Chapter 18, Pg. 243: “So you did, so you did ma’am…Long’s you keep makin fun of me.” In this quote Atticus is talking to Mayella Ewell in a respectful manner but Mayella thinks he is making fun of her. This quote me that even when in court, Atticus is still a kind and courteous gentlemen. Unlike many lawyers who may treat witnesses disrespectfully, Atticus makes sure to be respectful while still being stern. Atticus’s conduct reminds me of my 4th grade teacher who was respectful even when he was unhappy with you. I think Atticus’s behavior in court is a big reason why he is so respected. This quote also made me realize just how different life for the Ewell’s is. It shows me this because when Atticus called Mayella “ma’am” or “miss. Mayella” she thought he was mocking her. Most women would be used to being called “ma’am” or “miss” but Mayella has obviously never been treated with respect, or never leaves the house. Do you think in the Ewell home women are treated the way they should be? I personally don’t think so.
Jonah, I love that you related Atticus to your teacher. I think lawyers and teachers have a lot in common. Both jobs acquire patience. A lawyer needs patience with witnesses, and a teacher needs patience with students. Not everyone wants to answer questions, and not everyone learns at the same pace. I really like your connection. I don't think the Ewell women are treated the way they should be. Mayella should be respected, and honored as the oldest daughter of Mr.Ewell. I also think she should be respected because they don't have a mother, so I assume she carried an important role in the family.
Eileen, I have to disagree with you about your feelings on Mayella although she did was the main caretaker of the Ewell family I really don't think she is worth anyone "honoring" her. She took advantage of a sweet kind man, she ruined his life with her lies, and I don't care what she did for her family. Anyone who did that in my eyes, isn't worth the time of day.
Eileen, I agree with you when you talked about the lawyers and the teachers but, I have have to go with Sam on this one. Although Mayella is the oldest daughter that still don't give her the right to go around making up lies in order to get some money out of it, especially on a poor young black man just because she knows the jury will believe her over him. In my eyes that is extremely selfish and like Sam said it ruined his life. Another thing, what if Tom was found guilty instead of inoccent then she would have sent an innocent man to jail for no reason once so ever and disgraced his name all for nothing. I'm sorry but the way I see it Mayella shouldn't be "honored." Spot on Sam.
I have to disagree with you Allison and Sam. While I know that Mayella made a mistake by taking Tom Robinson to court and lying, put yourself in her shoes for a moment. She has seven siblings that she primarily takes care of because he father is pretty much useless, and is still beaten severely by him. She lives outside the dump, has no friends, and lives off the pity of the community. Not even her younger siblings respect all she does for them. Mayella never had a role model like Atticus, and parents are your first teachers. Look at her father, if he was her first teacher I'm surprised she turned out half as well. While she may not deserve the respect of someone with a clean conscience, she should be treated better than the way she is.
I understand where your coming from and I totally understand that. But now put yourself in my shoes who knows someone who's been in Tom situation and how I saw their life destroyed by a sick lie. Now that is why I believe she needs help, but I can not and absolutely will not feel sorry for her.
Jonah and Eileen, I strongly agree with what you’re saying. Atticus is a very kind and respectful man whether he's in court or not. His actions make him a good person and a great role model for his kids. I also like the comparison you used about your 4th grade teacher, because I can relate to the same thing Jonah. In my opinion I also thought that Mayella hasn’t been treated with respect, due to the way she gets offended rapidly.
I agree with Leah you have to put yourself in her shoes and Sam I think you should look at it without your outside knowledge and really think about all the hardships Mayella has and while I don't know the situation that you are personally talking about I think it is important to recognize that from evidence presented in court her father probably abuses her. Most people in a situation like that try to please the people that abuse them to avoid the pain, trust me I know who were in similar situations. I'm not saying that what Mayella did but I think she deserves some compassion.
chapter 18 pg 239 "in maycomb it was easy to tell if someone bathed regularly,as opposed to yearly lavation:Mr.Ewell had a scalded look; as if an overnight soaking had edprived him of protective layers of dirt."THis shows that there is a very clean part of maycomb and a very poor side the rich are all having baths every night and the poor are coverd in dirt for weeks on end this shows a great diversity that is normally only know in that time between white and black people so you know this has to be a very strange town. This little section of the begging of chapter 18 is trying to show that mr ewell is a dirty not very clean man compared to others.
Chapter 18 page 242- “We’ve done business in this court for years and years, and Mr. Finch is always courteous to everybody, He’s not trying to mock you, he’s trying to be polite. That’s just his way.” During the trial, Judge Taylor explains to Mayella that Atticus is a courteous person because she feels she is being mocked when he refers to her and ma’m and miss. Atticus is a role model, to not only his children but to his community. He resembles the characteristics of a hero. Atticus is not a hero with superpowers like Spiderman, but he is a hero because he teaches morality. Atticus is a person who is well educated, accepting of other’s, and caring. He is a hero because he teaches his children how to read and write, instead of spending time playing football, or hunting; he accepts Calpurnia, and Tom Robinson, and all the colored folks; and he cares for everyone no matter who they are, like Mrs.Dubose.
Chapter 19 page 266-Scout is explaining to Dill that Mr. Gilmer has the right to talk to Tom Robinson how ever he wants to during the trial. Dill does not seem to understand why and Scout says, “Well, Dill, after all he’s just a Negro”. At this point in the novel I don’t think she understands equality among different races so well. Like other protagonists we have read about through out the school year like Holden, Odysseus, Madame Loisel, and many more, Scout is growing and learning more about life. Scout understands that there is tension between the whites and the colored people of Maycomb, but does she understand that everyone is equal? Yes, not everyone may be viewed equal, but as human, they are. With the amazing teachers she has in her life, maybe she will learn to comprehend racism more.
Chapter 19 response. Scout is completely surrounded by racism in her life and I think that is would be hard for her to not pick up on it. Atticus is definetly doing a good job teaching his children about equality but he can't shelter his children from racism because almost the entire town is racist.
Tim, you make a good point that most of the town is racist but, i disagree. Scout is a very different little girl she is not like any other girl in the town and she is very bright so with that being said I feel that Scout is not likely to turn out like everyone else just because everyone is racist around her doesn't mean that she will turn out that way to but, I get what you are trying to say. Everyone is the pilot of their own live.
Eileen when I read this quote it got me thinks about how Scout didn't really understand the tensions between races. Like Tim I think that because she is surrounded by racism it makes her view on the treatment of blacks a little blurry. Even with Atticus teaching her that everyone is equal Scout doesn't grasp it yet. How Mr. Gilmer is treating Tom is not acceptable and I believe he is a bad influence on Scout.
Eileen, in response to chapter 18, I disagree with you that Atticus is similar to Mrs. Dubose in that they are both accepting. Mrs. Dubose was an extremely opinionated woman and wasn't accepting of colored people because she insulted Atticus for representing Tom Robinson. Although, both Mrs. Dubose and Atticus are courageous and will stick to their morals even though they may conflict with others'. Morality is definitely a theme in the novel.
Leah, I didn't mean to say they were similar, I was trying to explain that he accepted her even though she was not like-able. Sorry if that was not clear.
Eileen, I agree with you and Tim about this. Scout is surrounded by all types of Racism. She is young however, so she might not exactly know what the term means, but she does understand that something is wrong between the two races. And like Tim said, Atticus is doing a good job teaching her that racism .is wrong.
Chapter 18 page 243 " won't answer a word as long as you keep on mocking' me....calling me ma'am an sayin' miss Mayella" I feel like this quote is really sad because Mayella thinks Atticus is making fun of her but he actually is being polite by saying ma'am and miss. This shows how little Mayella is respected by her family members, which she should be because she is the oldest daughter and takes care of the family while the Mr. Ewells goes out hunting.This leads me to believe that because she is poorly respected by her family that her father possibly abused her or will abuse her if she tells what really happened that day she got hurt. I feel really bad for Mayella and how she is forced to live. This makes me think of girls and boys today that have to suffer through this because they have an alcoholic parent(s). Although it isn't clear who hurt Mayella, there are many cases similar to Mayella's that we hear on the news all the time and it's upsetting because sometimes all you can do about it is feel bad for them and wished it hadn't happened.
Jackie, I like how you brought up all the psychological issues this young girl faces. She obviously does have problems and I think if Mayella was living today it be much diffrent to how shes dealing with all of it now.
Jackie, I agree with you that Mr. Ewell was probably the one who beat Mayella. Also, I like how you connected her condition to teenagers today who have alcoholic parents because children of alcoholics week was only a few weeks ago at fox lane. Mayella is obviously extremely scared of her father to be willing to put Tom Robinson's life in danger to save herself.
Jackie, i agreed with you and Leah. i had the same feeling that Mr.Ewell was the one who hit the Mayella. and i thought she was probably wasnt well respected/treated by the other family members, she has to do everything because she's oldest.im sort of feel bad for her.
Chapter 18 page 245 "Miss Mayella said Atticus.in spite of himself, a nineteen-year-old girl like you must have friends...You Makin' fun o' me agin, Mr.Finch" This is really saddening to hear. This girl has clearly been abused and taken advantage of her whole life, to think that when someones nice to you think it's a joke. That's really sad. But at this point in the story I can't really say I'm sorry for her. I feel bad for someone who is in a situation like this. I admire someone in a situation like this and prevails. I lose all respect for someone when they're in this predicament and bring down innocent people with them. When Mayella does this I do believe she was using Tom to cope with her loneliness but that is no excuse to completely ruin his life just because she can't escape her own. Don't get me wrong I think this girl needs serious help, I just wish she hadn't ruined Tom's life while she was at it.
sam i completly agree. it is sad to think that she cant step up and tell the truth. she must be in a really bad emotional state to lie like this, even after taking the oath.
Sam I fully agree with you. It is really sad that Mayella is such a lonely and abused person but her untruthfull alligations about Tom are not acceptable. If Mayella hadn't accused Tom of raping her I might have been sorry for her. I think that Mr. Ewell beat Mayella after he saw her with Tom and is now making her testify that he raped her because he doesn't want to get caught. Mayella should have her no good father sent to jail for all that he has done to her or else she will be trapped in her horrible life forever.
Sam, i agreed with what you said up there. i remembered how Tom said that she seemed had no one to help her.i felt sorry for her too. it just.. she's already 19 and a half and when Atticus asked her if she had any friends, she hesitated and thought he was making fun of her.
Chapter 18 page 247-248 "'It's not an easy question Miss Mayella, so I'll try again. Do you remember him beating you about the face?' Atticus's voice had lost it's comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. 'Do you remember him beating you about the face?' 'I don't recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.'" During this scene in the court, I started to really understand what was going on in the case. This is just a little part of the scene but even with this, you really understand what Atticus is getting to. Reading this chapter, I started to understand and realize what its really like during a real trial. I was really into this chapter and felt connected and as if I was actually there. One thing that confused me though, is why Mayella won't just admit it was her father, because it really seems like it was him. We don't know for sure if it was Mr. Ewell but judging by the reaction of Mayella after getting drilled with questions from Atticus, it is very convincing it is Mr. Ewell who is guilty. I feel bad for Mayella in this case because she seems very sensitive and is stuck in a position where she as to lie and is very uncomfortable. She is the victim of something that wasn't her fault and is forced to lie.
Hannah, I think Mayella does it because it is easier to blame someone else then to look into a deeper issue like saying her father abused her. I agree this scene really kept me on my toes, I'm very hooked into the trial now!
Sam, I agree with you that Mayella is trying to ignore the real problem but I also think that she isn't saying that it was her father who beat her because if she does he will most likely go to jail and then who will help her put food on the table? She has so many siblings and can barely support them with her father's help. She seems to be stuck between a rock and a hard place.
I disagree with her motives for defending her father. Although you bring up a good point I think it's because it's harder to admit what is actually going on also in the South Family structure and reputation is everything and how would she look if she blamed her father? How would she look if he said she's lying? See it's much easier to blame Tom. But I do agree she really is in a difficult situation.
Chapters 19 page 257 “Tom Robinson was probably the only person who was ever decent to her. But she stood up there saying he took advantage of her, and when she stood up and looked at him as if he was dirt between her feet”. This is a truly heartbreaking point in the trial for me. This is the one person who treats her with respect like an actual person. He is the one person who fills the void, this is her one friend. Mayella then just goes and turns on him like he means nothing. In my opinion Mayella isn’t worth the ground between Tom’s feet. She’s going to end up completely alone and it serves her right because she destroyed the life of the one person who even gave her the time of day. We all come to a point when someone does something horrible to us and we try to justify it with stupid excuses, but sometimes we just can’t’. Sometimes they just do it out of the disparity of their own lives. Just like Mayella. I hope later on in the story we get to see Mayella deal with the pain and guilt she’s inflicted on this innocent man.
Sam, I agree that Mayella made a terrible decision to completely destroy the life of her only real friend. It's completely terrible that she would feel that it's okay to do this to an innocent man, and I agree that she will have to pay large consequences for her actions. But I wonder, why did she actually do this to Tom? was it to save her father?
I think she did this to Tom because how Tom describes it, she was trying to "seduce" him and her father saw. Rather then saying that 1. She was being beat by him, and 2. She was trying to get with an African American, which I'm sure in Mr.Ewell's eye's is a great dishonor to their family name. So to sum that all up it would be easier to you Tom as the scapegoat rather then Bob Ewells abuisveness and Mayellas "urges".
Wow Sam! I strongly agree with your point of view with this quote. Her actions were awful, especially since they were towards such an innocent man! I do also hope she gets what she deserves, and pays large consequences. But adding to Alyssa’s question, I think she was trying to save her father, since she didn’t want to bring such a dishonor to her family name.
ch.18 Mayella Ewell is called to the stand. She testifies that she asked Tom Robinson to chop up a dresser in return for a quarter, and that when she turned around Tom attacked and raped her. In cross-examination, Atticus shows that Mayella is terribly lonely. When Atticus asks Mayella to identify Tom, and Tom stands up, it becomes clear that Tom’s left arm is useless: it was destroyed in an accident. If Tom can’t use his left arm, then how could he have beaten and raped Mayella? Atticus asks Mayella wasn’t Bob Ewell the person who beat her? Mayella refuses to answer. atticus was doing a great job in court. the way he was able to piece together all the evidence reminded me of the movie "my cousin vinny". in the movie, a man new to being a lawyer was given his first case. nobody thought he would be able to win the case but in the end he did. i am hoping that atticus will win the case and save tom robinson. because of his hurt arm and all the other evidence, the only logicasl reason why the jury finds him guilty would be because of racial prejudice.
Meredith I loved that point in the trial, it really made me want to see if it impacts the verdict of the trial. But it also made my heart break but now its obvious that he didn't do it and he's still be tried.
Meredith, I love how you thought of and connected to "My Cousin Vinny." I actually just watched that movie for the first time in what feels like years over the weekend. I also find it interesting that the movie also took place in Alabama, just like the story does in "To Kill a Mockingbird."
Chapter 20 page 268 "Some folks don't- like the way I live ... It helps folks if they can latch onto a reason" I really like this quote because I think it really relates to everyone. Also it's a trait humans still cary on today. People didn't like Mr.Raymond for no reason at first,but then Mr.Raymond gave them a reason. Humans always want an explantaion for things and he proves this to the children here. Although, it wasn't a good lesson to teach Dill and Scout, it did help them learn to not judge before they know someone. I think Mr.Raymond taught a good lesson just not encouraging them to go out and give people to assume their assumations are true.
it is so saddening that just because he is caring for the african americans he is being this judged and hated. mr. raymonds teachings really did teach them a great lesson, like you said.
Sam and Meredith I strongly agree. When i hear about Atticus being judged just because he's trying to help out Tom my heart breaks. Sam, I liked how you talked about the lesson Mr. Raymond taught Dill and Scout wasn't a good one although it helped teach them not to judge others.
ch. 19 p.266 "i know all that scout. it was just the way he said it made me sick. just plain sick." in this chapter, dill, scout and jem are watching the trial when dill starts to cry. at first it was silently but then he started to get louder. jem told scout to take dill out side. Dill says he can’t stand the way Gilmer was talking to Tom. dill was clearly upset about this. this shows a reoccuring theme of growing up. dill is definatly growing up and maturing if he notices this form of racism and it truly upsets him. As a child, Dill can’t accept and condemns the way adults treat each other without dignity.
