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Prejudice in To Kill a Mockingbird

Prejudice in "To Kill a Mockingbird"

Harper Lee deals with prejudice in a large way in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’. The main theme of the novel is prejudice. Almost every character is involved in a situation that contains prejudice. The novel is staged in the ‘tired old town’ of Maycomb, Alabama, in the 1930s. Maycomb is a classic southern town full of gossip, tradition and burdened with a legacy of racism. Harper Lee bases her novel on historical events that started only a few years before her novel was published. The civil rights movement had begun and was a very important in America at the time the novel was being written, so there was likely to be a lot of prejudice in Harper Lee’s novel. There are many situations in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ that are very similar to actual historical events, such as the Scottsboro trials which have a lot in common with the fictional trial of Tom Robinson.

The narrator in the novel is called Scout Finch, and the story is told through Scout’s perspective. Her fresh outlook on the town of Maycomb provided the reader with a multitude of viewpoints on civil rights. Scout’s innocent perspective compels her to ask questions about why whites treat blacks the way they do. Scout must come to terms with the racism of her town and how it affects the people in her life.

A number of people greatly influence Scout. The two major role models in her life, her Aunt Alexandra and her father Atticus, pull her in two opposing directions. Aunt Alexandra is prejudice towards the Finch’s black housekeeper, Calpurnia. Bought into the Finch house to teach and act as a female role model for young Scout, Aunt Alexandra begins by demonstrating to Scout Calpurnia’s inferior position. Aunt Alexandra from the beginning shows Scout who possesses the power. The first time Aunt Alexandra appears in the novel, we instantly see the lack of respect that she has for Calpurnia. Aunt Alexandra does not say “please” or “thank you,” just a simple command forcing Calpurnia into an inferior position. Calpurnia has symbolized strength and authority throughout Scout’s childhood, by acting as a mother figure in the Finch household. Scout has never seen Calpurnia in such a low and submissive position. Calpurnia has established a respected place in the Finch family through the years of dedicated service and through the love she has...

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