Miss Mayella Ewell convicted Tom Robinson of rape and beating, putting the small town
of Maycomb, Alabama, in a crazed fit. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Mayella wins power by using
class, gender, and race. Tom Robinson is an African- American man, living in a heavily
segregated town in Alabama during the 1930’s. Of course he was not going to win the trial but,
because of this, Mayella gains power. When Tom is found guilty, Miss Ewell learns she is
powerful because of those three categories.
Mayella has power due to her race because of the Jim Crow laws. The Jim Crow laws are
a set of rules limiting African- Americans freedom. One of the laws says “Any white woman
who shall suffer or permit herself to be got with the child by a …show more content…
Miss Ewell has absolutely no friends besides her siblings, that is very sad and
depressing but it is the truth. Mayella’s gender is an important role in her power with her being a
2McNeal, Emily
First period
Honors English
Does Mayella have power in “To Kill a Mockingbird"
teenage girl in the south. The men were very protective over their women in this time, and still to
this day.
With Miss Ewell being a young woman in the south, the men are of course going to
believe that she is telling the honest to god truth, and she is not. Gender plays a huge role in
power; it is both a negative and a positive. Gender, with Mayella being a girl is a negative
because, women are less powerful than men because the men are “the man/men of the house”
meaning that they are in charge of working and bringing home the money every week, also
taking care of everything. Although it is a positive to, it is a woman's word over a man’s word
about rape. Miss Ewell is in favor to win because of the gender, therefore giving her power due
to gender.
All of these reasons give Mayella power, increasing her confidence, allowing her to
of Maycomb, Alabama, in a crazed fit. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Mayella wins power by using
class, gender, and race. Tom Robinson is an African- American man, living in a heavily
segregated town in Alabama during the 1930’s. Of course he was not going to win the trial but,
because of this, Mayella gains power. When Tom is found guilty, Miss Ewell learns she is
powerful because of those three categories.
Mayella has power due to her race because of the Jim Crow laws. The Jim Crow laws are
a set of rules limiting African- Americans freedom. One of the laws says “Any white woman
who shall suffer or permit herself to be got with the child by a …show more content…
Miss Ewell has absolutely no friends besides her siblings, that is very sad and
depressing but it is the truth. Mayella’s gender is an important role in her power with her being a
2McNeal, Emily
First period
Honors English
Does Mayella have power in “To Kill a Mockingbird"
teenage girl in the south. The men were very protective over their women in this time, and still to
this day.
With Miss Ewell being a young woman in the south, the men are of course going to
believe that she is telling the honest to god truth, and she is not. Gender plays a huge role in
power; it is both a negative and a positive. Gender, with Mayella being a girl is a negative
because, women are less powerful than men because the men are “the man/men of the house”
meaning that they are in charge of working and bringing home the money every week, also
taking care of everything. Although it is a positive to, it is a woman's word over a man’s word
about rape. Miss Ewell is in favor to win because of the gender, therefore giving her power due
to gender.
All of these reasons give Mayella power, increasing her confidence, allowing her to