1. How is this theme presented in the novel? Is it presented directly or indirectly?
If someone is poor, they are more likely to be treated with less-respect and given different rights and equalities than people who are rich. Social inequality also has a lot to do with your appearance and for example, your skin colour. This theme is presented directly. It is clear to the reader that racism is a big thing in Maycomb. Black people don’t get treated the same as the whites in the town. Another way this theme is presented in the novel is the social hierarchy between the citizens. People like the Finches are on top, then the Cunninghams, the Ewells and at the bottom, the coloured people.
2. Provide at least two examples of where this theme is presented (including chapter, page
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Dolphus Raymond doesn’t have a good reputation amongst white people for the reason that he is a white man who was with a coloured lady, he lingers around with coloured people and he has mixed children. He doesn’t worry about what people see of him which is why he pretends to be a drunk so others have a real reason to dislike him.
C16,P215 : If there was a lower place in the social hierarchy, mixed children would be at the very bottom. Mixed children are half white, half black. No white person wants them and no black person wants them. They don’t belong anywhere, as Jem states. It’s not fair for children to be singled out because of their identity.
C19,P266 : After the trial that Atticus strongly defended Tom in, Tom was still found guilty all due to the fact that whites despise blacks. Atticus built a reasonable case to prove Tom Robinson innocent and Mr. Ewell guilty, but because of the social hierarchy in Maycomb, the Ewells are still thought to be more trustworthy than a man of colour (even though Mr. Ewell was clearly guilty).
3. Why do you think this idea is an important one for us as humans to explore? What significance does it have in relationship to human
Harper Lee's 'To Kill a Mockingbird' is recounted by Scout, who at the time was six years old. This book follows her journey in growing up and eventually losing her innocence through realising the evil in the world, mostly portrayed by the racism and prejudice surrounding her. A mockingbird is a metaphor for the destruction of innocence. There are three mockingbirds in the text: Boo Radley, Scout Finch and Tom Robinson. Boo has done nothing wrong except sit in his house and 'mind his own business', and has done nothing to hurt anyone else. All that has happened is he has been accused once again of crimes he did not commit. Scout is a mockingbird because she is thrust in the middle of all of the adults and their prejudices. Tom has done
To Kill a Mockingbird was a very influential book in the eyes of a growing young woman in America in the 1930’s from the eyes of Jean Louise as a child and Jean reminiscing or reflecting as an adult about the past. Mayella Ewell was a white woman who was looked down upon by her own race and the African Americans were too scared to talk to her. Mayella was looked at to be powerless over her own life and others. If she is, then why does she win the case against Tom Robinson? In the town of Maycomb race, class, and gender played larger roles than some may think let's determine how.
Is Mayella Powerful? In the past, we lived in a large racial society where many White Americans did not accept African Americans as their equals. In Harper Lee’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’, the novel focuses on the story of a rape trial located in a non-existent town of Maycomb, Alabama. It’s about a black man, Tom Robinson, who is accused of raping a poor white woman, Mayella Ewell.
Mayella Ewell is a tragic character in To Kill a Mockingbird. She is faced with many struggles involving her family and the people around her. Although Mayella is a poor white woman with an abusive father, no mother, and six siblings to take care of she does have power. Mayella Ewell is powerful as a character and continues to gain power in Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird when it comes to race, class and gender. Despite Mayella being very poor and in a lower class of the society in Maycomb Alabama she uses her status as a white female to manipulate others into deciding in her favor when dealing with her court case against Tom Robinson regarding him being wrongfully accused of
My first theme is prejudice. It is never right for one individual to own another, or for one group of people to be denied equal rights because they are different in some way. In NightJohn, they were prejudice and made African American people be enslaved and work for them and treat them differently just because they were a different color than them. I’ve seen prejudice a lot all my life. Whether it’s for for colored people or gay people or whatever, in the end we’re all the same and should all be treated equally.
All humans are born innocent. Innocence is a time when a person has never done something, it is the first step of a human beings existence. The second step is experience. This step happens after a person has done something he or she has never done before or learns something he or she has never know before. The motif of innocence and experience occurs many times in Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”. The process of this growth is especially obvious in Jem and Scout’s journey through out the book.
There are many different types of symbols in our world today; in English literature as well as all around us on a day-to-day basis. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird we follow a little girl, Scout, as she faces the truth about the world and its injustice. The central and most obvious symbol of this novel, as well as the title of the book, is the mockingbird. It represents the innocence and injustice in this story, represented by Tom Robinson and the events surrounding the trial, but also sets the theme of racial prejudice.
In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird a major theme is the loss of innocence. Whether from emotional abuse, racial prejudice or learning, Boo, Tom, and Scout all lose their innocence in one sense or another. The prejudice that each character endures leads to their loss. Through the responses of Boo, Tom, and Scout, Harper Lee shows how each character responded differently to their loss of innocence.
Motivation is a huge drive in our society. After a sports team wins a big game, or a politician makes a risky decision, they will most likely be asked: “What was your motivation?”. The answers could range from, wanting to make their coach proud, all the way to the other end of the spectrum saying it was the best thing to do for the people. There are songs focussing on motivation such as Lady Gaga’s ever popular “Applause”, in this song she talks about how the applause of her fans is what she lives for and what drives her to do what she does. When viewing what drives a person, there is no clear answer. it all comes down to the person, the situation, and other outlying factors. So when the question is posed, “Is conscience a more powerful motivator than money, fame, or power?” one is unable to say yes or no,
In Shankara’s Crest-Jewel of Discrimination, many themes of liberation are illustrated to show and expose the different aspects of liberation. Shankara was an incredible Hindu philosopher from the 7th century who wrote about his beliefs and liberation. Through this book, Shankara connects many themes and ideas to show the power of liberation and what it means to an individual.
In my opinion theme with the most impact in 'To Kill a Mockingbird" is Hypocrisy as shown in three main incidents . These are the teachings of Ms Gates about the atrocities of Adolf Hitler whilst she hated blacks ; the missionary circle trying to show how Christian they are while believing that to be a brother of Christ you must be white and finally the hypocrisy of the American court system in the 30's by saying they stand for justice.
As Nelson Mandela wisely said “ I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee centers around the Finch family and the lessons that both Jem and Scout Finch learn as their father defends a black man accused of rape. Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, we see the idea of true courage reflected in Jem Finch’s journey. Harper Lee paints a picture of true courage as it is, and Jem Finch takes this lesson to heart as he sees examples of true courage in his life.
“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”. Discuss this quote from Atticus in relation to 3 characters from the novel.
It is very evident that Maycomb is a small town in which there is much racism, and social status greatly determines what kind of life you will lead. The different types of social inequality are an important theme in the novel, and Harper Lee
I grew up in a home where my parents taught us to serve our country, community and those around us. They taught me through example, my father was a scout leader when I was a child. He often took me camping and to merit badge Pow Wow’s. As a boy I began to dream about becoming a boy scout. When I became old enough I joined the cub scouts. While in Cub scouts I learned about being part of the pack, about working together to accomplish large projects, to work together to accomplish a larger goal. Then when I was older I was able to join the boy scouts they taught me about being a citizen in the community, about being a good neighbor. They taught me about doing a good turn daily, and being prepared. When I was 13, I became a life scout. Being a life scout is not anything special, other than I was able to start working on my eagle project.