In the story “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, Mayella, a white southern teen that lives in a dump with her abusive father, is in fact in control of Tom Robinson’s fate. Mayella is sexualy assaulted by her father, which causes her to file a false court case against Tom Robinson (a black male) in which he is convicted. During the court case the evidence points to Bob Ewell, Mayella’s father and a man known to have a drunken abusive history. Power being the amount of control one has over their life; through being able to not only control her own actions, but the fate of another man, Mayella is in a fact a powerful woman. Mayella uses her race to her advantage despite being a woman of low societal standing, ultimately proving her power.
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A good example of this is, “he does tollable,’cept when-’ except when?’ Mayella looked at her father, who was sitting with his chair tipped against the railing. He sat up straight and waited for her to answer. ‘Except when nothing’,’ said Mayella. ‘I said he does tollable.’ Mr.ewell leaned back again. ‘Except when he's drinking?’ asked Atticus so gently that Mayella nodded ( Lee, Doc B) . These two excerpts show that Mayella is powerful because she still, in a way, told Atticus that her father is tollable except when he drinks. This means she knows either way the court case went she would get her what she wanted, either Tom in jail and her dad killed or her dad goes to jail and Tom gets killed …show more content…
Mayella is lower on the social ladder, however due to her maintaining a position higher than blacks (even as a woman), in this time period she still holds power during the trial. For example, “Maycomb’s Ewells lived behind the town dump in what was once a Negro cabin” (Lee, Doc A) . Another way to illustrate that Mayella has the higher position in this situation, but not by much, is the comment made by one of the court echelons; “... okay we’ll convict this Negro but get back to your dump” (Lee, Doc A). These two examples prove that Mayella can have significantly greater power through her race and gender, though less through her societal rank.
One of the main things giving Mayella power in the novel would be her race. Another thing that references her power throughout the novel is her gender. Lastly, Mayella’s class takes a toll on her yet she remains more powerful than Tom Robinson. In conclusion, this essay has explained how Mayella is abundantly powerful in some areas, however is not as powerful in other
A good example of this is, “he does tollable,’cept when-’ except when?’ Mayella looked at her father, who was sitting with his chair tipped against the railing. He sat up straight and waited for her to answer. ‘Except when nothing’,’ said Mayella. ‘I said he does tollable.’ Mr.ewell leaned back again. ‘Except when he's drinking?’ asked Atticus so gently that Mayella nodded ( Lee, Doc B) . These two excerpts show that Mayella is powerful because she still, in a way, told Atticus that her father is tollable except when he drinks. This means she knows either way the court case went she would get her what she wanted, either Tom in jail and her dad killed or her dad goes to jail and Tom gets killed …show more content…
Mayella is lower on the social ladder, however due to her maintaining a position higher than blacks (even as a woman), in this time period she still holds power during the trial. For example, “Maycomb’s Ewells lived behind the town dump in what was once a Negro cabin” (Lee, Doc A) . Another way to illustrate that Mayella has the higher position in this situation, but not by much, is the comment made by one of the court echelons; “... okay we’ll convict this Negro but get back to your dump” (Lee, Doc A). These two examples prove that Mayella can have significantly greater power through her race and gender, though less through her societal rank.
One of the main things giving Mayella power in the novel would be her race. Another thing that references her power throughout the novel is her gender. Lastly, Mayella’s class takes a toll on her yet she remains more powerful than Tom Robinson. In conclusion, this essay has explained how Mayella is abundantly powerful in some areas, however is not as powerful in other