Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

How does witnessing prejudice during childhood affect the loss of innocence in children? In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the author focuses on two young children, Jem and Scout, who are living during a time when racism and prejudice dominates their hometown of Maycomb County. Simultaneously, they are envisioning and being introduced to different perspectives of their ongoing society. Throughout the story, Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose, an elderly woman, showed signs of racism and prejudice to the children. Therefore, her character contributes to the overall themes of children losing their innocence as they mature in age, because they are being exposed to many harsh wrongdoings that the two of them have never perceived or witnessed before.
Dubose yelled at them by hollering, “Don’t you lie to me! Jeremy Finch, Maudie Atkinson told me you broke down her scuppernong arbor this morning” (Lee 135). The old woman accused him for something that he may or may not have done. In addition, her disdainfulness towards Jem made him realize that the power of words can inspire rage and fear into others. After that, Jem gave her a general denial to her accusation, since he had not been near Miss Maudie’s grape arbor since last summer, and she replied, “Don’t you contradict me!” The quote made by her illustrates her mean and abusive personality towards the children. Ergo, Scout was terrified and Jem responsibly told her to ignore the negative comments that they heard and to continue being kind to Mrs.