Meredith, I completely agree with you in the fact that Dill is growing up. I believe that him being so affected by people being racist, shows that he is developing the ability to care for others. He has a very mature outlook on the situation, and this showed me a different side of Dill.
ch.20 p.269 "cry about the simple hell people give other people-without even thinking. cry about the hell white people give colored folks, without even stopping to think that the're people,too" Raymond is an eccentric rich white man. He gets little respect from the white people in the town because he’s always drunk and lives with a black woman and has fathered interracial children. But Dill and Scout learn that Raymond isn’t actually a drunk: he only drinks Coca-cola. Mr. Raymond explains that he fakes being a drunk so people won’t bother him for living the way he wants. raymond reminds me of the charachter Skeeter from "The Help". Skeeter was very caring and simpathetic to the african american maids. she just wants to help them get more respect and she doesn't like the way that they were treated. raymond is very similar to this and Mr. Raymond is another man who sees the evil of racism.
Chapter 19 analysis. Tom Robinson tells his part of the story which is similar in context but the outcome of his story is much different. Tom seems to be honest, helpful and respectful of everyone even the Ewells. He even says that he feels sorry for her. Tom is obviously innocent due to his truthful nature and Attticus's evidence. But no matter how clear the evidence is Tom is doomed to be guilty or worse. I think that this connects to the title of the book. It is said to be a sin to kill a mockingbird because they don't do anything wrong, all they do is sing. Tom Robinson reminds me of the mockingbird: he doesn't deserve to die because he didn't do anything wrong and is clearly innocent.
Tim, that's a really good point you bring up. I think it's really great that Tom is respectful towards the Ewells, despite what they are putting him through. This just shows what a good person he is. I agree that in some way, Tom is like a Mockingbird. I believe that it's wrong for Tom to possibly die for being accused of committing a crime that he didn't in fact commit.
Tim, I am actually in love how you made the connection between Tom and the Mockingbird. I think The Mockingbird also represents innocence, if (when) Tom is found guilty it will almost be like killing innocence and justice which refers to the title "To Kill A Mocking Bird"
I agree with how you think Tom is like a mockingbird. He's never bothered anyone nor has he done any wrong. He is only in court mostly because of the color of his skin. When he told his situation with Mayella, it was almost the opposite of what she had said before. I believed Tom all along because he explained the situation calmly and simple, unlike Mayella who was in absolute panick and slightly changing her story every once in a while.
Chapter 18- "Somehow, Atticus had hit her hard in a way that was not clear to me, but it gave him no pleasure to do so." An apparent theme throughout the book is what a great father and role model Atticus is. Chapter 18 not only showed a rather professional side of Atticus, but also a man with a pure heart. When I came across this line, it really stood out to me. Obviously, I'm not a lawyer, but I would think that if I were in Atticus' position, I would be incredibly happy. I would feel content and proud of what I have accomplished. He went into a trial with almost no hope of winning his case. But as he stands there in the courtroom, it becomes clear to the reader that Atticus is good at what he does, and there is in fact hope for Tom Robinson. Atticus is forced to ask Miss Mayella brutal questions, however they are giving him the answers he needs. He should be proud that he is getting through to this woman, however he gets no satisfaction. I believe that this was really hard for Atticus. He humiliated this woman in front of her peers. This proves that Atticus has a good heart and truly feels bad for Mayella.
Chapter 19- "As Tom Robinson gave his testimony, it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radely, who had not been out if the house in 20 years." I found this chapter to be very sad. I feel bad for Mayella. I know maybe she is lying about whether Tom actually attacked her or not, but part of me is sympathetic towards her. While I think it's absolutely terrible if she is in fact lying, when Scout made this statement, I felt very sad. This situation made me think of a quote I once heard. "Sometimes the loneliest people are the ones whom are surrounded by many." I really think this is true. While we are all sympathetic towards Boo Radley, we don't really know how he feels. Maybe he has found a way to be content. While it's clear that Miss Mayella is constantly surrounded by people, it's also clear that something is missing in her life. This made me think that it isn't how many people you are surrounded with that matters, but WHO you are surrounded by, that really counts.
i also feel bad for(mostly upset with) Mayella because she wasn't able to say the truth. not only is she bringing herself down but she had to bring an innocent man down with her. everybody knows that she is just dying to yell out that it wasn't Tom and it was her father.
Chapter 18 Page: 247 “‘It’s not an easy question Miss Mayella, so I’ll try again. Do you remember him beating you about the face?’ Atticus’s voice had lost it’s comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. ‘Do you remember him beating you about the face?’ ‘I don’t recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.’” Mayella’s weak testimony calls the reader to become even more suspicious of her claims. According to Mr. Tate and Mr. Ewell’s testimony, Mayella was certainly beaten up. It’s odd for Mayella’s reaction to the question to be so questionable if she is telling the truth. This connects to the world because thewre was a story on the news of a woman that claimed Justin Bieber was the father of her baby. Both of these are examples of how people can lie for financial, publicity or any selfish reason in general the main point point is that not everyone can be trusted.
Chapter 19 Page: 263 “Mr. Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. ‘You’re a mighty good fellow, it seem- did all this for not one penny?’ ‘Yes suh. I felt sorry for her, she seemed to try more’n the rest of ‘em-’ ‘You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her’ Mr. Gilmer seemed ready to rise to the ceiling.” I t seems as though Mr. Gilmer thinks it is horrible that Tom Robinson, a poor black field worker, fells sorry for Mayella, a white citizen of Maycomb. It should be acceptable, considering the condition that she lives in, but in regard to the rascal standards of the time, Tom’s statement causes some resentment.
Chapter 20 Page: 271 “The state has not produced one iota of medical evidence that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place. It has relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant. The defendant is not guilty, but somebody in this courtroom is.” Atticus’ strong closing arguments prove what an excellent lawyer he is. Atticus speaks only the truth and tries to force those in the courtroom, including his children, to examine courage, but to Atticus, it is absolutely necessary. This connects to our world today because Atticus is trying to prove to the jury that even though Tom is a black man doesn’t mean that he committed this crime. This relates to the world today because even though racism is not as heavy as it was back then but will still have a lot of racist people out there and we always will.
Chapter 21 Page: 283 “Miss Jean Louise?’ I looked around. They were all standing. All around us, and in the balcony on the opposite wall, the Negroes were getting to their feet. Reverend Sykes’s voice was as distant as Judge Taylor’s: ‘Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’.” The people on the balcony have great respect for Atticus due to how deeply he pursued the case and how well he defended Tom. Atticus worked to let the truth be known. When Reverend Sykes asks Scout to stand, she understands how much her father’s work means to him and the rest of those seated with her in the balcony. This relates to everyone because Atticus was extremely determined to prove that Tom Robinson was innocent and believed that he could do it. Atticus is a great example of if you put your mind to something you can always success.
reply to chapter 21: i also enjoyed this part of the book. the fact that these African Americans were still so respectful and kind-hearted towards atticus, even after he lost the case, baffled me. i totally agree with your last statement. even though atticus didn't win the case ,he most definitely changed minds, and hearts, trying.
Allison, I agree with you. This was also my favorite part of the book so far. What Atticus has done for Tom is outstanding. His hard work defiantly pays off and the sure does deserve the respect he’s given. Scout and Jem should be very proud of him and the things he has done. I honestly could say that he is an inspiration to me at this point.
ch. 20 page 269, Mr. Raymond says, "You haven't even seen this town, but all you gotta do is step back inside that courthouse". Mr. Raymond finally shines a light on the dark side of the town. When Mr.Raymond says this he is telling Scout that the hidden world of racism is being displayed in that courthouse. Scouts innocence is still well preserved so she doesn't quite get how terrible Tom Robinson is being treated. Mr. Raymond all around prefers blacks over whites and like Miss Maudie he does not want to attend the trial so he stays outside.
i like mr. raymond.Mr. Raymond is another man who sees the evil of racism. But rather than confront it, like Atticus, he hides from the confrontation behind lies.
