Preview

Examples Of Equality In To Kill A Mockingbird

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
407 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Examples Of Equality In To Kill A Mockingbird
In the Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird argues that the definition of equality is diffrent for diffrent people. There are many different examples of this throughout the story, and that prove that equality still has issues today.
One example that shows the different definitions of equality is how different members of the town reacted to Atticus defending Tom Robinson. While some of the town supported Atticus with defending Tom, and even change their views like Mr. Underwood, who said he would defend Atticus the night some of the town tried to lynch Tom in the jail, and some people in the Cunningham family, since one of the Cunninghams almost acquitted the trial by not agreeing that Tom was guilty. This shows that different people

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, characters resist the status quo many of their family and friends believe in to take a stand against racial injustice. For example, Atticus takes the case to defend Tom against his family’s wishes, because if he didn't, “.... [he] couldn't hold [his] head up in town, [he] couldn't represent this county in the legislature..” (100). Scout was asking Atticus why he would defend Negroes if he wasn't supposed to, and Atticus told Scout he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he didn't accept the case.…

    • 353 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Is there really such a thing as true equality? Can equality really be found in places like court? In To Kill a Mocking Bird, Harper Lee says that all men are created equal in courts. The book proves that through the results of the trial and the actions of the people after the trial, not all men are created equal, even in courts…

    • 228 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout this journal, one can predict that the black spectators at the trial stand when Atticus passes because they respect him and are grateful that he defended Tom Robinson. To begin, the black people of Maycomb respect Atticus. One example that supports this is that Atticus himself respects black people. Throughout the book, Atticus has openly supported equality between races. A specific example is during Atticus’s finishing statement, when he proclaims that all men, whether white and black, are equal in the eyes of the court. This shows that Atticus believes black men and white men to be equal and is willing to publically state such, which is a trait the blacks can appreciate and respect Atticus for. Another example that verifies the…

    • 625 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    To kill a mockingbird is an insightful novel that effectively educates its reader about the discrimination and prejudice against African Americans that was occurring at the time. Through the pity and intensity of Tom Robinson’s trial the reader learns how the rights of African Americans were very different than the white Americans at the time. To kill a mockingbird highlights the pure injustice that Tom Robinson faces, when accused of a crime that he didn’t commit. Due to these accusations Tom’s fate is put on the line and his dignity is robbed from him as the whole of Maycomb assumes that Mayella Ewell is right. Immediately the town people build a sense of hate and anger towards Tom Robinson and attempt to act on their thoughts and opinions. Throughout this text one will learn how not only Negro’s were affected by this prejudice and discrimination but how innocent white Americans, such as the finch family were too.…

    • 571 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    There is no such thing as true equality, someone will always have more power than everyone else. Harper Lee addresses this in her novel To Kill A Mockingbird, which takes place in Maycomb, Alabama. A Character in her novel, Atticus Finch lawyer and father, states “our courts are the great levelers, and in our courts all men are created equal.” However, this court case was nowhere close to being fair. Despite all of the conflicting evidence between the defendants, an innocent black was accused of being guilty and sent to death because of this inequality and unfairness.…

    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Social inequality was a major factor of society during The Great Depression. People frowned upon other races.Some welcomed them to their community but many others did not. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, There's a huge difference between two races. The novel explores human morality and shows many indications of it throughout the book.…

    • 368 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    What is a very apparent concept in the story is the inequality and prejudice that exist in the small town. In Maycomb, the wealth of an individual is a way that consistently divided the social status of the townspeople. For example, The Finchers and other middle class people have more prestige and social status over the lower class townspeople, such as the Cunninghams and the Ewells. The most common and discriminatory inequality in the town is that the race of an individual would unjustly determine their social status. For example, the blacks, despite having more amiable qualities than the Ewells, still remain at the bottom of the social hierarchy for the only reason being their race. This lead to the Ewells exploiting the town’s racial prejudices…

    • 138 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Race relations have evolved over the course of the 20 and 21 century. It seen through the book, To Kill a Mockingbird. It is also shown through famous trials such as the Scottsboro trials, the Emmett Till murder trial, the Sacco and Vanzetti trial, and the Nuremberg trials. Although it is found a lot between African Americans, race relations have evolved between other races as well.…

    • 1385 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel that can give a clear lesson to further the movement for racial equality. Scout is a little girl in the south. She is the main character and protagonist of the novel. She lives with her brother Jem and her father, Atticus. She is very intelligent, thanks to her father and she is a tomboy.…

    • 352 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Although American society has evolved from the one depicted in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird, today’s society needs to be reminded that social and racial inequality is still present.…

    • 370 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Racism, the belief that some races are better than other races, it destroys society and it lowers one's freedom of speech, it was present in To Kill a Mockingbird from start to end. Most of the white community had a biased opinion about black people and their community,you see that when Calpurnia takes Jem and Scout to the black church because their father Atticus was away, but when they tell him about that their visit aunt Alexandra was not happy about it that there is segregation. Tom Robinson (a young innocent black man) falsely accused of raping a white girl Mayella Ewell, after him arriving at Macomb County there were some people from town that wanted to kill him before trial and later dies after the trial. Africans-American also served as slaves during that time, were given not much respect and if the white folks did not like them they would have been falsely charged and sent to jail or killed. Overall racism was active at all times in the novel and it got worse as the book proceeds and it shows how hard life was as a black person back then.…

    • 927 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    How to Kill a Mockingbird is a very good example of how equality was in the past. This book was written in the time period of 1830-1840’s. During this time in history, blacks weren’t really accepted in the world. Scout is a white girl, her father Atticus is a lawyer. Atticus takes a big step in his world and puts himself, and his family in danger. Atticus decides to defend…

    • 914 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee focuses more on the aspect of racial discrimination rather than “poor white trash” discrimination (Hovet 187). It is so conspicuous that a man loses his life because of it. While the discrimination is more prominent regarding race, the Finch family is also greatly discriminated against throughout the novel. Racism is very prominent in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, as evidenced when Tom Robinson, a black man, is accused of raping a white woman in the 1930s South; because of his innocence and untimely death, all lives in the novel will be changed forever, including Atticus Finch.…

    • 1838 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The snowman Jem creates in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, is a mixed-race snowman that helps to express the message that racism overpowers equality in the community of Maycomb. One example relating to the snowman that displays fairness is the instance when Scout is showing her confusion to Jem about the snowman having a black surface rather than a white surface. Scout says knowingly to Jem, “‘Jem, I ain’t ever heard of a nigger snowman,’ I said. ‘He won’t be black long,’ he grunted” (75). Scout, being the adolescent that she is, explains her confusion when the snowman doesn’t look like the majority of the residents. This quotation demonstrates that a darker skin tone is not well-known in Maycomb suggesting prejudice…

    • 427 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee brings up the topic of equality with court systems in her novel. Atticus Finch, father of the main character states that “our courts are great levelers, and in our courts all men are created equal” (274) Atticus is right by saying this. In Lee’s story scout defends her father’s thought by adding more evidence.…

    • 435 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays