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Racism in literature
Relationship between literature and society
Relationship between literature and society
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Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy… That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird,” (117) said Miss Maudie after Atticus gave Jem and Scout their air rifles for Christmas. Harper Lee uses characters as metaphorical mockingbirds to effectively demonstrate the injustice of harming the innocent. Tom Robinson, Atticus, and Boo Radley all represent mockingbirds throughout the story. Tom Robinson becomes the first character to prove this theme. Tom Robinson acts as a metaphorical mockingbird to demonstrate the injustice of harming the innocent. During his trial, he explains why he helped Mayella, and he said he felt sympathetic for her. This proves he acts as a ‘mockingbird’ because he attempted to help Mayella from …show more content…
Atticus proves himself to be a ‘mockingbird’ by defending Tom Robinson, an African American man, expertly. Although defending an African American may not seem as an extraordinary event today, this story took place during the Great Depression, a time full of discrimination and racism. Since Atticus defended him, this proves he portrays a metaphorical mockingbird because he attempted to bring Tom back to his normal life and reunite Tom with his family again. Atticus also proves the injustice of this theme when his kids are attacked by Mr. Ewell. This proves the injustice of harming a ‘mockingbird’ because Atticus did nothing wrong but Mr. Ewell punishes him by attempting to harm Jem and Scout. Atticus demonstrates how disturbed Mr. Ewell has made him when he says, “I thought he got it all out the day he threatened me. Even if he hadn’t, I thought he’d come after me,” (269). When Atticus says this, he means that no one like him should deserve that making it an injustice to harm someone who has not harmed others. If Mr. Ewell still attacked him, Atticus thought that he would not go after his children, the two most important people in his life, over himself. Atticus successfully illustrates a metaphorical mockingbird and the injustice of harming the innocent just the same as Boo Radley
because Tom Robinson is also a Mockingbird Figure. We know that Tom Robinson was found guilty of the charge of Rape to Mayella Ewell. This happened even though there was no evidence whatsoever to say that Tom did it, and plenty to say that he was, in fact, totally innocent. Also Tom in the trial shows how caring and honest he is when he says.
“Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” (p.90) Miss. Maudie, one of the main protagonists in To Kill a Mockingbird, warns the young girl Scout that mockingbirds should not to be killed or hunted down because they represent those who are kind and innocent. So, on a broader spectrum, the term “to kill a mockingbird” symbolizes cruel and improper behavior towards people with good hearts and intentions. In the town of Maycomb, unethical behaviors, such as prejudice and gossip, are most commonly used against the “mockingbirds”. Three of those “mockingbirds” that are featured in this novel are Arthur “Boo” Radley, Tom Robinson, and Atticus Finch. Due to the depiction of the mockingbird symbol in the novel, the reader understands the consequences that immoral attitudes have towards those who are innocent and kindhearted.
In the novel, ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee some characters suffer in the hands of justice and fairness more than others. Many characters in the novel are discriminated against such as Calpurnia, Dolphus Raymond, Helen Robinson, Burris Ewell and more. However I will be focusing on the discrimination against Tom Robinson for his race, Walter Cunningham for his low socioeconomic status and Boo Radley for the rumors and supposed mental instability he holds. I chose those three because they are the most prominent and I will discuss how the discrimination against the characters therefore leads to their injustice or unfairness.
Injustice comes in many shapes and sizes. It could be the smallest thing like a dirty look, all the way up to being murdered for no good reason. In To Kill A Mockingbird many of people face injustice. Atticus faces flak from his community for supporting Tom, who also faces injustice from the community for the alleged rape of Mayella, who probably faces the saddest injustice of all, the injustice of loneliness and the absence of love.
Who would want to kill an innocent and harmonious mockingbird? In Harper Lee’s book, To Kill a Mockingbird, the townspeople of Maycomb do just that. The theme of injustice presents itself early on in the book when Scout and Jem first hear cruel and false rumors of their mysterious neighbor Boo Radley. And the same theme continues to linger throughout the novel. The citizens of Maycomb never ceased to unfairly persecute the mockingbird, or innocent victims, of the story. The theme of injustice existed in the story through the conjured up rumors about Boo, Atticus and the racist townspeople, and most of all the trial of Tom Robinson.