Chapter 19, Pg. 265: “Like I says before, it weren’t safe for any n****r to be in a-fix like that.” This Tom Robinson’s response, when he is asked why he ran away from the Ewell’s house. This quote shows me how quick white people were to blame everything on a colored person. Tom knew he had to run because if he didn’t, Mr. Ewell would assume that he was raping his daughter because he was black. It is so unfair how no one cared what the colored person had to say, they just came to a conclusion based on skin color. This relates to when Mr. Radley was talking about how he saw a black person in his yard. He didn’t actually see a black person, he assumed it was because in his eyes blacks are trouble makers and out to get you. This is a terrible assumption because most colored people are just working hard to make a living. Mr. Radley’s assumption is like the assumption that many people today make, that all Muslims are terrorists. I can only how the innocent people feel about the crazy accusations. I know I wouldn’t like it if everyone made unfair assumptions about me. Would you like that?
When I read this I thought the same thing, I hated how people assumed it meant he was guilty. He was obviously just scared for what he knew would come out of being in that situation.
I also thought the same thing when I read this. Just because he is a different color, he should be given the chance to explain his side of the story. It is very unfair that Mr. Gilmer is taking Tom's words and twisting to make it sound like he is guilty. Tom was scared and knew he would end up in court one way or another, due to social inequality, but he tried to avoid it as best as he could.
Jonah, i agree with you,the color was probably the only reason for the all mistreatments and the unfairness for the black people. people judge others based on the color of their skin during that time , which was really unfair.
Jonah, I also agree with you. People back then were always ready to get a colored person in trouble. No matter what something is people would assume a black person did it. that shows how bad racism was back then. Also i like how you brought up the muslims in this. Everybody is ready to blame a muslim when there is a terrorist attck. Its not fair how people make their conceptions.
Yeah, I agree with you when I read it I thought it's so racist to assume that a colored person did everything. I also like your Muslim referance. It is very true that the common folk assume that the terrorist attacks are because of Muslims, good connection.
Chapter 20- "Some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral...But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men. (Page 273) As I was reading through Atticus' speech to the jury, I was really interested in what he was saying, but this was the line that really moved me. Atticus is basically explaining to the jury, that they shouldn't make their decision about the trial based on race. He is explaining to them that it isn't fair to judge Tom Robinson because they have heard of other blacks committing a similar crime. This line made me think of modern day stereotypes. I have always been really sensitive to stereotypes, and I believe that it's simply because they are wrong. I honestly think that people need to stop judging individuals based on their culture, religion, economic status, etc. Like we are discussing in Global for example, one should not judge a Muslim and fear that they are a terrorist simply because a Muslim created the 9-11 attack. Generalizations are wrong, and I believe that people should learn to be more sensitive to them, just like Atticus.
I strongly agree, stereotypes are grow way out of proportion and are not fair to use against good people. We should always remember to treat others the way we would want to be treated. This line stuck out to me as well because if was the first time Atticus bluntly stated his belief that everyone should be equal in court. Earlier in the novel, you could infer that this was important to him and maybe one of the reasons he became a lawyer, but it wasn't stated in it's integrity until now. I think that these lines are really coming from Atticus' heart. While other lawyers are just focused on being paid, he's trying to make a difference.
I agree with you Alyssa. People should not be judged based on their religion, culture, or anything else like that. It is completely unfair and stereotypical. I also really like how you connected it to what we are learning about in global. Leah, I also agree with you. Treating others the way you want to be treated is basically the philosophy in my house, and I think that it is an extremely important lesson that people need to learn and live by.
Chapter 21- For me, this was a really sad chapter. In the past couple of chapters, I couldn't help but hope that Atticus and Tom would win the trial. Unfortunately, they didn't win. This made me think of two very simple quotes that I've heard many times: "Nice guys usually finish last" and "Life isn't fair." While I have to say that sometimes I feel that nice guys do finish last, I don't always agree. However, in this case, it was true. We have all seen the Disney Movies where the Princess chooses the nice Prince, not the bad guy. The movies where there is always a happy ending. I wish I could say this is true in real life. Unfortunately, many aspects play into real life situations. I believe that it was completely unfair that Tom didn't win this case. It is very clear to me that the jury was simply racist and weren't really considering the evidence, but I guess life just isn't always fair.
I also feel that sometimes nice guys finish last. My heart sunk for Tom at the end of chapter 21 and I actually re-read it, hoping the verdict would change. Although, if Tom had won, I would feel like the novel was unrealistic. Since the trial was based on an actual one, it wouldn't have been correct to have Tom win. Hopefully, he will eventually turn out on top. It is sad that I wouldn't expect the better man to win, there are many flaws in our modern society.
Chapter 18, page 248: “No. I don’t recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.” “Was your last sentence your answer?” “Huh? Yes, he hit- I just don’t remember, I just don’t remember… it all happened so quick.” In this scene, Atticus is questioning Mayella on the witness stand in court. He is asking her about if she remembered getting hit in the face. Mayella’s answers are not always clear, and at many points throughout this scene, she seems quite confused with what she should say. I think that this helps to prove that Tom Robinson didn’t in fact hit and rape her, even though we don’t know for sure. If he did, she wouldn’t be stumbling on her words, trying to decide what to say. I think that Mayella is trying to protect her father by lying on the witness stand. Even though not proven, I still believe that Mayella’s father, Mr. Ewell, was the one who hurt her. I feel bad for Mayella, yet at the same time I don’t. I have lied to protect people before, so I can understand where she is coming from there. However, they way she pretty much ruined Tom Robinson’s life forever does not make me feel bad for her at all. She blamed an innocent man of a heinous crime, and I don’t think that people should feel bad for her because of that.
Chapter 18, page 245, "A nineteen year old girl like you must have friends. Who are your friends?" the witness frowned as if puzzled, "Friends?" "Yes, don't you know anyone near your age, or older, or younger?" When Atticus asked Mayella these questions while she was on trial, I was really not expecting her to be so confused with the idea of friends. It makes perfect sense though, her being so completely and utterly alone. She works so hard and doesn't expect any compensation, how could she understand friendship? Friendship is literally defined as a state of mutual trust and respect. Who can Mayella really trust? She doesn't have the family stability that is crucial for an adolescent. Mayella is a perfect example of loss of innocence and growing up to fast, just like Ponyboy from "The Outsiders". Ponyboy is a greaser who must go into hiding after he witnesses a friend murder someone, both of his parents have also died so he's taken care of by his older brothers. Mayella and Ponyboy may be in completely different situations but both have demanded them to leave behind childhood and rise to the occasion.
Chapter 19, page 256, "She watered them red flowers everyday-" When Tom Robinson says this, while on trial, it is the second time that Mayella's red flowers are mentioned. The first time, her cleanliness was mentioned simultaneously, which is interesting because being clean wasn't taken for granted then like is today. The red flowers have become a symbol of Mayella's civilizedness as well as her happiness. In the same way that Miss Maudie takes joy from her flowers, Mayella does, too. She values them over material possessions. The Ewell family is known for being wild, dirty and rude. By having pristeen flowers in the midst of her garbage dump yard, it is a sign that Mayella is more civilized than her family. They also show that she is a good person trapped in a chaotic lifestyle because her red flowers are among old furniture and other thrown out objects that had been collected form the dump for her family to recycle because they cannot afford to buy new things.
I agree Sam, nice catch Leah! I didn't even think about it until you mentioned it above. I like how you said "she is a good person trapped in a chaotic lifestyle", I totally agree and in some ways, I feel bad for her. It reminds me of the quote "don't judge a book by its cover." Mayella is dirty and rude on the outside but she has a part of her that isn't so bad.
Great job Leah. I didn't notice this until you pointed it out. I completely agree with you that the flowers represent how civilized Mayella is, and how she takes joy from them. Adding on to what Hannah said, it feels like the outside of Mayella, the "dirty and rude side", seems to show up when she is around others, and her other side seems to appear when she is not around others. I think that this has to do with her lack of education, and how poor her first role model, her dad, must have been.
