Examples Of Hypocrisy In To Kill A Mockingbird - 1782 Words

An award winning novel, To Kill A Mockingbird was brilliantly written by author Harper Lee, intertwining multiple themes to create a classic piece of American literature to represent white southern ethics of the 1930s. A common theme throughout the novel, hypocrisy is a method for Harper Lee to communicate an underlying message to readers. Hypocrisy reflects how societies, communities and the church benefits from it as a means for being ignorant of oneself’s wrongdoings and sins, placing blame elsewhere as a matter of cynical pride, no doubt hurting others in the process. An example of a character who effectively represents southern hypocrisy is Miss Mayella Ewell, who cynically condemns Tom Robinson to preserve the little remains of her†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"She says what her papa do to her don’t count.†(260) Every piece of evidence points to the fact that Mayella is trying to incarcerate Robinson for the wrongdoings of her own family, the fact tha t her own father had assaulted her, yet, she still chooses to incriminate an innocent man over a violent one just to preserve her reputation. Mayella Ewell’s ignorance and hypocrisy leads her to harm others, in the present and future, despite having a simple solution to resolve the problem. Furthermore, the case is quite a simple one yet the only thing that is stopping justice is the pride and hypocrisy of Mayella Ewell and the jury. Mayella Ewell did not provide one piece of concrete evidence to support the fact that she had been raped by Tom Robinson, instead she chooses to outright fabricate the whole event to protect her reputation and her father, despite swearing that she would tell nothing but the complete truth. â€Å"...there is circumstantial evidence to indicate that Mayella Ewell was beaten savagely by someone who led with exclusively his left.†(272) There is evidence to indicate that it was Bob Ewell who had beaten Mayella Ewell, because Bob is left-handed and Tom only had one good hand but despite all this, Tom is still proven guilty because of his race. Mayella Ewell has a complete disregard for the collateral damage that is Tom, uncaring of all the damage sheShow MoreRelatedExamples Of Hypocrisy In To Kill A Mockingbird822 Words   |  4 Pagesprivilege of reading the award winning book, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. At first glance, the novel just reinforced one of my basic morals: racism is wrong. Upon a closer look I picked up on some more subtle themes that Lee expressed in her novel. One of the underlying themes made me think about a belief I had come to believe for many years: hypocrisy is wrong. The characterization Lee used in To Kill a Mockingbird taught me that although hypocrisy is wrong, it is beneficial because it destroysRead MoreEvil and Injustice in Harper Lee ´s Novel:To Kill a Mockingbird 639 Words   |  3 Pagesprejudicing. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, these themes are present. Pe ople and how they commit evil, hypocritical, and unjust acts. We see these themes and great issues through the point of view of a child; the vigorous, youthful, elementary-aged Scout. Through this character Harper Lee shows the innocence of children, and what they go through in our inequitable world. The first major theme in To Kill a Mockingbird is evil in society. The mostRead MoreTo Kill a Mockingbird: Irony and Sarcasm1440 Words   |  6 PagesHarper Lees To Kill a Mockingbird is a highly regarded work of American fiction. The story of the novel teaches us many lessons that should last any reader for a lifetime. The messages that Harper Lee relays to the reader are exemplified throughout the book using various methods. One of the most important and significant methods was the use of symbols such as the mockingbird image. Another important method was showing the view through a growing childs (Scout Finch) mind, eyes, ears, and mouth.Read MoreTo Kill a Mocking Bird Hypocrisy Paper800 Words   |  4 PagesTo Kill a Mockingbird Term Paper Imagine having your life completely destroyed by a fraudulent charge just because of the color of your skin. There are many examples of hypocrisy in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Some of the most glaring examples of hypocrisy come from three female characters: Mrs. Dubose, Mrs. Merriweather, and Mrs. Gates. Each character said a hypocritical statement in this novel. A quote and detailed context will be used to explain to the full extent what was hypocriticalRead More Theme of Courage in Harper Lees To Kill A Mockingbird Essay1673 Words   |  7 PagesTo Kill A Mockingbird is a book about courage to what extent do you agree with this? Harper Lees first novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, displays the life of a small southern family struggling through the depression in Maycomb, Alabama. Seen through the innocent eyes of a young child are the events and people of Maycomb. Courage is a major theme in the novel but there are other themes like the Hypocrisy, Protecting the innocent and Prejudice, which are brought out to the same extent. The authorRead MoreTo Kill a Mockingbird Motiff Essay779 Words   |  4 Pagesexperience occurs many times in Harper Lee’s â€Å"To Kill a Mockingbird†. The process of this growth is especially obvious in Jem and Scout’s journey through out the book. The first part of to â€Å"kill a mockingbirdâ€Å", while experience is there, innocence is the primary theme. Both Jem and scout are just beginning to experience things. In â€Å"To Kill a Mockingbirdâ€Å", by Harper Lee, there are many great examples of Jem or Scout moving from innocence to experience. One example of Scout’s innocence is when Walter comesRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book The Two Birds One Stone By Harper Lee900 Words   |  4 Pages9 March 2016 Two Birds One Stone â€Å"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view – until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it† (Lee 30). To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a very vigorous story about the racial discrimination that was uncontrollable in 1930’s Alabama. The small town of Maycomb is segregated into two categories: white and black. They each have their own separate neighborhoods and churches. Rarely is such racism binded withRead MoreRacial Discrimination During The Second World War1443 Words   |  6 Pagesmoods of domestic communities, including outside influences, social prejudice, and economic discrimination in both America and Europe. In To Kill a Mockingbird, the young narrator named Scout witnesses racial tensions in the glacial-paced town of Maycomb shake up the community, and create grand-scale cracks in the ground contrasting opinions and revealing hypocrisies hidden underneath as a certain court date inches cl oser. This legal case takes an alleged rape incident, applying racial undertones andRead More The Hypocrisy of Humanity Depicted in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird1311 Words   |  6 PagesHarper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, has many stories from Scouts’ little town in Alabama that teaches the reader the good and bad sides of the human being. When all these come together, the result is this fantastic novel. One of the stories that stand out is the one when Mrs. Gates and Cecil Jacobs have a conversation in the classroom. They talk about Adolph Hitler and the malicious things he did to the Jewish people. Mrs. Gates tries to tell her students that what he did was wrong in a very firmRead MoreThe English Assessment Task For Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee1360 Words   |  6 PagesEnglish Assessment Task 1 - ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ Essay â€Å"Whether Maycomb knows it or not, we’re paying him the highest tribute we can pay a man. We trust him to do right.† To what extent are life values and lessons reflected throughout the novel ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’? The great degree that Harper Lee reflects life values and lessons throughout ’To Kill A Mockingbird’ is elucidated through the teachings of the main adult protagonist, Atticus Finch. Over three summers, Atticus guides his children