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Effects of race discrimination on society
Racial discrimination effects on society
Effects of racial discrimination
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Race and Class define society and making it so that society loses itselfs world of connection. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, the novels shows and gives people an understanding of the time. To begin, during the Tom Robinson trial, Tom was convicted as guilty due his class standing and his skin colour. Secondly, there are many families in Maycomb who stand in a different class. Finally, the segregation in Maycomb is very harsh and can show an issue with race and class. Race and class keeps society apart, resulting a very negative understanding of people. To begin, during the trial of Tom Robinson, Tom is not treated properly. Firstly, during the trial Mr Gilmer,started saying a word that would . An example would …show more content…
To start off, the Ewell’s are a very poor family. An example of this, is when on the first day school their teacher Miss Caroline sees something jump out of Burris’s hair, freaks out and digusted and tells him to go home and wash his hair. Scout describes Burris as: “His neck was dark gray, the backs of his hands were rusty and his fingernails were black deep into the quick ground”(35). Clearly, Burris Ewell comes from a very poor family from the way Scouts describes him .His father Bob Ewell gsts government relief checks, but Mr. Ewell spends all the money on alcohol. Secondly, the Cunninghams are farmers, but they have no food or money because of the Great Depression and they can not afford to pay anyone back with money. For instance, Jem invites Walter Cunningham for dinner and during their dinner Scouts embrasses Walter for what he did. Walter puts syrup in his food. As Scout mentioned that Walter is one those kids who do not know where their food will be coming from. Clearly, Scout tries to compare the Cunninghams with the Finches. The Cunninghams are farmers and they do not understand everything. Thirdly, the people in Maycomb have a different class standing. But for the black people in Maycomb they have a very different social and ecomonic class standing. An example is how, the black people have a lower class standing than the Ewell’s because they have a different colour of skin, therefore shown in a lower social class standing. Clearly, during the time in between the 1900’s to 1950’s people with different skin colour were often seen as lower class and were discriminated for their skin colour. Classes separate society and cause misunderstanding of people with different
The dominating theme of racial discrimination is clearly evident throughout the book. Unfortunately, the society itself is the ultimate cause of such dilemma. Maycomb County is segregated into the hardworking, honest black people, and the privileged and prejudiced white people. The long hold racist attitude towards the black people are unforgiving as they have not been recognised as human beings, and are treated inhumanely. When Tom Robinson; a respectful black man is wrongfully accused of raping a white girl, Mayella Ewell, Atticus is assigned to fight for Tom in the trial. Due to Atticus being a white man ...
There are a lot of different social classes in this story. The Finches are on the top of the social list in Maycomb. And then the farmers are underneath them. Then whom they call the white trash is underneath the farmers. Even though the blacks are much more gifted than some of those people they are still underneath those white trash people. This is the main topic of the whole story. A black man gets accused of attacking a white lady...but he probably wouldn't even be in the position that he was in if he was white. To Kill A Mockingbird shows the destructive attitude that whites have against blacks. Not so much the period we live in but it still exists.
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.
In the town of Maycomb there are four main 'classes' of people, best put by Jem in chapter XXIII; "There's the ordinary kind like us and the neighbors, there's the kind like the Cunninghams out in the woods, the kind like the Ewells down at the dump, and the Negroes." (Lee, 1960). As Scout and Jem discuss why this is, they conclude that a family's background is what determines where they fall on the social ladder; "it's how long your family's been readin' and writin'." (Lee, 1960). This explains the order of the classes; the Finches would have all come from historically well-off families, have good jobs, and high educations. The Cunningham children can only go to school at certain times of the year when they aren't working at the farm, and the Ewells have little to no literary skills with no desire to pursue education. This definition of ‘background’ is also the reason that colored people fall to the bottom, as racism and poverty result in the majority of the colored population to be left without access to education. This also means that the white people in this society develop prejudices against people of color (they are all uneducated, all untrustworthy, all liars), and often take advantage of them. An example of this takes place in chapter XVII, as these prejudiced thoughts are what Bob Ewell relies on for his testimony against Tom Robinson. Mr. Ewell believes that the jury,
In the story of To Kill a Mockingbird, there is many forms of showing social hierarchy in the town and county of Maycomb, Alabama. Tom Robinson, the Ewells, and the Cunninghams are three examples in this novel that explain the social types in the country at the time. People will criticize others even though they don’t know how their lives really are or how they are treated at home when no one is around. People in the 1930s believed that all men are created equal. The ancestors of these people were taught that only whites were created equal and blacks were considered inferior to whites who were considered higher in rank than blacks.
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.