I do feel that Mayella is in an unfair state and that she might be more acceptable then the other Ewells. But my pity is still saved for Tom Robinson and his situation. I do not think that Mayella is a good person or will ever become one. Partly it is not her fault because her father corrupted her.
Chapter 20, page 269: "Atticus says cheatin' a colored man is ten times worse than cheatin' a white man....says it's the worse thing you can do." While it is obvious that Scout recognizes that Atticus treats colored people better than most, I'm not sure she really grasps the severity of the situation. Scout says these lines while speaking with Mr. Dolphus, who pretends to be drunk so that he won't be judged for having a colored wife and mixed children. She states Atticus' opinion but has not yet said her own. We can infer that she has the same beliefs as her father, but I think that for the most part racism just goes over her head. This line also shows a similarity between Mr. Dolphus and Atticus, they are both tolerant. Atticus is setting a good example for people who are anti-racist and is becoming a symbol for change. This is similar to how Katniss was the symbol for governmental revolution in "The Hunger Games" I wonder if Mr. Dolphus will reveal that he is not a drunkard after seeing Atticus' example.
Chapter 21, page 279: "Now don't you be so confident, I ain't ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man..." How sad, that a colored man has never won in court in Maycomb. In the novel, when the jury was away so long, I thought that maybe they were going to make he right decision. It's mind-blowing that racism in this county is so prominent that the idea of a colored man's word counting over that of a white man's is completely unheard of. This reminded me of Hammurabi's Code, which we learned about in Global. This set of laws is said to embody "an eye for an eye" but isn't really so upon further examination. This is just like how everyone should be equal in court but this dream rarely becomes a reality. In Hammurabi's Code, the harshness of your punishments varies based on your social class. For the same crime, a richer man may pay a small fine, while a lower-class man could loose a limb or suffer physical reparations. In To Kill a Mockingbird, the jury is only looking at race and not the real evidence.
Chapter 18, Page 250,"One question at a time, Atticus. Give the witness a chance to answer." From this we can infer that Atticus's tough questioning is proving that maybe the witness had been telling lies and maybe Tom Robinson's liberation will be much faster than expected, but without jumping to conclusion, what if Tom Robinson was guilty? what if all these acquisitions are correct and accurate? Could we draw a conclusion about the population of African Americans? Through the use of racism many people have to ability to make assumptions and opinions based on an action of one small percentage of the population of on group, society, or race. I could relate this to the world of Muslim Religion and incorrect assumptions that are made. Many believe that he religious group of Muslims are terrorists or maybe Arabic's being terrorists, this incorrect statement could be corrected by simply saying that Arabic's are just people of citizens who speak the language of Arabic and may or may not be Muslim. Furthermore, Muslim Extremist make up a very small percent of the population of Muslims. The problem is, is that the rest of the population are the real Muslims or the average citizens. Even if we picture certain groups of people as they are described through propaganda, doesn't mean we can draw a conclusion to the rest population and what they may actually be like.
ch.21 p.276 "judge, i- this note is from my sister. she says my children are missing, haven't turned up since noon...i...could you-" this is said by atticus after calpurnia hands him a note during the trial. Mr. Underwood then calls out and says that they are not missing that they, in fact, have been watching the trial the whole time.Atticus tells them to go home and eat dinner but after much begging from the children, he relentlessly says they can come back for the verdict if it hasn’t already been delivered. Aticcus knew what was going to happen and was trying to protect Jem and Scout from the anger and racism of the trial. after quick thought, Atticus realized that they could not be protected from this and let them return.this shows both themes of racism and growing up. the trials unfair verdict was, most defiantly, racial discrimination but most of all, if Atticus let the children return then he must have thought the children had grown up and could handle the verdict.
I agree Meridith! Atticus allowing them to hear the verdict relates to the theme of growing up. After Scout and Jem begged him to stay, Atticus probably realized hearing the verdict wouldn't be any worse than the trial. That being said, I feel that Scout is extremely young to be attending such a racial trial, but Atticus, being such a great teacher, will explain to Scout that blacks and whites are equal and not to be ashamed of losing the trial because he gave it his best shot.
Chapter 18, Pg. 249 "He got it caught in a cotton gin, caught it in Mr. Dolphus Raymond's cotton gin when he was a boy...like to bled to death...tore all the muscles loose from his bones-" This is said by Reverend Sykes when he explains about Tom Robinson being crippled to both Jem and Scout. As we can infer, back in chapter 17, Mr. Ewell supposedly saw Mayella with a black eye in her left eye. This made me come to think of what Reverend Skyes told Jem and Scout. Atticus was trying to show that Mr. Ewell could have beaten up Mayella. With evidence that shows that Mr.Ewell was a right handed, Atticus asks him to sign a piece of envelope signing his name. If Mayella's right eye were to be blacked and she was beaten mostly on the right side of her face, it would show that a left-handed person have done it. But according to Reverend Skyes, Tom Robinson could not have beaten up Mayella because of how Tom has no full use of his left hand because of the accident he got when he was a child. We can infer, that most likely Tom Robinson is not guilty and that Mr. Ewell beat up her daughter, based on the evidence that shows. Based on this trial, I think this is because of social class or jealously. Mr. Ewell appears to be at the bottom of the social class, but as for Tom Robinson, it appears he is higher than Mr. Ewell. I think Mr. Ewell beat up his daughter to make Tom look bad and have a bad look on him by other people. We can connect this today of how jealously could lead towards something like this and how the theme of racism could be brought up to this.
Well put James! I think Mr. Ewell is so prejudice and racist that when he sees a black man, Tom Robinson, near his daughter he actually beats her (There is sufficient evidence of that). Also, it shows how African-Americans were viewed during the 1930's if a father beat up his daughter, and said "a black man raped her". This is very upsetting, but it does show the strong themes of racism and being prejudice in the novel.
Chapter 18 , page 239, “ she seemed somehow fragile looking m but when she sat facing us in the witness chair she became what she was, a thick-bodied girl accustomed to strenuous labor.” I like how Scout is making observation, she doesn’t know Mayella much. As a matter of the fact, Scout probably heard many things about the Ewell family in town. From what Scout told us, I can somehow picture Mayella. Mayella doesn’t have a mom around her to take care of her and the other kids, also since Mr.Ewell hunts all the time, and she’s the oldest she has to do the mother’s part, to take care of the other little kids and do all the house works, it’s not hard to imagine how hard it is for her to do all those hard labors.
Chapter 19, page 261,” Mr. Finch, if you was a nigger like me, you’d be scared, too.” I feel pretty bad for Tom Robinson, I can feel the segregation and the mistreatments based on their colors in Maycomb by that time. Tom Robinson probably was panicked and didn’t know what to do and he cannot help himself in that awkward and crazy situation. For a colored man, he doesn’t have any right to say anything during that time. In the book, it mentioned that, when Mr. Ewll saw it through the window, he was holler and threaten tom that he was going to kill him, I think anybody would be scared under that kind of circumstances.
chapter 18, page 251: "She answered no more questions". This is the part during the trial when Mayella seems like she has lost hope in winning the trial and begins to cry. She refuses to answer all questions from Atticus from here on out. I see this as completely unfair, and I am a man of fairness. Just because you are losing the game doesn't mean you can quit. I can relate to this because sometimes I feel my parents are unfair to me (but mostly it is for my own good) and even if I can prove a point they will oppose it and I think they wont admit that I am right. Mrs. Sarna, you being a mother, how do you feel about this? Because from my point of view, it seems that even though my parents want the best for me, they can be a little like Mayella sometimes.
Jared, you make a really good point. It is unfair to Atticus that Mayella will not answer any more of his questions. I also am glad you pointed out that Mayella has lost the hope in winning the trial and starts crying. I had never thought of it like that because in the book, Scout sees it as a way for Judge Taylor to feel bad for her and give in a little. But I liked how you said, "just because you are losing the game doesn't mean you can quit."
