To Kill A Mockingbird Social Prejudice Analysis

A famous piece of American literature that’s set in the 1930s, To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, tells the story of Maycomb, a town prejudiced to blacks, whose people clash when some demonstrate a non-oppressed view towards black people. Told through the perspective of Scout Finch, a daughter to a lawyer with high moral beliefs, the six year old learns just how prejudiced mindsets can draw subconscious lines between people, and how objectifying a common social stigma can start wars. Exploring a similar plot, the novel Uglies, written by Scott Westerfeld, centers around a dystopian world in which everyone is considered an ‘ugly’ until turned into a ‘pretty’ by a cosmetic surgery when they turn 16. Surrounded with the social stigma

In To Kill a Mockingbird, although women are a group facing a certain level of oppression, the black people of the community seem to be facing an even higher level of it. Separating themselves from black people, treating black people poorly, and viewing themselves as superior to black people, the white people of the town hold prejudice. Dolphus Raymond, a white man, is frowned upon by his peers for having married a black woman. In order to shield himself from the hate he would receive, Mr. Raymond pretends to be constantly drunk. He believes that this’ll justify his actions to his community, as he claims that “if folks can latch onto a reason..folks can say [he] is in the clutches of whiskey--that’s why he won’t change his ways..that’s why he lives the way he does.” (268, Lee) Mr.Raymond is choosing to hide his true self, a man who is not racist towards black people, behind a bottle of alcohol. One may say he is too cowardly to face the social consequences, as he pretends to be a drunk to provide other white people with an explanation for his

In To Kill a Mockingbird, the social prejudice against black people often puts them at a disadvantage when it comes to the law. A prime example of this is Tom Robinson, a hardworking, respectful black man who is accused of sexually assaulting a white woman on the sole account of her white father. Regardless of the lack of evidence the prosecution is able to bring to court, Tom Robinson remains at a disadvantage due to racial views. Because of this, the towns people also view Tom as guilty for a crime he did not commit. This makes him and anyone who associates with him strongly disliked. However, this does not hinder Atticus’s views. He chooses to take on the case to respect his moral beliefs. That being said, what used to be possible-consequences for Atticus now come to life when “[Bob Ewell stops] Atticus on the post office corner, [spits] in his face, and [tells] him he’d get him..” (292, Lee) Despite the physical threat however, Atticus chooses to hold his head high, and stay proud of his decisions based on his moral beliefs. Being a lawyer who believes prejudice does not cloud his mindset, he views court as “the one place where a man ought to get a square deal [...] be he any color of the rainbow,” Yet, he understands that “people have a way of carrying their resentments right into a jury box,” (295, Lee) which demonstrates that not only is he