I am reading To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. So far the main characters are Scout, Jem, and Dill. Right now in the novel the children are trying to bring out the legendary Boo Radley. In this journal I will be predicting and characterizing the Ewells.…
Stereotypes are generalized traits that people assume about a group of people. In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird stereotypes are used frequently with how different families act, and also how different races appear to others. In the book stereotypes are important when Harper Lee makes the Ewells portray the stereotype for “white trash”. During the trial for the raping of Mayella Ewell this becomes very clear when she writes, “ No truant officers could keep their numerous offspring in school; no public health officer could free them from congenital defects, various worms, and the diseases indigenous to filthy surroundings.”(Lee 227). Lee made this family the stereotypical “white trash” family because it shows the true…
First off, the Ewell family is irresponsible. For example, Burris does not know how to spell his name. As stated in the text, “Don’t know how. They call me Burris’t home” (Lee 35). Burris did not even know how to spell his own name. This shows that his caretakers are irresponsible. Another reason that they are irresponsible is because they only go to school the first day. As the novel explains, “They come first day every year and then leave...You’re supposed to mark ‘em absent the rest of the year…” (Lee 36). Going to school only one day a year also shows irresponsible caretakers. They do not care if their children get an education. The last reason why the Ewell family is irresponsible is because they do not have a mother. As the text says, “Ain’t got no mother…” (Lee 36). Without a mother, the children may not have anyone to teach them the important necessities they need to learn if their dad does not. If they had a mother, she might have taught them to be responsible. Secondly, the Ewell family is dirty. For example, Burris had cooties. As the novel explains, “The cootie’s host showed not the faintest interest in the furor he had wrought” (Lee 34). Burris was not phased by the cooties. He was so dirty he was used to it. Another reason they are dirty is when Burris did not know why his teacher told him to use soap. As the text states, “...I want you to go home and wash your hair with lye soap...what fer missus?” (Lee 35). Burris did not understand why she would want him to wash himself. He was constantly this dirty, he did not know better. The last reason why the Ewell family was dirty was because his whole body was dirty. As the text explains, “He was the filthiest human I had ever seen. His neck was dark gray, the backs of his hands were rusty, and his fingernails were black deep into the quick” (Lee 35). Burris is an extremely dirty boy. He is always dirty because he does…
Harper Lee characterizes the Ewell family very vividly in three key ways. The first Ewell we met was Burris, which Scout described as a very filthy person. She said that his neck was dark gray and his hands were rusty. The Ewells as a family were also described to dwell like animals. Burris has no mom and a dad that is described as controversial. Bob Ewell (the father) supposedly spent relief checks on green whiskey while his children are crying from hunger pains. His parent figures, or lack thereof, explain why he said rude remarks about Miss Caroline as he was walking out of the school because Miss Caroline said she was going to report him to the principal for truancy. The Ewells also have special laws because the common folk just become blind to the Ewell’s practices and judiciously grant them these privileges. For one thing, they can hunt out of season because of Bob’s poor spending habits. This action was described as a misdemeanor in Maycomb County. The Ewells also did not have to go to school. Atticus says that the truant lady could force them into going to school, but is no use forcing people like the Ewells into a new environment. This is why Burris was walking out of class while insulting the teacher. The truant lady figures she has carried out the…
To Kill a Mockingbird was published in 1960, it was written by Harper Lee and was an instant bestseller and a critical success. Today T.K.A.M is known as a masterpiece of American literature. The overall plot of T. K. A.M is. Scott and his brother Jem befriend a boy named Dill over the summer and become interested in the house owned by Nathan Radley, but inside lives a malevolent man named as Boo radley who has not seen or experienced the outside world. Later in the book Tom Robinson and African American is accused of raping a white woman named Mayella Ewell when really it was her father, Tom is then considered guilty and is sent to prison.When Harper Lee talks about Atticus being threatened, she makes this a powerful moment in the novel because she foreshadows that Bob Ewell will be a big threat in the future to Atticus or his family.…
“To Kill a Mockingbird” takes place in 1930’s Alabama, where racism and segregation were accepted as social norms. Lawyer Atticus Finch defended “Negro” Tom Robinson in court, whom Mr. Ewell accused of raping his daughter. People considered defending a black man in court against a white man as a disgrace to the lawyer, his family and community. While Atticus talked to his brother Jack, he mentioned that “The only thing we’ve got is a black man’s word against the Ewells‘. The evidence boils down to you-did—I-didn’t. The jury couldn’t possibly be expected to take Tom Robinson’s word against the Ewells”. (Lee, 116-117) Atticus tells Jack that they don’t have enough data to prove Tom’s innocence in the case. The Ewells were not as respectable people as Tom Robinson, but according to the social hierarchy, dishonorable white people were above…
Ideal families are usually formed by values, morals, and love between each others. However, in some cases, different families may form badly through separation. The Finches, the Cunninghams, and the Ewells were examples of families that were used by Harper Lee, the author of the story To Kill a Mockingbird, to demonstrate the values and costumes of families in Maycomb, Alabama. ,To determine whether if a family is an ideal family or not, one must investigate what an ideal family, the Finches, is like. A good example of a quote that was shown in To Kill a Mockingbird, was on page 24 and 25, "Hush your mouth! Don 't matter who they are, anybody… you can just set here and eat in the kitchen!" This quote was said by Calpurnia, a black cook of the Finches, when she was punishing Scout for being rude to little Walter Cunningham. This shows that even though the Finch family is missing one member of its family, the mom, Calpurnia is capable of replacing that gap. Another example of a quote that proves that the Finches are an ideal family was on page 127, "Jem 's growing up now and you are…
