How Does Mayella Ewell Obtain Power In To Kill A Mockingbird

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Throughout history, power has been proven to play a crucial role in molding society. Power may be obtained through a variety of methods. Although there are many components to obtaining power, a handful of key points include social class, gender, and racial background. Within the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses these components as a means of gaining power. Based off her race, Mayella Ewell displays a form of power when she accused an African American man of raping her. While she is off lower class and the female gender in the 1930s were not considered powerful, her race allowed her accusation to gain momentum. When looking at these three main aspects of power, her social class limits her ability to obtain power since she grew up in extensive poverty. Within the novel, the …show more content…
Being white, Mayella is viewed higher than Tom Robinson to the court due to the role that racial discrimination played in determining guilt. During the cross examination, Tom’s was treated harshly by Mr. Glimmer, who insistently referred to Tom as “boy,” a term used to demean a man of color. Mr. Glimmer exclaimed, in his cross examination of Tom, “Are you being impudent to me, boy?” (Lee Document C). During the 1930s, people of color were often looked down at when compared to white people. While Mayella has some power based on her race, her low social class and gender caused the power of her ethnicity to be insignificant. Her lack of formal education causes her to lash out during court went she accused Atticus of disrespecting her. She complained to Judge Taylor that “Long’s he keep callin’ me ma’am and sayin’ Miss Mayella. I don’t hafta take his sass, I ain’t called upon it” (Lee Document C). Her lack of proper court etiquette further impaired her ability to display power. Overall, Mayella is not held in high enough regard to be considered powerful in
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