Racial Prejudice is a rigid and unfair generalization and assessment which is done by certain people toward the other people without knowing clearly about them. Prejudice is a common problem during the early quarter of the twentieth century. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird this problem is evident in Maycomb. Boo Radley, Atticus Finch and Tom Robinson are all victims of prejudice, and all three characters are plagued by this. It affects them all differently; crippling them and disabling them from…
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The Scottsboro trials were horrendous and showed the cruelty of racism within the 1930’s. For example, in a video Carol Anderson explains that when the two white woman yelled “rape” the nine black boys get taken into custody instantly. This proves that people did not trust those boys just because they were a different race. People did not even take the time to ask the women which man raped them and the basic questions about the rape. Furthermore, they do not even take the boys side of events; They…
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Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, prejudice defines the happenings of the small town of Maycomb. Racial prejudice is evident in the racism of the time, especially through Tom Robinson’s trial. Social prejudice is apparent in Jem’s social ladder; those with money hold the power within the small town. Finally, gender prejudice affects Scout along with the other women in Maycomb. Through this discussion of prejudice in the 1930’s, Harper Lee comments on the dangers of judging others. This powerful lesson…
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Racism, Sexism, and Classism in To Kill a Mockingbird Prejudice and discrimination are ongoing issues that affect various types of people in a society, as everyone has different identities and it is impossible to avoid judgment towards them. Prejudice created in a society affects the mind of a person as they struggle to conform or to reject these assumptions. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird clearly depicts a time, presumably in the 1930’s, where the Jim Crow system, gender roles and class distinctions…
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Mockingbird” which explores ideas of growing up while also incorporating themes of racism and segregation found in the South. In chapter 15 of To Kill A Mockingbird, Lee depicts a mob around the local county jail, which takes place after backlash because of a white lawyer defending a black man. Lee’s purpose is to show the reader themes of innocence and to reveal the harsh reality of life in the 1930’s when racism and prejudice were prevalent. To do this, Harper Lee utilizes dialogue and juxtaposition in…
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Dishonorable Discrimination When the word racism presented itself, one vivid image always popped into my head. This picture consisted of two water fountains; One dark colored fountain stood below a sign that read “black”, while a cream colored fountain stood below a sign that read “white”. Countless examples of other events in the early 1930’s exposed the reality of racism. Bigotry affected all of the characters in the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, and each citizen of Maycomb county held a strong…
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Charles R. Swindoll said ¨Prejudice is learned trait, you're not born prejudiced; you're taught it.¨ People were taught to be prejudiced, and many white people were prejudiced against black people. The Depression was harder for black people than it was for white people. Black workers were the first ones to lose their jobs. In the mid-1930's some changes were made to help people. By 1935 there began to be some positive for African Americans because slavery ended only a few generations ago, hard…
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never stand equal to his white counterparts. Lee uses diction to prove the lessened weight of a black man’s words throughout the entire book by the heavy presence of the word ‘nigger.’ Lee sets the scene for Maycomb being a place filled with racial prejudice long before the trial begins with the absence of hesitation when Scout says ‘nigger.’…
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Atticus?” Scout said. Furthermore, some accents were found in the book as Southern Drawl such as “you‘ve ruined ‘em, No ma’am.” Because it emphasizes the time and place as the “Deep South” in the 1930’s and the place is not very modern or developed. Another good literary device is the theme of racism. It is because a man, Tom Robinson, who is a black, is in trouble. Atticus is defending him, although most white people are angry with Atticus for defending a black man and some of Atticus’s relatives…
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Prejudice is the irrational suspicion and hatred of a social group, usually towards race. Evidently, the social hierarchy upon which we build society promotes hate and injustice. In Harper Lee’s depression era novel To Kill a Mockingbird, she illustrates the different types of mindsets of the southern people of Maycomb County, Alabama. In the early 1930’s, unemployment and poverty were spreading quickly during the years of the Depression and the quality of living had dropped substantially. Maycomb…
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