Chapter 19 page 265, "'No suh, I's scared I'd be in court, just like I am now.' 'Scared of arrest, scared you'd have to face up to what you'd did?' 'No suh, scared I'd hafta face up to what I didn't do.'" During this scene and this chapter, I felt really bad for Tom because he was being drilled with uncomfortable questions about something that didn't even happen. Although it is too early to tell, Tom Robinson seems completely innocent but he is being blamed for something he didn't do. When I read this quote, I gained a lot of respect for Tom because he was standing up for himself when he new he would probably end up losing anyways. Based on the way Tom Robinson talks, he is probably not an educated man, but he seemed very smart, especially when he said this, I felt he really knew what he was talking about and wasn't going to let anyone twist his words. There are many major themes in this novel and education is definitely one of them.
I was just listening to a song and they apply almost perfectly to the situation during this scene in the court with Tom Robinson. The lyrics say, "Yes, I feel a little bit nervous,//Yes, I feel nervous and I cannot relax,//How come they're out to get us?//How come they're out when they don't know the facts?" The song is called Hurts Like Heaven by Coldplay. What a coincidence!
Chapter 20, page 272, “She was white, and she tempted a Negro. She did something that, in our society, is unspeakable. She kissed a black man. Not an old uncle, but a strong, young Negro man. No code mattered to her before she broke it, but it came crashing down on her afterwards.” Atticus was right about it, during that period of the time, it doesn’t fit and it’s not reasonable for a white woman to try to seduce a black man. Mayella was imprudent and unconsidered. She couldn’t fight off her desire and didn’t know she was going to get into a big trouble. Well, we all make mistakes in our life, and the mistakes would somehow affect ourselves or someone who’s around us.
Janny, you gave a great reason as to why Tom Robinson would be so terrified to stay and see what happened after Mr. Ewells came into the house. If I were Tom, I would also be scared to stay because even if I hadn't done anything, I knew I would be blamed for something I hadn't done and that's exactly what happened to Tom.
Chapter 19, Page 260,"It occurred to me that in their own ways, Tom Robinson's manners were as good as Atticus's." As said by Scout. Scouts statement concerning Tom Robinson is true. Throughout this chapter, Tom Robinson is interrogated and questioned by Atticus and Mr. Gilmer. Tom Robinson's manners and sound of innocence almost make it seem he didn't do the crime even if the possibilities of him winning are very low. I truly do believe with Scouts statement, i believe that Tom Robinson is well disciplined and well mannered. Furthermore, they way he explains his side of the story is more idealistic and practical as compared to Ms. Mayella's story. I could relate this to the Scottsboro Boys who were tried for attacking two white boys after jumping out of the freight train as said by this article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottsboro_Boys. The Scottsboro Boys and Tom Robinson both share a common characteristic which is hope.
Harrison, I am really glad that you used this quote. I agree with you that Tom's manners and sounds of innocence make it seem like he didn't commit the crime. And it's sad yet true; his chances of winning the case are low, being that he is a black man accused of raping a white woman. I also like how you made the connection between Tom and the Scottsboro Boys, and how they both had hope.
Harrison, I too like what you said about this quote. Tom Robinson's manners are so good they make him sound like he should be innocent, as you said. Also going back to what Sophie said about his chances of winning are low, it can relate to segregation. nobody believes the black man so in the end the white person obviously wins.
Chapter 21, page 277 “Mister Jem, don’t you know better’n to take your little sister to that trial?”Well ,I feel like Calpurnia was acting like a mom and try to avoiding those things from the kids especially scout , because she’s only eight year old girl. Although I can tell Cal wants to know when Jem asked her if she wanted to hear about it .But she was pretty upset and thought it was inappropriate for the little kids to know too much stuff about it and they should be ashamed
Chapter 19, page 261: “Mr. Finch, if you was a n****r like me, you’d be scared, too.” This is said by Tom Robinson while he was testifying in court. Atticus had just asked him why he ran when Mr. Ewell came in, and he said that it was because he was scared. This quote said by Tom was a really powerful quote in my opinion, because it shows how life back then was really unfair for the blacks, and how you could always potentially be in danger. Tom was scared, because he knew that he would be in danger, once Mr. Ewell came in. So he ran. He didn’t think much about it; he just did it. I really feel bad for Tom. He didn’t do anything wrong. He was just trying to be friendly and help out, and then he gets put into an extremely difficult and uncomfortable position, which later winds him up in court. It’s sad to think how even in the world today, people trying to help out one another can sometimes wind up causing them to get into trouble, even though they didn’t necessarily do anything wrong.
Chapter 19 page 265 "dill started to cry and couldn't stop...then his sobs were heard by several people in the balcony." Towards the end Mr. Gilmer started prosecuting Tom Robinson. While this was happening Dill began to cry until Jem asked Scout to take him outside. Dill explained to Scout that the reason he was crying was because of the way they were speaking to Tom Robinson. This part stood out to me because I feel the same way Dill feels about Mr. Gilmer. I get that Mr. Gilmer is just doing his job but he prosecutes Tom Robinson in such a tyrannical manner that it just makes you want to cry. Scout says "thats how prosecutors are" but then Dill makes a good point by saying that Atticus didn't act the way Mr. Gilmer did when he was Prosecuting Mr. Ewells and Mayella, I think Dill is right. Atticus did his job and still showed respect and I feel that Mr. Gilmer should do the same as Atticus but sadly we all know isn't.
I agree with you Jackie because although Mr. Glimer is doing his job, he could be more respectful and not so harsh to Tom. Atticus on the other hand is doing his job, but he isn't ganging up on Mayella like Mr. Gilmer is acting with Tom.
Chapter 18, Page 243. “Long’s he keeps on callin’ me ma’am and sayin’ Miss Mayella. I don’t have to take his sass, I ain’t called upon to take it.” As we all saw in this part of the chapter, people were a little bit confused after Mayella said this. It made them wonder about what her life was like. In one of my earlier blog posts, I mentioned that often times children can represent what their family is like. Since the Ewells are not very well off, it can be assumed and proven that they aren’t very well educated. To make a connection, at the beginning of the book we talked about how the police bent the rules for them, allowing them to not go to school. Mayella, being not very well educated thought that Atticus was being sassy to her when he wasn’t. I think her mistake in this social situation is based off of her family and her lack of school.
Chapter 19, Page 256. “As Tom Robinson gave his testimony, it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radley…” Wow, when I saw this quote I was immediately shaken by this great connection. Just like Boo, Mayella Ewell tried to reach out to make friends and she did, sort of. The connection between her and Tom were the various jobs he did. Looking back to the beginning fo the book, the connection between Boo and the kids were the child gifts. I think what should happen next in the book is they should have Boo testify and defend Tom. If only Boo would explain what he has in common with Mayella.
Chapter 20, Page 269. “Atticus says cheatin’ a colored man is ten times worse than cheatin’ a white man.” I agree with this statement that Scout told to Mr. Robinson. I strongly belive that during this time period, cheating on a colored man was worse than cheating on a white man. I may be wrong, but isn’t it true that most blacks were in the low part of society and life was bad enough already? If life was bad enough for them dealing with all the rascism, then it would be cruel to cheat them and make their lives even worse. The white men had it better, they didn’t have to deal with rascism. And that is why I believe its worse to cheat on a colored man. Also, you know that modern saying that people hear a lot, “taking candy from a baby”? The baby can represent the black men, at this time they were very vulnerable and unprotected, whereas the white men weren’t because they were better protected by justice of court systems of this time.
Chapter 21, Page 278. “Aunt Alexandra met us and nearly fainted when Calpurnia told her where we were.” I don’t find this quote to be super significant, but it reminded me of a time when I got lost at the park and finally found my dad. We both were so happy to see each other, and had a bit of relief afterwards. The other reason why I chose this one is because I am just picturing Aunt Alexandra in this situation. I imagined her freaking out and scrambling all over town to find the children. I guess Aunt Alexandra slipped up this time.
Chapter 20, page 268: “Wh-oh yes, you mean why do I pretend? Well, it’s very simple,” he said. “Some folks don’t-like the way I live…” When Dill started crying in the courthouse, Jem told Scout to take him outside. While outside, Scout and Dill came across Mr. Dolphus Raymond. Mr. Raymond allowed Dill to take a sip from his bag to make him feel better. Scout is very concerned, but Dill tells her after he drank some that it is just Coca-Cola. Then Scout starts questioning Mr. Raymond about it. She asks him, “Why do you do what you do?” His respond is saddening. He said that he pretends, because people don’t like and appreciate the way that he lives. He pretends that he is drunk so that people would understand why he won’t change his ways. This shows how Mr. Raymond cannot show his true identity, and it connects to the theme of racism and discrimination. He is almost being pressured to pretend to drink alcohol out of the bag, because then it would give people a somewhat reasonable answer as to why he is the way he is.
