Essay On Jim Crow Laws In To Kill A Mockingbird
To Kill A Mockingbird follows the story of young Scout as she’s confronted with complicated issues on race, segregation, and other difficult problems. The reader faces these dilemmas along with her. Jim Crow laws were strongly hinted throughout the book, and they affected the plot greatly. The history and policies of the laws were present in the novel and had an impact on many characters, specifically colored people like Tom Robinson.
The Jim Crow laws were a racial caste system created to segregate blacks and whites. It was named after an offensive character that mocked slavery created by white entertainer Thomas Rice. The set of rules basically forced blacks to become second-class citizens and treat white people as their superiors. Many …show more content…
laws were about the public separation of colored people and whites. However, there was an entire subunit of the Jim Crow laws about the etiquette black people were expected to have around white people, such as calling white ladies “Miss” or “Ma’am” and not offering a handshake to a white man since it implied social equality. While these lesser rules weren’t specifically named, they were assumed nonetheless. Even if slavery was over in the time of these laws (1877 through the 1960’s), colored people were still under heavy scrutiny and were granted only the basics of freedom. Scout witnesses this system in Maycomb. Colored people lived in an entirely different place than white people did in their town, and they called Tom Robinson by his first name rather than “Mr. Robinson” or any other title the court would’ve given a white man.
The oppression caused by the Jim Crow laws is obvious to today’s society, but in that day and time it was expected and considered normal. The Finch’s didn’t think colored people were second-class, yet they weren’t surprised to see the way Tom Robinson was treated in court or at home. Many southern states used the reserved power of the states to get past the fifteenth amendment stating that black people were citizens just like white people. Alabama was one of those states and tended to strongly persecute the African-Americans in our nation. This is evident in the book by the way Tom Robinson is treated during his trial. Even though the evidence is stacked in his favor, the jury ignores the facts and calls him guilty simply because he isn’t white. Atticus Finch argues against the journey to forget Tom’s skin color when deciding by saying, “Our courts have their faults, as does any human institution, but in this country our courts are the great levelers, and in our courts all men are created equal.” (Lee, 274).
The Jim Crow laws were probably in full effect in the rural town of Maycomb, Alabama.
Though To Kill A Mockingbird never directly mentions these terms of racial segregation, they’re implied by several character’s actions. For example, Mrs. Dubose says about the Finch’s, “Not only a Finch waiting on tables but one in the courthouse lawing for niggers!” (Lee, 135). The colored people stayed in a different part of town than the white people save Calpurnia, but she only worked for the Finch’s and didn’t live there permanently. The family is very accepting of people both black and white since Atticus raised his kids with the belief that you should walk in someone else’s shoes before judging them.
In conclusion, the Jim Crow laws were reflected strongly in the story even if they weren’t directly addressed. Their effect on the colored people of America and the unfair rules aid the racist tale of Tom Robinson’s trial and rape accusation and explain many of the major points of the plot. While the laws have a rich history and played a large part in America’s past, To Kill A Mockingbird highlights the consequences of them. And while Scout was confronted with them, the reader was confronted with them right along with her. One can only hope the reactions were
similar.
The Jim Crow laws were a racial caste system created to segregate blacks and whites. It was named after an offensive character that mocked slavery created by white entertainer Thomas Rice. The set of rules basically forced blacks to become second-class citizens and treat white people as their superiors. Many …show more content…
laws were about the public separation of colored people and whites. However, there was an entire subunit of the Jim Crow laws about the etiquette black people were expected to have around white people, such as calling white ladies “Miss” or “Ma’am” and not offering a handshake to a white man since it implied social equality. While these lesser rules weren’t specifically named, they were assumed nonetheless. Even if slavery was over in the time of these laws (1877 through the 1960’s), colored people were still under heavy scrutiny and were granted only the basics of freedom. Scout witnesses this system in Maycomb. Colored people lived in an entirely different place than white people did in their town, and they called Tom Robinson by his first name rather than “Mr. Robinson” or any other title the court would’ve given a white man.
The oppression caused by the Jim Crow laws is obvious to today’s society, but in that day and time it was expected and considered normal. The Finch’s didn’t think colored people were second-class, yet they weren’t surprised to see the way Tom Robinson was treated in court or at home. Many southern states used the reserved power of the states to get past the fifteenth amendment stating that black people were citizens just like white people. Alabama was one of those states and tended to strongly persecute the African-Americans in our nation. This is evident in the book by the way Tom Robinson is treated during his trial. Even though the evidence is stacked in his favor, the jury ignores the facts and calls him guilty simply because he isn’t white. Atticus Finch argues against the journey to forget Tom’s skin color when deciding by saying, “Our courts have their faults, as does any human institution, but in this country our courts are the great levelers, and in our courts all men are created equal.” (Lee, 274).
The Jim Crow laws were probably in full effect in the rural town of Maycomb, Alabama.
Though To Kill A Mockingbird never directly mentions these terms of racial segregation, they’re implied by several character’s actions. For example, Mrs. Dubose says about the Finch’s, “Not only a Finch waiting on tables but one in the courthouse lawing for niggers!” (Lee, 135). The colored people stayed in a different part of town than the white people save Calpurnia, but she only worked for the Finch’s and didn’t live there permanently. The family is very accepting of people both black and white since Atticus raised his kids with the belief that you should walk in someone else’s shoes before judging them.
In conclusion, the Jim Crow laws were reflected strongly in the story even if they weren’t directly addressed. Their effect on the colored people of America and the unfair rules aid the racist tale of Tom Robinson’s trial and rape accusation and explain many of the major points of the plot. While the laws have a rich history and played a large part in America’s past, To Kill A Mockingbird highlights the consequences of them. And while Scout was confronted with them, the reader was confronted with them right along with her. One can only hope the reactions were
similar.