“There 's something in our world that makes men lose their heads—they couldn 't be fair if they tried. In our courts, when it 's a white man 's word against a black man 's, the white man always wins. They 're ugly, but those are the facts of life”. (Lee 220) In Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill a Mockingbird”, the characters show how discrimination is caused by those that are afraid of who others really are. The character who best explain and represent this theme are Arthur (Boo) Radley, Calpurnia and Tom Robinson.
Particularly, Boo Radley was often made out to be a person of children’s nightmares and therefore was never given a chance to not be feared by all of Maycomb. It is rumored by that Boo Radley watches the neighbourhood sleep through their …show more content…
After the trial Scout tries to explain to Dill why Mr. Gilmer was being so mean and rude to Tom Robinson in the quote “The way that man called him ‘boy’ all the time an’ sneered at him, an’ looked around at the jury every time he answered-’ ‘Well, Dill, after all he’s just a negro”.(Lee 199) The only explanation is this; because discrimination against colored people has caused it to be okay in a courtroom, for lawyers to treat those like Tom with disrespect. Scout describes the scene where the controversial final verdict is announced in the quote “A jury never looks at a defendant it has convicted, and when this jury came in, not one of them looked at Tom Robinson. The foreman handed a piece of paper to Mr. Tate who handed it to the clerk who handed it to the judge… I shut my eyes. Judge Taylor was polling the jury: “Guilty...guilty...guilty…” I peeked at Jem: his hands were white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each “guilty” was a separate stab between them”.(Lee 211) Despite the large amount of evidence to prove that Mayella was lying, he was still found guilty and this is an example of how a colored man’s word means next to nothing in a courtroom. Atticus arrives home early to fetch Calpurnia to accompany him to tell Tom Robinson’s wife that her husband was shot and died in the quote “Oh yes, the guards …show more content…
The terrifying rumours about Boo Radley told to Jem and Scout caused them to be afraid of him and Dill to attempt to break into his house. Even though Calpurnia is a beloved part of the Finch household but is treated poorly by Aunt Alexandra. Tom Robinson is put on trial, convicted and later killed simply because the jury held the lying word of a white woman over that of an honest black man. This is similar to the convictions of the Scottsboro Boys, who were found guilty for a crime they did not commit. In conclusion, discrimination is most evident in the novel against those who are feared, attacked, spoken down to, convicted and killed for things they did not
Particularly, Boo Radley was often made out to be a person of children’s nightmares and therefore was never given a chance to not be feared by all of Maycomb. It is rumored by that Boo Radley watches the neighbourhood sleep through their …show more content…
After the trial Scout tries to explain to Dill why Mr. Gilmer was being so mean and rude to Tom Robinson in the quote “The way that man called him ‘boy’ all the time an’ sneered at him, an’ looked around at the jury every time he answered-’ ‘Well, Dill, after all he’s just a negro”.(Lee 199) The only explanation is this; because discrimination against colored people has caused it to be okay in a courtroom, for lawyers to treat those like Tom with disrespect. Scout describes the scene where the controversial final verdict is announced in the quote “A jury never looks at a defendant it has convicted, and when this jury came in, not one of them looked at Tom Robinson. The foreman handed a piece of paper to Mr. Tate who handed it to the clerk who handed it to the judge… I shut my eyes. Judge Taylor was polling the jury: “Guilty...guilty...guilty…” I peeked at Jem: his hands were white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each “guilty” was a separate stab between them”.(Lee 211) Despite the large amount of evidence to prove that Mayella was lying, he was still found guilty and this is an example of how a colored man’s word means next to nothing in a courtroom. Atticus arrives home early to fetch Calpurnia to accompany him to tell Tom Robinson’s wife that her husband was shot and died in the quote “Oh yes, the guards …show more content…
The terrifying rumours about Boo Radley told to Jem and Scout caused them to be afraid of him and Dill to attempt to break into his house. Even though Calpurnia is a beloved part of the Finch household but is treated poorly by Aunt Alexandra. Tom Robinson is put on trial, convicted and later killed simply because the jury held the lying word of a white woman over that of an honest black man. This is similar to the convictions of the Scottsboro Boys, who were found guilty for a crime they did not commit. In conclusion, discrimination is most evident in the novel against those who are feared, attacked, spoken down to, convicted and killed for things they did not