Chapter 18 pages 250-251 Atticus is asking Mayella questions upon what happened the night she was attacked, during the trial. He is asking her if Tom Robinson really was responsible for the attack or did her father hit her. When he asks her if her father has ever harmed her, and if he was the one that hurt her, she hesitates to answer the question and doesn't answer the question. This inferes that Mayella's dad could of been the one that hurt her and she is covering that pain by blaming Tom Robinson because he happened to be there right before she was injured. This is connected to the theme of education because Atticus is using all his knowledge to ask specific questions to Mayella. He also asks questions more than once to make she if she might change her answers. He also ask questions that may seem simple, but in reality they reviel a lot more than what people would expect.
chapter 18 "'It's not an easy question Miss Mayella, so I'll try again. Do you remember him beating you about the face?' Atticus's voice had lost it's comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. 'Do you remember him beating you about the face?' 'I don't recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.
Mayella's weak testimony calls the reader to become even more suspicious of her claims. According to Mr. Tate and Mr. Ewell's testimony, Mayella was certainly beaten up. It's odd for Mayella's reaction to the question to be so questionable if she is telling the truth.
chapter 19 Mr. Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. 'You're a mighty good fellow, it seems- did all this for not one penny?'
'Yes suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more'n the rest of 'em-'
'You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her?' Mr. Gilmer seemed ready to rise to the ceiling."
It seems as though Mr. Gilmer thinks it is horrible that Tom Robinson, a poor black field worker, feels sorry for Mayella, a white citizen of Maycomb. It should be acceptable, considering the condition that she lives in, but in regard to the racial standards of the time, Tom's statement causes some resentment.
Chapter 18, page 241: Mr. Gilmer waited for Mayella to collect herself: she had twisted her handkerchief into a sweaty rope; when she opened it to wipe her face it was a mass of creases from her hot hands. I think this quote tells us she’s lying and scared. Mayella kept pausing and thinking and never could go into detail with her story. I think if something like that happened to someone, you would remember. I understand that you wouldn’t want to talk about it again, but wouldn’t you want justice? I think Mayella is scared of her dad and doesn’t want to see anything happen to him because of her. As the trail went on and Atticus was questioning her, she was getting more nervous because people were starting to see that she wasn’t telling the truth.
Chapter 19, page 166: The way that man called him ‘boy’ all the time an’ sneered at him, an’ looked around at the jury every time he answered-“ “Well Dill, after all he’s just a Negro.” “I don’t care one speck. It right, somehow it ain’t to do ‘ em that way. Hasen’t anybody got any business talking ‘ like that – it just makes me sick.” When Dill says this to Scout I thought of Atticus and I saw a difference in Dill. I thought of Atticus because in chapter 11 when he was telling Scout that he try’s to love everyone no matter what their skin color is. I saw a change in Dill because Dill useally is the one that acts all tough. When he was pushing Jem to go touch the Radlys house and when he told Scout she was a girl and could leave when they were going to touch the Radly house. Now Dill is showing his emotions to Scout and not acting tough and just showing how he really feels.
"'It's not an easy question Miss Mayella, so I'll try again. "Do you remember him beating you about the face?' Atticus's voice had lost it's comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. 'Do you remember him beating you about the face?' 'I don't recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.' ". This was a question asked by Atticus to a quite trembled and nervous Mayella. The setting in which this event takes place is in the courtroom. This is where the reader can tell how scared Mayella was and it didn't help that the small courtroom was filled to its maximum and all the pressure in my view and attention was put on Mayella. At this point all Atticus wanted was the truth and he knew something wasn't right. Atticus is a very knowledgeable man and he could see from the emotions of Mayella that she was either forced to say something or she is just plain lying. Also her lack of confidence told everyone or most people in the audience that gave some hope for the blacks was that no one could trust her claims and Atticus became very hesitant about what she was saying and he didn't know if she was lying or not. What I personally do not understand is why when Mr. Ewell and Mr.Tate got to the stand they were so confident and repeated over and over that she was the victim and obviously was beaten, but then the question is still not anwsered in who is telling the truth or not and Atticus has a very job on his hands. Looks like someone didn't solemnly swear when there right hand was on the book. A connection to modern day is the same way people are interrogated. One way the interrogaters find out if the person is lying or not is by their facial emotions and speech just how Atticus is examining Mayella.
Chapter 19, Pg. 266 "Well, Mr. Finch didn't act that way to Mayella amd old man Ewell when he cross-examined them. The way that man called him 'boy' all the time an' sneered at him, an' looked around at the jury every time he answered-" In this point of the chapter, Dill questions why Mr. Gilmer behaves or speaks differently to Tom Robinson. Scout says that it is his job to speak to him that way, but Dill still seems to not understand why he does that and thinks that this is unfair. I think Mr. Gilmer represents a universal character in this chapter of both in the world today or back then, and in this novel. Mr. Gilmer's treatment towards Tom Robinson seems to be effortless, comparing the way he talks to Mayella. For me, I agree with what Dill says to Scout in the book. He says that its is unfair in a way of how Mr. Gilmer talks to Tom. I guess this has to do with racism once again because of the time period. This could also relate to theme of the negative affects of racism on an individual, community, and a legal system. The jury is white, so it is most likely that Tom Robinson will not win this case. This certain event in the book reminds me of how it can connect to celebrities sons or daughters. They want to get a job the right way, but most jobs they try to hire them for, hire them because of their parents being famous. This relates to the book of how Tom Robinson will not win because of his background and looks, and the concept of racism at the time.
Ch. 18 p. 209(different book!) "When hes-riled, has he ever beaten you?" Mayella looked around..."Answer the question, Miss Mayella" said Judge Taylor. Atticus is doing his cross-examination of Mayella Ewell when he asks about Mr. Ewell beating her. She takes a pause and looks around at the judge, court reporter and Atticus. Her taking a pause shows that there’s a possibility that she is lying about being raped and her father actually beat her. This connects to the theme of being prejudice because even though Ms. Mayella is obviously lying about what happened, it’s her word against a black mans. They are prejudging Tom Robinson because his skin color is black and assuming he committed the crime. We see people being prejudice in our world when we see a woman with a Burka and assume she is forced to wear it. Even though many Islamic women choose to wear them and are not forced to, but we assume they are.
Chapter 18 Page 240: “That’s enough now. Don’t be’fraid of anybody here, as long as you tell the truth…” Judge Taylor said this to Mayella because when she was called to the stand she was crying. I think that this quote means that as long as you tell the truth then you don’t have to be worried about anything. In a way Judge Taylor is trying to calm her, but also I think that he’s trying to get a point through her head. A point meaning that if you don’t tell the truth and if you are lying, then you have a right to be frightened. This can relate to the real world especially with younger kids when they get in trouble. They are frightened if they are lying but are calm if they are not. This was a good line said by Judge Taylor to somewhat get Mayella to think twice.
Chapter 19 Page 261: “Mr. Finch, if you were a n****r like me, you’d be scared, too.” Tom Robinson replied this towards Atticus’ question. I think that what Tom said here sent us all a very strong and powerful message. This quote refers to how bad times were during the Great Depression, segregation wise. Tom was scared because once Mr. Ewell saw him, Tom knew instantly that something bad was going to happen. This had happened to all blacks. Meaning that if a white person saw a black person doing something bad, even if it was a miss interpretation (like how it is here) the black person would ultimately get into trouble. This quote just shows a clearer understanding of how unfair life was like for a black person.
