As expressed by Salman Rushdie, “Literature is where I go to explore the highest and lowest places in human society and in the human spirit, where I hope to find not absolute truth but the truth of the tale, of the imagination, and of the heart.” For centuries, science and philosophy have grappled with the great mystery of our inner lives; literature, however, has defeated this, with its capacity to provide one of the most accurate records of human consciousness. In acknowledgement of the critical power of literature, this essay explores the strengths and weaknesses of the human spirit in suffering, with explicit reference to Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird and Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale.
Shami Chakrabarti, director of the …show more content…
Atticus knows that “in our courts…the white man always wins”. Hence, by assuming that Tom is telling the truth, and that a white girl is lying, ‘is a verdict that will not fit their belief system’. The fact that the trial has “relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant” exemplifies the utmost stupidity of Maycomb’s refusal to admit the blatantly obvious truth. Maycomb is prepared to sacrifice Tom, an innocent and gentle human being, ‘out o fear: to demonstrate its loyalty to Mayella Ewell, to her tribe, and to the white racial …show more content…
It is easy to demonize Mayella as she is the perpetrator of an appalling miscarriage of justice, however, beneath the hyper vigilant semblance, lies a victim of circumstances. Mayella lives a sad life, battling “cruel poverty” abuse and neglect, deprived of love and genial human connection; “Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world… When Atticus asked if she had any friends, she seemed not to know what he meant.” Scout understands that Mayella is not solely ignorant, but a wounded soul, and concedes that “Tom Robinson was probably the only person who was ever decent to her”. The fact that Tom Robinson claimed that “She hugged me”, an innocent gesture, indicates a cry for companionship and intimacy: an essential and universal human
Shami Chakrabarti, director of the …show more content…
Atticus knows that “in our courts…the white man always wins”. Hence, by assuming that Tom is telling the truth, and that a white girl is lying, ‘is a verdict that will not fit their belief system’. The fact that the trial has “relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant” exemplifies the utmost stupidity of Maycomb’s refusal to admit the blatantly obvious truth. Maycomb is prepared to sacrifice Tom, an innocent and gentle human being, ‘out o fear: to demonstrate its loyalty to Mayella Ewell, to her tribe, and to the white racial …show more content…
It is easy to demonize Mayella as she is the perpetrator of an appalling miscarriage of justice, however, beneath the hyper vigilant semblance, lies a victim of circumstances. Mayella lives a sad life, battling “cruel poverty” abuse and neglect, deprived of love and genial human connection; “Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world… When Atticus asked if she had any friends, she seemed not to know what he meant.” Scout understands that Mayella is not solely ignorant, but a wounded soul, and concedes that “Tom Robinson was probably the only person who was ever decent to her”. The fact that Tom Robinson claimed that “She hugged me”, an innocent gesture, indicates a cry for companionship and intimacy: an essential and universal human