Confronting Injustice: Scout and Skeeter's Battle

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Confrontation Versus Accommodation Desmond Tutu says “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” Scout, main character of the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and Skeeter, main character of the movie The Help by Tate Taylor, both demonstrate their agreement to this statement in different ways. To Kill A Mockingbird takes place in the 1930s during the Great Depression and Jim Crow laws. Discrimination and prejudice thrives in the small, Southern town in which Scout lives. This exposes her to these things, and her reactions show her moral beliefs. On the other hand, The Help takes place in the 1960s in Mississippi where racism and segregation are the building blocks of society. Skeeter …show more content…

When Aunt Alexandria is asked if Scout can have Walter Cunningham Jr. over for dinner again, Aunt Alexandra explains that since Walter is of lower status than them, he cannot come over. This makes Scout react in the following way: “I don’t know what I would’ve done, but Jem stopped me. He caught me by the shoulders, put his arm around me and led me sobbing in fury to his bedroom” (Lee 301). This kind of aggression shows Scout’s emotional confusion about societal discrimination, and she believes that she should be able to play with him regardless of societal status. Also, her physically aggressive reaction to discrimination shows that the only way she knows how to resolve problems is with physical aggression to things she does not understand. Additionally, Scout’s cousin Francis calls Atticus a “nigger-lover” multiple times. This causes Scout to react very aggressively as shown in the following passage: “This time, I split my knuckle to the bone on his front teeth. My left impaired, I sailed in with my right…” (112). Scout’s physical response reveals that when the honor of someone she loves is at stake, she will defend it as best as she can even though she does not fully understand the accusations in the first place. Also, her reaction displays that she believes in Atticus and therefore, she believes in what he does. She has been exposed to the Tom Robinson case enough to understand that it is defending a black man, and the fact that she defends her dad’s actions shows that she believes it is right as well. Scout’s aggressive reactions to the discrimination she faces in her town demonstrate her moral

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