The Silent Weapon of Prejudice
Every person has the power to wield the deadliest weapon to ever exist in mankind: prejudice. Prejudice is the weapon that destroys even the purest of hearts and is seen not only in To Kill a Mockingbird , but in our day to day lives. From Tom Robinson being found “guilty” because of the color of his skin, to certain ethnicities being looked down upon today, prejudice lies all around us, hiding even in the darkest of corners. In the book, not only was this a time of segregation and prejudice in Maycomb, Alabama, but the people were also very poor because of The Great Depression. Scout , the main character goes on a journey of great discovery which teaches her many things along the way. She learnt that prejudice …show more content…
Setting is one of the keys behind unlocking the door to the very existence of prejudice. It influences prejudice a great deal, and unleashes its wrath even on those as innocent as a mockingbird. In To Kill a Mockingbird Lee uses setting to show how back then a black person was far from an equal to a white person. In the court case Atticus explains, “She was white, and she tempted a negro. She did something in our society that is unspeakable: she kissed a black man.” (Lee,231-232). In the time of To Kill a Mockingbird there were different societal norms and there was a lot of discrimination, so for example here it was completely unacceptable to entice a black man. I believe that it is inhuman to discriminate against people who are just like us, especially when you know of the innocence of the victim. People discriminated against Tom Robinson because of the color of his skin, but they did not stop to think that he is also human and has done nothing wrong. Everyone knew that Tom was not at fault but because of the weapon of prejudice, an innocent life was lost to the whispers of those who unjustly declared him guilty. Lee uses Setting in To Kill a Mockingbird to show the prejudiced views of the people in Maycomb at that time. Ms. Maudie says to Scout, “The handful of people in this town
Every person has the power to wield the deadliest weapon to ever exist in mankind: prejudice. Prejudice is the weapon that destroys even the purest of hearts and is seen not only in To Kill a Mockingbird , but in our day to day lives. From Tom Robinson being found “guilty” because of the color of his skin, to certain ethnicities being looked down upon today, prejudice lies all around us, hiding even in the darkest of corners. In the book, not only was this a time of segregation and prejudice in Maycomb, Alabama, but the people were also very poor because of The Great Depression. Scout , the main character goes on a journey of great discovery which teaches her many things along the way. She learnt that prejudice …show more content…
Setting is one of the keys behind unlocking the door to the very existence of prejudice. It influences prejudice a great deal, and unleashes its wrath even on those as innocent as a mockingbird. In To Kill a Mockingbird Lee uses setting to show how back then a black person was far from an equal to a white person. In the court case Atticus explains, “She was white, and she tempted a negro. She did something in our society that is unspeakable: she kissed a black man.” (Lee,231-232). In the time of To Kill a Mockingbird there were different societal norms and there was a lot of discrimination, so for example here it was completely unacceptable to entice a black man. I believe that it is inhuman to discriminate against people who are just like us, especially when you know of the innocence of the victim. People discriminated against Tom Robinson because of the color of his skin, but they did not stop to think that he is also human and has done nothing wrong. Everyone knew that Tom was not at fault but because of the weapon of prejudice, an innocent life was lost to the whispers of those who unjustly declared him guilty. Lee uses Setting in To Kill a Mockingbird to show the prejudiced views of the people in Maycomb at that time. Ms. Maudie says to Scout, “The handful of people in this town