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
Without a doubt, Atticus is one of the few people that lives in Maycomb, that is usually very accepting and understanding about the outcasts of Maycomb basically, tolerable. However, he makes many comments about the Ewells throughout the book, surprisingly. For example, after Scout’s first day of school she notices that the Ewells are treated very differently from the rest of Maycomb. She decides to speak to Atticus about it and ask about the Ewells. And later, Scout explains, “Atticus said that Ewells had been a disgrace to Maycomb for three generations. None of them had done an honest day of work in his recollection… they were people but they lived like animals…” (40) The Ewells get separated from the rest of society and are seen as outsiders. Atticus explains, “they lived like animals”. Basically, this comment demeans them and where they stand in society. Also the comment shows that they are even looked like animals instead of people. In addition, the Ewells live right next to the town’s dump, and they are very rarely seen, in fact, the Ewell’s usually only go to school for the first day. Apparently, the Ewells were even given “privileges” or “special treatment” by the government. An example of this is that, for the Ewells, it isn’t mandatory to participate in school, and they are allowed to hunt regardless of the law that forbids it. As I have said, these actions are what cause people to look at them as “others” and just another group of outcasts. To sum this up, the Ewells aren’t included in society hence, making them “others” and Atticus even proves how they are viewed in the society of
Bob Ewell sees that Tom has done nothing, and that Mayella has tricked Tom, but, if this truth was allowed to exist, it would promote this type of interaction between white and black individuals, and this is something that Bob Ewell does not know how to process. Bob Ewell chooses the easiest path and follows his culture. He blames an innocent man for crimes he has not committed, simply because the culture of his life tells him to prevent mixed race relations. “They [mixed race children] don’t belong anywhere. Colored folks won’t have em’ because they’re half white; white folks won’t have ‘em ‘cause they’re colored.” (215) This is the sad reality that is taught to children in Maycomb from a young age. Rather than these mixed race children being able to exist in both communities, they are barred from both. This is a paradigm that Scout is taught in the book, and one that Bob Ewell has lived in his entire life. Bob
In society, most people will attempt to blend in with others. In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the small southern town, Maycomb is home to people who struggle through the Great Depression and carry many traditions with them. Maycomb is a small town where racial tensions are high. Society's expectations of others shape their beliefs. Aunt Alexandra is a major influence on Scout’s perception of what a girl is supposed to do. The stereotypes about black people shape Tom Robinson’s case. The stereotypes about black people shape the verdict.
In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, she is very good at capturing the facts of the “southern depression”. The actions taken reflect the southern experience perfectly. From the innocence to the experience of Scout, to the bravery of Atticus. Social Differences were very present in the 30’s when this novel was based and the prejudice shown to these people was depicted beautifully by Harper Lee.
All men are created equal. Although many believe this statement to be true, some do not. I’d like to believe that as a species, we have grown not just physically but mentally. Unfortunately, while we have gotten better, we’re not quite there yet. In 2018, acts of racism and discrimination are occurring as we speak. As we look back at our history and learn every year about events that we, as young adults of this generation, couldn’t possibly stop, we need to realize the fact that in order to completely mature and grow as human beings, we must learn from the past, and the only way to learn about it is to read about it. Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird conveys this message with little to no mistakes.
According to the Oxford dictionary, racism is the “prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior.” Racism is something that many deal with from any age, any place, at any time, but a child has difficulty noticing racism and its repercussions. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Lee tells a story of three characters: Jem, Scout, and Dill. They live a quiet life in Maycomb, Alabama until Atticus Finch, Jem and Scout’s father, is appointed to defend Tom Robinson, an innocent African American man. The effects of the town’s racism in the trial is apparent in Jem’s actions
Inequity among racial classes relies on fundamental beliefs that a majority of the members in a community hold and maintain. Harper Lee takes great care to highlight the intricacy of systematic social segregation in her book To Kill a Mockingbird, exemplified during the trial of the field hand, Tom Robinson through the external struggle he faces with the passive and belligerent citizens of Maycomb and between his delators, the deep-rooted, precedent bias in the system, and, after his conviction, the internal struggle of whose terms he lives on. A single person is not responsible for Tom Robinson’s death; racial stigma derives from a system of flawed knowledge and attitudes, found in the citizens of Maycomb, and behaviour of the community as a whole, ultimately leading to Tom Robinson’s personal downfall. Bob Ewell’s hatred towards black people stems from a hierarchical complex that arises from Maycomb’s corrupt social ladder, where wealthier, white families such as the Finches rest at the top, and the poorer, white families, including the Ewells, are at the bottom. As the people of Maycomb look down on the Ewells with condescension and pity, Bob Ewell targets the only group of people in Maycomb that have a lower social status than him, the black community.
In the book To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee taught many lessons. The biggest lesson I learned is that there will always be people who treat people badly because of social inequality, but there will also always be people trying to fight against that. Aunt Alexandra chose to be mean to little Walter Cunningham, just because he didn’t have as much money as them. That is a form of social inequality. Also, when Tom Robinson was found guilty of a crime he didn’t commit for being black.When Atticus stood up for Tom Robinson that was people fighting against social inequality.