Stereotyping lives in many forms, and has changed throughout history. We see it everyday, it can be something as small as a comment in a movie to someone being accused because of their skin color. In many novels stereotyping is present, and that includes Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Stereotyping has been a problem in our society today, as well as in the past. There are many examples of how stereotyping has affected our society in a negative way. It has greatly affected our past but continues to influence our future. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is a great example of how stereotyping can affect people’s everyday lives.
Stereotyping is a very prominent subject in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Throughout the novel you …show more content…
The trial lasted for a while, which meant that some of the jury was swayed by Atticus’s powerful words. But in the end everyone knew there was nothing else that could be done to help Tom Robinson. Because of racial stereotypes and discrimination against black people, Tom Robinson had been found guilty and was killed. It was a black mans word against two white people, there was no way he could have possibly had a fair trial. Another major stereotype is the novel is that girls have to be feminine. There are multiple times in To Kill a MockingBird when aunt Alexandra makes comments about Scouts appearance and behavior. Aunt Alexandra comes to visit Scout in order to make her more ladylike. “When I said I could do nothing in a dress she said I wasn’t supposed to be doing things that required pants” (Lee 108). This is one of the many examples where Aunt Alexandra tries to change Scout into the perfect stereotypical woman. She wants Scout to wear pink dresses, use stoves and tea sets and wear pearl necklaces. Alexandra believes there is only one right way to raise a daughter, that way is raising her to be a lady. She has also brought Scout along to tea parties to show her how proper ladies act and what she should be doing during the day. In To Kill a MockingBird there are also some stereotypes about boys, “Boys don’t cook” I giggled at the thought of Jem in an apron” (Lee 109). In the 1930’s men weren’t supposed to be the ones to cook and take care of the house, that was the woman’s job. When Francis says he wanted to learn how to cook Scout laughed at him because of the gender roles at the current time. “But I want to play with Walter, Aunty, why can’t I?...”Because-he-is-trash, that’s why you can’t play with him” (Lee 301). In To Kill a MockingBird people were also stereotyped by their class, if they were poor, middle or rich. The poor only
Stereotyping is a very prominent subject in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Throughout the novel you …show more content…
The trial lasted for a while, which meant that some of the jury was swayed by Atticus’s powerful words. But in the end everyone knew there was nothing else that could be done to help Tom Robinson. Because of racial stereotypes and discrimination against black people, Tom Robinson had been found guilty and was killed. It was a black mans word against two white people, there was no way he could have possibly had a fair trial. Another major stereotype is the novel is that girls have to be feminine. There are multiple times in To Kill a MockingBird when aunt Alexandra makes comments about Scouts appearance and behavior. Aunt Alexandra comes to visit Scout in order to make her more ladylike. “When I said I could do nothing in a dress she said I wasn’t supposed to be doing things that required pants” (Lee 108). This is one of the many examples where Aunt Alexandra tries to change Scout into the perfect stereotypical woman. She wants Scout to wear pink dresses, use stoves and tea sets and wear pearl necklaces. Alexandra believes there is only one right way to raise a daughter, that way is raising her to be a lady. She has also brought Scout along to tea parties to show her how proper ladies act and what she should be doing during the day. In To Kill a MockingBird there are also some stereotypes about boys, “Boys don’t cook” I giggled at the thought of Jem in an apron” (Lee 109). In the 1930’s men weren’t supposed to be the ones to cook and take care of the house, that was the woman’s job. When Francis says he wanted to learn how to cook Scout laughed at him because of the gender roles at the current time. “But I want to play with Walter, Aunty, why can’t I?...”Because-he-is-trash, that’s why you can’t play with him” (Lee 301). In To Kill a MockingBird people were also stereotyped by their class, if they were poor, middle or rich. The poor only