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To kill a mockingbird harper lee issues
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Harper Lee comments on life in the South during the 1930’s through her novel To Kill a Mockingbird because she brings attention towards The Scottsboro Case, the Stock Market Crash, and the roles of women. In To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee brings attention towards the Scottsboro case. The Scottsboro case is when nine young black boys were falsely accused of raping a white woman. They were found guilty even though there was more evidence that proved them innocent. Three of the boys were sentenced to death. Many years later, the woman who accused the nine boys admitted to making the story up. In Harper Lee’s novel, she creates a character named Tom Robinson. Tom is a young black man who has been falsely accused of raping a young white girl named Mayella Ewell. Tom is found guilty even after his lawyer had given enough evidence to prove that he was innocent. Before Tom is sent to jail, his lawyer proves Mayella to be lying about Tom raping her. Both the Scottsboro Case and Tom Robinson’s case are case’s where white women had made up lies about black boys. In both situations, the innocent boys were killed. …show more content…
The Stock Market Crash caused many people in the 1930’s to lose everything they had, especially money and land. Harper Lee makes the Cunninghams poor and dirty. Because they are poor, they pay people who helped them with goods. In her novel, Harper Lee tells of when Atticus helped Mr. Cunningham and he payed Atticus back by placing goods on Atticus’s back porch. The Cunninghams never took offers from anyone since they couldn’t pay it back. In the novel, Scout’s teacher offers Walter Cunningham money. Even though he needed it, Walter refused because he knew he could not repay his teacher. Harper Lee tells the stories about Walter and Mr. Cunningham to prove how bad the Stock Market Crash was and how poor it made people in the
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is one of the most successful works of fiction in American Literature. Although To Kill a Mockingbird is classified as a work of fiction, there is evidence to support the claim that To Kill a Mockingbird was modeled after the Scottsboro Trials of 1931. There are many parallels between the trial of Tom Robinson and the Scottsboro Trials. The Scottsboro Boys were nine, young, African American men who were falsely accused of raping two white women while illegally riding a train in Alabama. Harper Lee was also about six years old when these trials took place. This is the reason why Harper Lee chose to write her novel through the eyes of a six year old. The trials inspired her to write To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper
The South has always been known for its farming economy, confederate tendencies, family pride, and delicate females in ruffled dresses. In the book To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, the South's familiar traditions become ostensible as a theme throughout the plot. This novel takes place in Alabama in the 1930s and tells a story about a lawyer who defends a wrongly accused black man while trying to raise his two children, Scout and Jem, as they go through life's most active learning stage. Southern ways enhance the plot of the story and give a realistic and historic perspective to the book. This portrayal of Southern culture appears in various forms of racism, hatred, meek women, and family.
The Scottsboro and Maycomb trials took place in the 1930s, where the trials both have identical causes with the same conclusion, though its a tragedy event that happened however it have influenced the world today. The resemblance between Scottsboro and Maycomb leads the people into thinking about the Great Depression and the most infamous case that took place in Scottsboro, relating to Maycomb. Though there are no reasonable causes or hateful affairs between opposing characters, yet it seems like racism between white and the Afro-Americans had started the conflict. Coming to a white vs Afro-American cases, the jurors would always favor the white over the Afro-American for they believe its not right to do such thing as acquitting the Afro-American due to their old-fashion values and prejudiced mind. Such tragedy happening in the history has influenced the world today in many ways, the novel To Kill a Mockingbird is one project that’s inspired to be written. Though both Scottsboro and Maycomb seems like a loving town with nice people, however their dark sides are discovered through their actions.
On March 25 1931 a group of nine boys were charged with raping two girls aboard a train traveling from Paint Rock Alabama across the state’s border. The trial of these boys had become collectively known as the Scottsboro case. Several years later Harper Lee wrote her famous novel To Kill a Mockingbird. In this story a young male Tom Robinson is charged with raping a white female. It is by understanding the parallel between Tom Robinson’s case in To Kill a Mockingbird and the Scottsboro case that can be understood that a fair trial was unlikely and that because of Tom Robinson’s race he was presumed guilty before his trial.
When Scout complains about her teacher, Atticus tells her that “if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (Lee 33). In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch teaches his daughter moral values as he prepares to defend a black man, Tom Robinson, who has been charged with raping a white woman. Harper Lee was influenced by court cases that were based on the racial prejudice of blacks. One of those cases was the Scottsboro Trial of 1931, in which nine African American males were falsely accused of raping two white women while on a train to Memphis. The trial began on April 6, 1931, and lasted just three days. Eight of the nine boys were found guilty and sentenced to death. Because the Scottsboro Boys’ first trial was appealed, it was sent to the Alabama Supreme Court, and then sent to the United States Supreme Court. The Court ordered new trials because the Scottsboro defendants had not had adequate legal representation. (Gerdes 250). The case against one of the boys, Haywood Patterson, began in Decatur, Alabama, on March 27 with Judge James Horton presiding. During this trial one of the white girls, Ruby Bates, said they were not raped while two physicians concluded that the girls were not raped either. On April 9, 1933, the first defendant, Haywood Patterson, was sentenced to execution, but Judge Horton ordered a new trial because the evidence did not warrant conviction. Even though the novel is fictional and the court case is real, the trial of Tom Robinson in To Kill a Mockingbird, and the Scottsboro Boys trial were similar be...
