discrimination to kill a mockingbird essay

To Kill A Mockingbird Essays: Discrimination and Prejudice Length: 1388 words (4 double-spaced pages) Rating: Red (FREE)   - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Discrimination and Prejudice in To Kill A Mocking Bird           Discrimination and prejudice were very common acts in the early and middle 1900's. Prejudice in this book is displayed by the acts of hate and misunderstanding because of someone's color. People of color were the majority that were treated unfairly. During this time in the southern states, black people had to use separate bathrooms, drinking fountains, sections in restaurants, churches, and even go to separate schools. Although much of the discrimination was directed towards blacks, there were plenty of accounts towards impoverished families by those that had money. Discrimination is prevalent when people that are different are called names. Some people thought blacks were automatically dumb because of their color. They weren't allowed to do anything but menial tasks (such as chopping wood) and hard labor because they were thought too dumb. The novel TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee has numerous accounts of racism and prejudice throughout the entire piece. The novel is set in the 1930's, a time when racism was very prevalent. Although bigotry and segregation were pointed in majority towards blacks, other accounts towards whites were also heard of, though not as commonly. There are acts that are so discreet that you almost don't catch them, but along with those, there are blatant acts of bigotry that would never occur in our time. Lee addresses many of these feelings in her novel. One subtle example of discrimination the reader sees is the treatment of Calpurnia, a black woman, the housekeeper/nanny for the Finch family. Although she is treated fairly, it is obvious that she is considered to be on a lower social.
Only available on StudyMode Read full document → Save to my library Discrimination today is often done by accident and is commonly unnoticed; done without knowing the possible consequences that can arise. Whether it be a simple remark on the soccer field such as “stop playing like a girl”, which seems to be an insult towards girls, or using ʻgayʼ as an insult, discrimination & prejudice can often be subconscious and unnoticed. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, set in the 1930ʼs during the depression era aims to challenge the notion of discrimination in general, whether it be based on race, class or gender. Through the use of various literary techniques, such as symbolism, foreshadowing and characterisation, Lee portrays her opinion of discrimination throughout the novel. Racial discrimination is easily the most prominent type of discrimination within the novel. The reader mostly sees this through the character of Tom Robinson, who is wrongly accused on charges of rape and assault. Through the use of this character, in combination with various literary techniques, Harper Lee holds up a mirror and makes us assess our own beliefs of discrimination and prejudice. Techniques such as symbolism are used by Lee to portray the possible dangers of discrimination and prejudice. Symbolism within the novel is mainly used to portray Tomʼs innocence. The main example of symbolism is the mockingbird. Mockingbirds first appear in the novel when Jem and Scout are learning to use their new air rifles, where Atticus gives them one rule to follow - “Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird. Miss Maudie also noted “Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a.
Scout and Jem sit with their father, Atticus.Harper Lee’s classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird centers on a young girl named Jean Louise “Scout” Finch. Her father Atticus Fincher, a lawyer, takes a case to defend a black man accused of raping a white woman.Nelle Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama. Lee drew inspiration from her own childhood: like Scout, Lee’s father was also a lawyer. Although the novel is not autobiographical, the novel does share some similarities to Lee’s life. While the novel is set in the 1930s, the novel does touch upon issues relevant to Lee’s time. According to an interview, Lee took about two years to write To Kill a Mockingbird (The Bluegrass Special). Prior to the novel’s publication, the Civil Rights movements was in motion. During this decade, the Civil Rights Movement brought success, seeing “the first major victories for civil rights in the Supreme Court” (Vox). Among the many events, including Brown vs. Board of Education, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a protest that later concluded in declaring segregated laws of Montgomery and Alabama buses as unconstitutional, and after a group of nine African American students were denied entry to Little Rock High School, President Eisenhower sent federal troops to integrate the school. In addition, since the novel is set in the 1930s, the Great Depression left many families impoverished, which we see in the Cunninghams and Ewells.The novel is told from Scout’s perspective; through Scout, we the readers witness the social construction of race, class, and gender. The novel continues to be taught in classrooms due to its depiction of themes about race, morality, and innocence. While the novel depicts a discrimination against race, To Kill a Mockingbird also depicts a discrimination against gender and class.RaceIn the novel, Scout and Jem, Scout’s older brother, are looked.
Below you will find five outstanding thesis statements / paper topics  on “To Kill a Mockingbird” that can be used as essay starters. All five incorporate at least one of the themes found in “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee and are broad enough so that it will be easy to find textual support, yet narrow enough to provide a focused clear thesis statement. These thesis statements for “To Kill a Mockingbird” offer a short summary of different elements that could be important in an essay but you are free to add your own analysis and understanding of the plot or themes to them. Using the essay topics below in conjunction with the list of important quotes from To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, you should have no trouble connecting with the text and writing an excellent essay.> *Note: Additional Quotes from this and other books can be found easily in books online * Thesis Statement / Essay Topic 1: Notions of Justice and Fairness in “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee Despite the unwavering dedication of Atticus Finch in “To Kill a Mockingbird”, the absence of evidence, and a moving courtroom speech, Tom Robinson is convicted of a crime that he did not commit. This jury ruling causes both those who advocated Robinson’s conviction and those who were convinced of his innocence to question their notions of justice and fairness. As if a false conviction was not enough, Tom is eventually killed, and the sense of justice and fairness seem to be completely violated. Write an argumentative essay on “To Kill a Mockingbird” in which you establish what Lee is trying to convey regarding these two concepts that are so important to civil society. Questions that you might want to consider include: If justice and fairness are so elusive, how can Atticus and Scout continue to believe in them?, and Are justice and fairness conflicting concepts in “To Kill a Mockingbird”? Thesis.
To Kill A Mockingbird: Discrimination Discrimination has been generalized, for well over a century, as any harsh words directed at another race. This is merely the facade of discrimination though. Discrimination can be embodied in a variety of ways. A man's creed, his or her color of skin, musical or artistic inclination and a person's sexual preference are only fleeting examples of a much larger picture. In discrimination, there are no right sides to arguments fought over superiority, only a massive population of fools blindly pointing at each other and judging each other's essence of what makes them unique. Discrimination itself stems from ignorance, which occurs when unfocused hatred is spewed forth, its aim, certain minority groups, or majority groups for that matter. In many situations, the oppressor's bigotry is merely a product of a deranged upbringing in which other groups of people were slandered and maligned ad nauseam. Harper Lee's novel To Kill A Mockingbird is no exception. Tom Robinson's struggle with his white oppressors, Scout's rebellion against the proper way girls should dress and behave and Scout, Dill and Jem's fight to win the respect of the town people's adults. Whether it is through racism, sexism or ageism, discrimination is a dominant theme within To Kill A Mockingbird. Racism is an apparent form of discrimination in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird. It was Jem's turn to cry. His face was streaked with angry tears as we made our way through the cheerful crowd. It ain't right,” he muttered, all the way to the corner of the square where we found Atticus waiting. It ain't right, Atticus,” said Jem.” No Son, it's not right.” (212) And like the murdering of an innocent mockingbird that's music never hurt anyone, Jem's innocence died amidst a climate of racial intolerance. In this quote Jem is shocked by Tom Robinson's guilt. He does not.