid the reader to grasp the concept of racism and its central role in the town of Maycomb.

    Read More

  • Decoding Symbolism and Prejudice in 'To Kill a Mockingbird'

    1551 Words  | 4 Pages

    Throughout the novel Harper Lee explores the racism, prejudice, and the innocence that occurs throughout the book. She shows these themes through her strong use of symbolism throughout the story. Even though To Kill a Mockingbird was written in the 1960’s, the powerful symbolism this book contributes to our society is tremendous. This attribute is racist (Smykowski). To Kill a Mockingbird reveals a story about Scout’s childhood growing up with her father and brother, in an accustomed southern town that believed heavily in ethnological morals (Shackelford).

    Read More

  • Racism in American Schools

    778 Words  | 2 Pages

    Even though extraordinary changes have been made in the past to achieve racial equality, America is still racist, especially in schools. In the novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” written by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch is criticized for defending a black man accused of raping a white woman. During the 1930s, the time this novel took place, America was a very segregated country. At the time when Harper Lee wrote "To Kill a Mockingbird," America was fighting a civil rights movement. The events of racism in “To Kill a Mockingbird” reflect the time period.

    Read More

  • Racial Injustice in To Kill a Mockingbird

    1321 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...tional stage with the Scottsboro trials, which became the inspiration for Harper Lee’s burning expeditionary work of fiction, To Kill a Mockingbird, in which she employs a tone critical of racism. The two cases, fictional and real, shared many stunning similarities, such as the preservation of southern womanhood and police brutality, as well as minor differences such as the attitudes of the accusers. The great tragedy of both cases is best exemplified by Atticus Finch’s declaration that “this case should never have come to trial. This case is as simple as black and white” (Lee 271).

    Read More

  • the mockingbirds

    897 Words  | 2 Pages

    In this world, everyone has an equal right; however, many people are getting falsely accused of acts they did not commit even though they are innocent. Mockingbirds, one of the most innocent birds, sing their heart out for people to enjoy, however, they getting killed every day. In this novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, there are many racial prejudices going on. Finches stand near the top of the social hierarchy, with Cunningham and Ewells underneath. Black community in Maycomb is even below the Ewells, even if they were a hard worker; they were not treated equally. The “mockingbirds” represents the idea of innocence, so killing a mockingbird is to destroy innocence. Throughout the book, many characters are considered a mockingbird. Three examples are Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, and Mr. Dolphus Raymond. Those three characters are innocent; they are kind and were never harmful to others. However, they were destroyed through contact of evil. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, the mockingbirds symbolizes the idea of innocence, and Tom, Boo, and Mr. Raymond are considered one of it.

    Read More

  • To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

    2185 Words  | 5 Pages

    To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee seems like a complete replica of the lives of people living in a small Southern U.S. town. The themes expressed in this novel are as relevant today as when this novel was written, and also the most significant literary devices used by Lee. The novel brings forward many important themes, such as the importance of education, recognition of inner courage, and the misfortunes of prejudice. This novel was written in the 1930s. This was the period of the “Great Depression” when it was very common to see people without jobs, homes and food. In those days, the rivalry between the whites and the blacks deepened even more due to the competition for the few available jobs. A very famous court case at that time was the Scottsboro trials. These trials were based on the accusation against nine black men for raping two white women. These trials began on March 25, 1931. The Scottsboro trials were very similar to Tom Robinson’s trial. The similarities include the time factor and also the fact that in both cases, white women accused black men.

    Read More

  • Lees Philosophy To Kill A Mock

    713 Words  | 2 Pages

    The 1930’s were a time in which blacks faced many hardships. It was a time in which the Ku Klux Klan had its peak. However, most importantly, it was the time when Nelle Harper Lee, the writer of To Kill A Mockingbird, was being raised. She was raised in a world where “niggers'; were the bottom class in one of the most powerful countries in the world. She was also being raised during the Great Depression, a time when the attacks on blacks were intensified, as they were the scapegoats of the immense downfall of the US economy. However, she was only a small, innocent child who believed in equality for all. Thus, Harper Lee expressed her disapproval over the treatment of blacks in her Award-Winning novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, through the eyes of a fictional character called Jean Louise Finch, better known as “Scout';.

    Read More

  • Social Class In To Kill A Mockingbird

    877 Words  | 2 Pages

    Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird expresses the ideology that the social standard of a particular individual, classifies their status in the world. Individuals placed in social classes are labeled to create a sense of social identity. The socio-economic class an individual is born into should not be the determining factor of how the individual is regarded and treated, however, their character and personality should be a primary factor in determining how they are thought of in society.

    Read More

  • Mob Mentality In To Kill A Mockingbird Essay

    655 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first influence on Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is Jim Crow laws. The Jim Crow laws are fictional laws, prepetuating segregation of white folk, from black folk. Jim Crow laws consisted of seven rules that all people of color were forced to follow. An example of a Jim

    Read More

  • Dehumanization In To Kill A Mockingbird

    710 Words  | 2 Pages

    Today, racism is a problematic situation that can break nation apart. Discrimination on one’s personal characteristics can sway a community's opinion greatly. Harper Lee was indulged in numerous racist encounters in her life, many of which transpire into her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. In the novel, one is seen as an animal when enduring the venom of racism. Throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, racism leads to the dehumanization of both the victims and the infectors.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Mob Mentality In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1496 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Jim Crow laws were one historical element that was prevalent in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. The Jim Crow laws enforced strict racial segregation

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird Essays: Discrimination and Prejudice

    1388 Words  | 3 Pages

    The novel TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee has numerous accounts of racism and prejudice throughout the entire piece. The novel is set in the 1930's, a time when racism was very prevalent. Although bigotry and segregation were pointed in majority towards blacks, other accounts towards whites were also heard of, though not as commonly. There are acts that are so discreet that you almost don't catch them, but along with those, there are blatant acts of bigotry that would never occur in our time. Lee addresses many of these feelings in her novel.

    Read More

  • Racism in To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

    865 Words  | 2 Pages

    “To Kill A Mockingbird” is marvelous and unforgettable novel. Not only show how dramatic, sad in and old town – Maycomb be like, but through her unique writings, some big conflicts about politics and critical is going on through this tired old Southern town. Not just in general like education, friendship, neighbors but also pacific in individuals like family and the people’s characteristics themselves. In one book yet can covered with such many problems, Harper Lee must have been experienced a lot and deeply understanding that time. That is why the book lives, becoming literature and get the love from the audiences a lot. One of the problem and mostly run along with the story and interest me is racism between white people and black people socially.

    Read More

  • To Kill a Mockingbird and Philadelphia

    572 Words  | 2 Pages

    The book to ‘To kill a mocking-bird’ was written in the 1930’s and explores prejudice against black people. The book is portrayed through the eyes of two innocent children and shows the “irrationality of adult attitudes to race and class in the Deep South [of America] in the thirties. The conscience of a town steeped in prejudice, violence and hypocrisy is pricked by the stamina of one mans struggle for justice.”

    Read More

  • Racial Prejudice and Oppression in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird

    2110 Words  | 5 Pages

    To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee's only novel, is a fictional story of racial oppression, set in Maycomb, A.L. in 1925 to 1935, loosely based on the events of the Scottsboro trials. Unlike the story however, the racial discrimination and oppression in the novel very accurately portrays what it was like in the 1920's and 1930's in the south. Tom Robinson, the black man accused of raping a poor low class white girl of 19, never stood a chance of getting a fair trial. This can be supported by giving examples of racially discriminatory and oppressive events that actually took place in the south during the time period in which the novel is based. In addition to actual historical events, events and examples from the book that clearly illustrate the overpoweringly high levels of prejudice that were intertwined in the everyday thinking of the majority of the characters in the book supports the fact that Tom Robinson never stood a chance of getting a fair trial.

    Read More

More about What Is Mob Mentality In To Kill A Mockingbird

Open Document