In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird, the theme of how prejudice and superstition can lead to injustice is seen through the characters Boo Radley, who is seen by many as a creep through rumors, Tom Robinson, who is found guilty even though all the evidence supports him just because and his skin color, and Dolphus Raymond, who feels comfort in the black community and is shamed upon by the white community, believing he has mental disorders. In the beginning of the story we are introduced to Boo Radley. Boo is Scout’s neighbor who is rumored to be locked in his house by his father because of his evil ways. Scout and Jem hear scary rumors of Boo stabbing his father and throwing poisoned pecans into the school yard. Scout and Jem perceive
“Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy………they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” (119) In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee we see the theme of injustice woven throughout this whole book which takes place in the 1930’s. We see injustice in our world today, which is why it is easy to relate to Lee’s book. The theme of injustice is shown in the stories about Boo Radley, the case against Tom Robinson, and the attack on Jem and Scout.
In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, in chapter 9 Jem breaks down into tears after witnessing Tom Robinson becoming a victim of racial injustice. In this, he realizes Maycomb isn't the town he thought it was. He lost his innocence in that moment because he once believed the town of Maycomb was the safest town. Then after the conviction, he realized the towns predigest, changing his point of view of the people in the community. Reading this reminded me of a memory when I lost my innocence to those around me. When I was around 12 to 13 I thought my neighborhood was the nicest and friendliest neighborhood and I didn’t think anyone around was a bad person. My family and I always hang out with our neighbors, we were outside with each other constantly.
To begin, justice in Maycomb is against other races. In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, Tom Robinson is being accused of raping a white woman named Mayella Ewell. Since Tom Robinson is a black man, he is firstly accused for wanting to rape Mayella, instead of Mayella wanting to have an affair
When most people think of injustices they think of the major events in history like the Crusades or the Holocaust. However, injustices are ever present even in the smallest communities and often go unnoticed. These injustices, more often than not, are directed toward the outliers of society. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee compares the characters of Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson, and Boo Radley to Mockingbirds to emphasize the different forms of prejudice faced by each as a result of innocent behavior.
You are taking pictures of animals in the forest and you see a beautiful, white bird. This small bird has grey wings, as grey as a cloudy fall day, a mockingbird. The delicate bird is sitting atop a jagged, chestnut colored branch, and begins to sing. The mockingbird mimics a song it heard from a nearby townsperson earlier in the day. You grab your camera to take a picture of the alluring sight, and hear a bang. You look up and see three men walking to the bird, the bird that is now dead on the emerald grass. You begin to cry and you think, now why would someone kill something so harmless? The bird never harmed the men, so why did they harm it? It was so gentle. This idea of killing a powerless, pure creature shows up in the book To Kill a
“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest” Ellie Wiesel. Readers may find the amount of injustice in Harper lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird a little shocking. This could be why it’s such a popular book. People like the suspense of knowing someone’s right, but still being found guilty for something they did not do. There are many times throughout the book when people are powerless to prevent injustice but they still protest it. This shows that even when people unjustly punish there should always be someone to protest it. The theme of injustice is a common one in harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, whether it be through racism, misinformation, or Arrogance.
Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, has a multitude of symbolism and themes. Focusing on three major themes, justice, morality, and ethics, many uses of symbolism reflect on these themes. Using Atticus as morality, the mad dog as justice, and the mockingbird as ethics, the hidden themes of Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird become very apparent.
Prejudice, in itself is injustice, becomes a major player in the fight for justice when the forces of justice are antagonized. Through trials of court and mentality, Lee brings her characters and readers on a journey through the deep south to show the change of power and righteousness from prejudice to justice. In To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee utilizes the characters, settings, and conflicts in order to illustrate the impact of prejudice on justice.
‘Justice’ is a term that changes throughout history by drastic degrees, and something that is different depending on where and how you were raised. In Canada, we are raised by terms of Justice that center around equality, while in many middle eastern countries’ justice centers solely around religion. Justice is the philosophy of moral rightness, and because of this, everyone has different perspectives and ideas of what ‘true’ justice is. How to Kill a Mockingbird, is a critically acclaimed book written by Harper Lee which centers around a court case, set in the great depression, about a black man getting falsely accused of sexually assaulting a white female. Throughout the book, we see different characters thoughts of what is ‘right’ and what