There are many differences and similarities between The Scottsboro Case and the Tom Robinson’s case of the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Some similarities between the two cases are that the defendants are African Americans who are falsely accused of a crime they never committed. This reveals that the cases were during the time where racism was at its worst. All the defendants were accused of rape and the two women testified against black men, like what Mayella Ewell did. And the judges were all white. Some differences are that the Scottsboro case included nine men, while Tom Robinson was the only man in his trial. And all but the 12 year old was sentenced to death, while Tom was shot later on after the trial. Lastly, after the state retried
Robinson resembles a mockingbird because he does not cause any harm to the town of Maycomb. This particular mockingbird is killed when Mayella Ewell falsely accuses him of rape. Although all the evidence proves that Robinson is innocent, it is a battle between an African American and a white woman. “The one place where a man ought to get a square deal is in a courtroom, be he any color of the rainbow but people have a way of carry their resentments right into the jury box” (Lee 220). Robinson is eventually convicted because of the prejudice and racism that clouds everyone in the jury and every citizen of Maycomb. “Tom Robinson’s a colored man, Jem. No jury in this part of the world’s going to say “We think you’re guilty, but not very on a charge on like that.” It was either a straight acquittal or nothing” (Lee 219). Tom Robinson may not be guilty of raping Mayella, but he is guilty of feeling sorry for a lonely, white
One of the major events in Harper Lee’s award-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird is Tom Robinson’s trial. It is based on the Scottsboro Case that took place in 1931 in Alabama, in which several black men were accused of raping two white women. Both the Scottsboro Boys and Tom Robinson are unfairly judged, however, because of prejudice against colored people. The racial discrimination makes whites’ testimony more believable even when it contradicts itself. The same happens in To Kill a Mockingbird. As we delve deeper into the case and get increasingly closer to the truth, it is quite suprising to see that Mayella Ewell is the true villain rather than a victim. She shall and must bear full responsibility for her actions because she makes the decision to tempt Tom Robinson, gives false testimony in court that directly leads to Tom’s death, and has been well aware of the consequences of her behaviors.
Harper Lee takes inspiration for her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, from her own life experiences. The story tells about the lives of Jean Louise Finch and Jem Finch, the two children of a talented lawyer, who introduces them to racism and bigotry at a very young age. The Tom Robinson trial, similar to the Scottsboro trial, causes Jem and Scout to recognize the distinctly different types of people living in Maycomb. Man’s inhumanity to man compels Harper Lee to uncover the shameful acts of society; these injustices, especially those of the Tom Robinson trial, open Scout and Jem’s eyes to the defective perspectives held by society; reading To Kill A Mockingbird, leads me to wonder how far our society has truly come.
To Kill The Mockingbird was about a black guy named Tom Robinson who was accused of raping a young women by the name of Mayella Ewell. In the court, significant evidence was presented to the juror's that would prove that Tom Robinson was innocent. The evidence showed that a left handed male must have beat Mayella because the bruises were on the right side of her and Tom Robinsons left arm was disabled. Robinson could not have beat Ms. Ewell. Tom Robinson was still convicted and later on was shot at a prison fence while he was trying to run away. The juror's discriminated Mr. Robinson and was prejudice towards him because all though evidence was presented to them that would prove Tom innocent they ignored it because the guy was black and in the 30's discriminating blacks were heavily favored.
The Scottsboro Trial and the trial of Tom Robinson are almost identical in the forms of bias shown and the accusers that were persecuted. The bias is obvious and is shown throughout both cases, which took place in the same time period. Common parallels are seen through the time period that both trials have taken place in and those who were persecuted and why they were persecuted in the first place. The thought of "All blacks were liars, and all blacks are wrongdoers," was a major part of all of these trails. A white person's word was automatically the truth when it was held up to the credibility of someone whom was black. Both trials were perfect examples of how the people of Alabama were above the law and could do whatever they wanted to the black people and get away with it. In both trials lynch mobs were formed to threaten the black people who were accused. Judge Hornton tried many times to move the case to a different place so that a fair trial could take place and not be interrupted by the racist people. Finally was granted to move the case even though the lynch mobs threatened to kill everyone who was involved in the case if it were to be moved. In this essay the bias and racism in both trials are going to be clarified and compared to each other.
The Scottsboro trial is about nine young, black men who were falsely accused of rape by two white women. Harper Lee did not want the story of the Scottsboro boys just to be something people watched on the news, and did nothing about. She wanted to write her book off of this trial because it makes her book so much more real and meaningful. The Tom Robinson Trial in the book To Kill a Mockingbird and the The Scottsboro Trial have so many similarities, the weak evidence shown in both trials, how it affected Tom Robinson
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.
This gave the southern culture, which already despised them, one more thing to add to their list of allegations. The Scottsboro Boys got into a fight with white hobos on the train they were traveling on. This spread to the conductor who stopped the train in Alabama and alerted the town of the exchange. Unlike To Kill a Mockingbird, this fight did not come up in trial, but it led to the mob of white men outside the train, and the accusation of rape from Ruby Bates and Victoria Price. In Lee’s trial, Mr. Gilmer questioned Tom Robinson further about his charges, “You were given thirty days once for disorderly conduct, Robinson?”(Lee 197) Scout later adds,”Mr. Gilmer would sincerely tell the jury that anyone convicted of disorderly could easily have the heart to take advantage of Mayella Ewell,” (Lee 197). Scout is explaining how the prosecutor made a point, and “played to the jury”. He made Tom Robinson look like the villain again. Put him back into the stereotypical box of black men at the time, and how they were bread to put southern womanhood in
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.