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Theme Of Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

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feel different in Maycomb County. In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee examines the theme of prejudice and how when times get rough it brings out the true colors in people. In the novel, Atticus’s sister, Alexandra, comes to live with them for a while, but in the end it turns out to be a bigger mistake than anyone intended. Aunt Alexandra is being prejudice against Calpurnia, the Finches helper. Calpurnia takes Jem and Scout to her church one fine Sunday morning. Calpurnia is an African American and she attends an all African-American church. Once Aunt Alexandra finds out about them going to an African-American church she becomes very furious with them. She tells Jem and Scout that they cannot return to that church with Calpurnia …show more content…

This is another type of prejudice, it is called class prejudice. Aunt Alexandra is trying to change Jem and Scout from acting the way that they do. She's trying to strip the morals that have already been taught and embedded in their brain. She wants them to act as a higher class in which they are. “I had an idea, however, that Alexandra's appearance on the scene was not so much Atticus's doing as her. Aunty had a way of declaring What Is Best For The Family, and I suppose her coming to live with us was in that category (171).” In this quote Scout is explaining how she thinks that having Aunt Alexandra come live with them was not so much Atticus's idea, more so Aunt Alexandra's idea. Aunt Alexandra already had her way of doing things and she wanted Jem and Scout to act the way that she does. She wants them to do “ What Is Best For The Family”. Scout and Jem did not understand why Aunt Alexandra wanted them to change. Aunt Alexandra forbids Scout and Jem from playing with Walter Cunningham because he does not fit in their social class. His family does not match the Finches family and their fine family history. People see them as not a high-class like everyone else but not low enough to be like the African American people. “Jean Louise, there is no doubt in my mind that they’re good folks. But they're not our kind of folks. The thing is, you can scrub Walter …show more content…

The name of the young caucasian female that he” raped” is Mayella Ewell. Tom Robinson is a African American and Mayella liked him so, she tried to go for him. Instead of standing up to what she did, she would rather lie on the stand and have innocent African-American man locked up in jail and potentially killed. “You seem sure enough that he choked you. All this time you were fighting back, remember? You ‘kicked and hollered as loud as you could.’ Do you remember him beating you about the face?” “No, I don’t recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.” “Huh? Yes, he hit-- I just don’t remember, I just don’t remember . . . it all happened so quick ( 247-248).” Mayella was on the stand testifying to what Tom Robinson had did. While she was testifying she kept looking at her father and was hesitant about every answer that she made as if she was trying to come up with the correct answer. While Atticus is questioning Mayella he has to keep repeating the same questions over because she does not seem sure about her answers. If Tom Robinson genuinely did take advantage of Mayella she would possibly be able to talk about what happened with no hesitation. If Mr. Ewell took advantage of his own daughter and wanted to put it on a African American man then that would make more sense. They would of had to go over what they were going to say and have believable stories. While Tom Robinson was moved to the

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