The groups of people in Maycomb rarely allow different people to interact with each other. Sometimes, people get excluded because of the colour of their skin, or by the amount of money they carry in their pockets. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Helen Robinson, the wife of the convicted black man, can’t find a job after her husband gets accused of rape. She needed to support her family by getting a job, but nobody wanted to employ her because of what her husband was rumored to have done. Prejudice against Tom Robinson lead to his wife and kids not being able to get what they needed. Another example of exclusion in To Kill a Mockingbird is when Aunt Alexandra wouldn’t let Scout play with Walter Cunningham because he was poor. She says that his family is different from the Finches, and that he wasn’t as good as them. She also places certain families of Maycomb into groups that exclude the rest of the town from their activities. An example of this is when she ways that all Penfield women are flighty, after a Penfield girl giggled during church. According to her, all Maycomb families have a streak of their own, and that places them into their own groups. This lead s to exclusion from various other groups, because people don’t think you belong with them, and not being able to get what you want. If a person can’t feed their kids or support themselves, they can’t lead a good…
Author Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird is written about two siblings, Jean Louise and Jeremy Finch. They live with their father Atticus, a respected lawyer. Living in a town called Macomb County, this family has endured many hardships. Despite the odds, they manage to maintain a very healthy relationship. In today’s society people people do not usually care about others, it is one for all instead of all for one. Lee writes about how having compassion can help create and strengthen bonds with others. To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, explains the effects of having compassion through Scout getting to know Walter Cunningham, Atticus defending a colored man, and atticus treating Bob Ewell with respect.…
Atticus is the father figure for his kids, Jem and Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird. The Finch family lives in Maycomb, Alabama during the Great Depression. The kids spend much of their time playing with their gregarious neighbor, Dill, and spying on their reclusive and mysterious neighbor Boo Radley. When their father, Atticus, who is a widowed man and a respected lawyer, defends a black man named Tom Robinson against fabricated rape charges against a white girl, he is in/at a detriment. The trial, events following and the people they have interactions with, expose Jem and Scout to racism and stereotyping. This completely changes their view of the world. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, uses characterization to portray how a child’s…
I have learnt that while parents have authority over their children some of them use this power over their children in a positive way that benefits the children, for example Atticus Finch, while others abuse their power like Bob Ewell. Harper Lee uses contrast to show the difference between the parenting styles of both these men. The Ewell’s reputation is put to practice and shown to the community when Bob Ewell’s son Burris Ewell comes to the very first day of school. We are then told that the Ewell’s only go to school on the first day of school. We are then old this is the only day they ever come. After this Miss Caroline gets into an argument with Burris Ewell. When Burris Ewell is told to leave he replies “Ain’t no snot-nosed slut of a school teacher ever born c’n make me do nothin’! You ain’t makin’ me go no where, missus.” His use of abusive and offensive language clearly shows his lack of respect for women and the power and authority she holds over him. It is assumed that this lack of respect stems from his father, Bob Ewell, abusive and negative roll modelling.…
In the 1930’s racism was at an all time high. The lynching of blacks was seen as a normal occurrence by society. It was strict taboo to have a tolerant relationship between the two races. Although in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, that taboo was broken by a black woman Calpurnia and a white woman Aunt Alexandra. Cal is a hard working woman who earns every penny she makes. Aunt Alexandria on the other hand is a privileged white woman who feels entitled to the world. They are like night and day, but are tolerant of each other for one reason, family. They both share a special relationship with the two kids, Jem and Scout. They both want the best for the children and their futures. This bright future they want for the kids cannot happen with their aunt and role-model always being belligerent toward each other. The fact that Cal and Aunt Alexandra have different skin color and still are tolerant with each other showing that family overtakes racism at all levels.…
Vindication Station: The Bob Ewell Story “Treat others the way you want to be treated” is a phrase that children have heard since kindergarten. “Minimizing” one’s reactions in response to a certain situation is an idea taught from birth, as an individual’s actions have enormous impacts on the people around them. But what is it that makes one react in a volatile manner? In the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird,” we are presented with a variety of characters who respond to adverse situations with poise and thoughtfulness about how they should choose to act. However, some characters are not so considerate.…
Little Chuck Little and Burris Ewell are next to each other in the social ladder, but Little Chuck Little is on top. This is because the Ewells are the lowest of the low amongst the whites in Maycomb, they are also called white trash. Burris Ewell is also dirty, and he can be disrespected by others for that, like when Miss Caroline found the cootie in his hair. “I was just walking by when it crawled out of his hair…just crawled out of his hair.” (26) Burris Ewell’s dad is lazy and a drunk, and wasn’t respectful of other people. People don’t really like Burris Ewell, or his dad. Bob Ewell got his family and himself a bad reputation, because that’s what he chose, he reinforced their bad…
When characterizing the Ewells, Harper Lee portrays them as a family who doesn’t care what people think about them and that they are a non-law abiding family. The Ewells are a family that doesn’t care what other people think about them because of the family’s attitude. In class Burris is very rude to the teacher and doesn’t care if he gets in trouble with the school or not. The Elwell children do not tell the truth and are never honest. Mr. Ewell doesn’t provide or care for his children, and while the community shuns him for not taking care of his children, he had done nothing to change his ways or attitude towards caring for his children. Their attitudes toward their hygiene is also very poor. On the first day of first grade, Burris shows…