To Kill A Mockingbird Trial Analysis

I am going to be questioning two reasons why Mayella lied at the trial. The first reason she lied was because she was afraid of her dad. During the trial Atticus asks Mayella “’Do you remember him beating you about the face’” (Lee 247). Mayella responds with hesitation and says “’No, I don’t recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me’” (Lee 248). I believe she hesitated because it is her dad that beats her up, and Tom never touched her. Atticus’s evidence to show that Mayella’s father beat her up is “If her right eye was blacked and she was beaten mostly on the right side of her face, it would tend to show that a left-handed person did it” (Lee 238). Bob Ewell is dominant with his left hand and Tom Robinson is dominant with his …show more content…
The first word I would use to describe Tom is kind. Tom is kin for many reasons but one main reason is he helped Mayella out. Tom says he helped her out because “’I felt right sorry for her. . .’” (Lee 264). This shows that Tom helped Mayella out because he was kind and caring. Also when the jury asks “’-did all this for not one penny?’”(Lee 263). Tom responds by saying “’Yes, suh’” (Lee 264). This shows that even though Mayella offered him money, he did not take it because he was kind. This shows he is kind because he knows how poor the Ewell family is, so he helps her out because he is caring and kind. Another reason Tom is kind is because he took risks. He took many risks in this book, but the biggest risks he took were for Mayella. According to Miss Stephanie “Atticus was leaving the post office when Mr. Ewell approached him, cursed him, spat on him, and threatened to kill him” (Lee 291). This quote shows how much Bob Ewell did not like Tom or any blacks. Tom took a risk by helping Mayella out even though he knew talking to a white girl could have consequences. For example, Tom knew that if anything happened, the town would take Mayella’s statements over his. He knew this because he was black. Talking to Mayella could backfire and put him in jail, but he continues to talk to her. This shows that Tom did not care that he talked to her because he trusted her and felt she was kind. In the end he should have never talked to her or trusted her. The last reason that Tom is kind is because he does not lie I the trial. When Tom is sharing his testimony Jem and Scout realized “Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world” (Lee 256). This shows that as Tom is speaking, he is telling the truth about Mayella. He is saying that the reason he helped Mayella was because she was lonely and did not have anyone. Mayella was the oldest of her siblings, which meant she was basically the mom of her