To Kill a Mockingbird Essays

This issue, of racism, is popular but tends to be acceptable by the way some people see it. The book, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee has many minor themes that are present. Such as racism, legal injustice, sexism, coming of age, and classism. However, the largest and major theme of the book is racism. All of the events and themes in the book had one purpose which is to support the theme of racism. Racism has negative effects and is very common but there is still hope.

Racism plays a big part in the world, especially in the 1930s. Racism has always been a problem in America and all around the world. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee shows racism from the characters, how they deal with African Americans, what they call the N-word. In the article, “Kids exposed to racism have a higher risk of depression and sickness,’ by Washington Post talked about a group of children’s doctors who were warned at the end of July that racism can have long-term effects on children’s health. The article, states that a report comes at a time when racism is making the news. It makes sense that racism hurts people who support African Americans because in To Kill a Mockingbird when Atticus supports Tom Robinson, an African American, other people did not like how Atticus is supporting an African American. Atticus says that there is a case in every lawyer’s career that “affects him personally” (Lee 100). Atticus says that because he has to make a decision to help cases or not where he accepts or declines the case. In the case of Atticus’ decision-making, he accepts to help Tom Robinson. If Atticus had not taken the case, he would have been accused of being racist because Tom is an African American, that is why he accepted to help Tom. Also, he did it to help Scout and Jem to not have to defend Atticus and his choices. In today’s society, it relates because some people will not like them because they are different races and they support each other. A similar thing in the article “Kids exposed to racism have a higher risk of depression and sickness,” that kids have a lot of health issues than others because they are more exposed to racism. The author is saying that kids have to worry more and think of doing dumb things to themself because they do not know what else to do because they are being slurred at because of racism. Racism still affects today’s society and others have opinions of racism and what they do about it.

Two main characters in the book carried hope for the generation that is to come, that things will change. “Why reasonable people go stark raving mad when anything involving a Negro comes up, is something I don’t pretend to understand” (Lee, 100). Both Scout and Jem, two important characters, were inspired by their father Atticus, who believed that racism is a disease from which his kids should be saved. Education informs people, gives exposure to different viewpoints. It also teaches the American population that people of all races have lots of things in common. Segregating people of all kinds prevents countries and nations from making huge progress, which wastes lots of time. “Why don’t they like the Jews, you reckon, Miss Gates?” (Lee, 281). That is one of the quotes Harper Lee was trying to show others. Societies changed for better, more and more people got educated and they learned about kindness and equality.

Many people know that racism is wrong and offensive, yet people still show racism in today’s society. Even though racism is not as bad as in the past, lots of people are hurt in many ways. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee shows racism through unfairness in the courtroom. “Alright” by Andrew Limbong shows racism by giving information about how black people have to deal with the cops and what that cops make black African Americans do unnecessary things. Both stories, “Alright” and To Kill A Mockingbird, show how different lives in the United States are not fair and arent treated the same way. It is hard to win a trial when the city that your facing is mostly white people that do not trust and respect African Americans, like Tom in To Kill A Mockingbird. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus is at court and says that Mayella Ewells is taking advantage of her white privileges by accusing an innocent man, Tom. “If you had been on that jury, son, and eleven other boys like you, Tom would be a free man” (Lee 295). Atticus is saying to the people at court that if you had more people of your race and you are on trial you would win. Then somewhere in chapter 23 Atticus talks about Mayella taking advantage of her race and talking to the people to get them on her side. Even though Mayella Ewell did not prove her innocence to court and Tom still becomes a victim of a crime he did not commit. Then Tom steps in and he says something about decision of the court should be free from discrimination because the court is a place where justice exercises races and color. A similar shameful scene occurs in the article, “Alright” by Andrew Limbong, when a 14-year-old boy, an African American, was outside playing with his airsoft and the cops showed up, the cops gave him orders to do and the boy did do what the cops told him. “According to the incident report, officers asked the 14-year old for his mother’s name and address, who gave to them” (Limbong). Yet the cops still do unnecessary things like trying to cuff the young teen. While this is happening other African Americans show up and got their phones out to record the whole thing also there were many there and they surround the cop cars and the cops then sprayed them with pepper spray without any warning and people suffer the pepper spray. Until the mother arrived, the cops take them into an ambulance and let them free, after all the unnecessary things the cops did. Sadly, many people know that racism is wrong and offensive but they still occur over and over in the past and in today’s society.

Racism, an effective way to hurt people and it breaks down people in many ways but, there is still some hope that it will change. For this, authors and writers use and show racism in their writings to let people know it is bad and unfair. Most uses of racism are people who already learned and know what effects it does yet, people don’t listen to the effects and want more problems.