Chapter 19 page 197 "Mr. Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. 'You're a mighty good fellow, it seems did all this for not one penny?' 'Yes suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more'n the rest of 'em' 'You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her?' Mr. Gilmer seemed ready to rise to the ceiling." This quote is when Mr. Gilmer was interrogating Tom Robinson in court. In this event Mr.Gilmer asks Tom what were his motives for helping Mayella's chores. The reason that Tom said he helped her was because he felt bad for her because of her financial situation and where she lived in town behind a dumpster. Also Tom knew about her father like most people throughout town and he was known as a quite mean and dirty person who was lazy and didn't care for anyone else except himself. In this instance I think the reason why he is claiming this rape is to get money for the court because he is extremely poor and also of course is not fond of blacks and he thinks that if he blames it on a black man he can get the jury to agree with him just because of Tom's skin color. This is a very sly move by Mr.Ewell but in the end i think the person that will prevail is Atticus due to the way he is proving Tom's innocence and showing how skin color has nothing to do with things but finding out the truth does.
Chapter 20: Towards the end of this chapter, Atticus starts saying his speech to the jury. His speech was to get the jury to think about all the evidence that was provided earlier in the trial, and hopefully make the right decision about Tom Robinson. In his speech Atticus sent some very strong messages to the men sitting in the jury. One of those messages consisted of something of what Thomas Jefferson said “All men are created equal.” If this is true then how come black people were not justified equally? What Atticus said got me to think more deeply about what is going on. Atticus wanted to get the jury to think hard about their decision, and make it a fair trial.
Chapter 21 Page 282: “Guilty…guilty…guilty…guilty…” exclaimed the jury. I picked this quote because it just goes to show, how unfair everything was for black people back then. The jury consisted of all white men and really they didn’t care about what Tom Robinson and Atticus had to say. The case was over before it began. The jury knew that they were going to say, that any black man was guilty already. This is like what happened with The Scottsboro Boys. They kept on getting proven guilty without a fair fight. This says that black people didn’t have a say in anything, they were always being treated without proper respect and that they couldn’t do a thing about it. It just isn’t right.
As I read in chapter 20 on page 269, Mr. Raymond says "Cry about the simple hell people give other people – without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people gives colored folks, without even stopping to think that they're people, too." While the kids still haven’t shut the display of emotions, they also haven’t dammed up their intake of impressions from the outside. Calling it "instinct" implies that this way of relating to the world is something everyone naturally goes through. I could understand why Mr. Raymond isn’t respected much, due to his drunkenness and living condition. Although, I think the whites are being ignorant, because they don’t really know if it’s true. For example, Dill and Scout son learn he only drinks Coca-cola. I hate to see that people judge one another due to the littlest things. I absolutely understand why Mr. Raymond fakes being a drunk; so people won’t judge him for actually living the way he wants.
I absolutely agree with you Natalie, it's a shame that people judge others by what they look like or how they live and don't even try to give them a chance to fully introduce themselves for who they truly are.
Chapter 19, Page 256: "Negroes wouldn't have anything to do with her because she was white." This quote was describing how the blacks feel about whites. This really goes to show how the racism went both ways during this historical time period. Although it was mostly whites that mistreated blacks and judged them, this caused the blacks to also judge the whites. Just because Mayella was white, most blacks didn't want to be near her. Just because someone is white, doesn't mean they necessarily don't like blacks. Take Atticus for example. He's defending a black isn't he? This can connect to our world today because prejudice almost never goes one way.
Jared, you bring up a very good point here. Most people would think that racism is only directed to the blacks. But you have to interpret things differently, just like you did, to realize that black people are also somewhat racist to whites as well. So basically, racism is directed back and forth between people.
Chapter 19 page 260, " Did you resist her advances?" asked Atticus to Tom, he responded "Mr. Finch, I tried. I tried to 'thout bein' ugly to her. I didn't wanta be ugly, I didn't wanta push her or nothin." This is part of the questioning Atticus does to Tom Robinson during trial. This quote makes me think of how innocent people are charged with crimes because they were trying to defend themselves. During the setting of this book, it was even worst if a colored person tried to defend themselves from a white person because if they just touched a white person, they most likely would be found guilty of a crime. A colored person would be accused of hurting a white person because first the white person would tell a huge lie, just like I feel Mayella is doing, and second the judge would favor a white person over whatever a colored person had to say, because the judge would be usually white. This trial reminds me of a movie i watched named "Time to Kill" because it also takes place during the Great Depression and it is about a 10 year old colored girl who was raped by two white racist men and they were found not guilty, so then her father goes out to hunt the men and ends up killing them. He is then sent to jail for murder, but then a white man becomes very interested in the case and wants to help the colored father and name him not guilty. The white lawyer was very brave to help a colored man and he reminds me much of Atticus.
Chapter 20 page 269, "You haven't seen enough of the world yet. You haven't even seen this town, but all you gotta do is step back inside the courthouse," said Mr. Raymond to Scout. this happened when Jem told Scout to take Dill outside of the courtroom because Dill had started to cry and when they walked out they saw Mr. Raymond sitting outside. What I think Mr. Raymond was trying to say was that Scout was still too young to understand a lot of the things that were happening during Tom Robinson's trial. Also that Scout had a lot of things to learn because what she thought of the town or thy people around her, would soon change due to what they said about Tom Robinson's trial and what the end result would be. This connects to the theme of growing up and Scout is in the process of seeing many thing she hadn't realized.
Chapter 21 page 282, Scout shut her eyes. Judge Taylor was polling the Jury: "Guilty...guilty...guilty...guilty.." This quote illustrates that although Atticus had good reasons that Tom Robinson was not guilty and the evidence clearly showed that Mayella was lying, people still favored her as a victim of a rape caused by a colored man. This is clearly discrimination because people knew that there was no clear evidence that Tom Robinson committed the crime, yet they still accused him because of his color and his race. This was an unfair trial, but because colored people have no voice in anything, whites have won again, unfairly.
Chapter 19. “Mr. Finch, if you was a nigger like me, you’d be scared, too.” page 261. This is a statement by Tom Robinson to Atticus. I was surprised when I read this quote for a few reasons. One, it shows how severe the racism was in this time period. The fact that Tom was only scared because he knew what would happen to a man like him shows one of the many negative effects of racism on an individual. Two, it shows how corrupt the legal system at this time was. Tom knew he was innoscent, but he ran anyway because he knew he would be found guilty.
Scott, I used this exact quote also! I feel that it sent a very strong message to not only myself but to Atticus. This statement probaly got Atticus to think for a minute and put himself into Toms shoes. It also shows how bad racism was back then being that Tom says this.
Chapter 20 page 203 "'The state has not produced one iota of medical evidence that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place. It has relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant. The defendant is not guilty, but somebody in this courtroom is." In this quote it shows Atticus's closing agrument to the jury. Basically what Atticus is trying to portray is that a man should not be judged on his skin color whether it be white, black, blue, or brown everyone is equal and putting an innocent man away for the rest of his life for a crime he never committed is wrong and extremely unfair. Atticus knowns deep down that Tom didn't commit the crime and someone in the court is guilty and is using someones skin color to cover for their poor decision which is messed up in my opinion. Also the so called "eye witnesses" information is skeptical and I'm pretty sure it is not a coinsdence that the information is coming from people that know each other in town. All these cross examining of the eye witnesses and the long hours Atticus put in this case i believe will pay off and prove Tom's innocence. I wish Atticus could come to real life and see how the world has changed and our nation has come so far against racism and how equality and freedom is something is known for, and everyone is united and we com e together as one. Let me just say I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!
Chapter 20, Pg. 274 "But there is one way in this country in which all men are created equal-there is one human institution that makes a pauper the equal of a Rockefeller, the stupid man the equal of an Einstein, and the ignorant man the equal of any college president. That institution, gentlemen, is a court." Atticus' speech is a classic. He makes a compelling argument that all men are created equal and that place is in especially in a court room. For example, if equal means "same," a quick look around will tell you that all men (humans) are not equal. By this I mean that even though we may look different and might be different, like different religions and different ethnicity, etc., we have the right to be treated the same. I think Atticus is pointing this out to everyone in the court room to emphasize that race does not matter, in which you have to blame someone that is different, in this case being black or white. But I also think that Atticus thinks that this concept hurts people with less opportunity. In connection with this, I can relate to this of how my uncle would apply for jobs, but then get rejected because of stereotypes. It is here, where I wished that everyone would stand by the saying of everyone is created equal. I find with what Atticus said, that it connects to the theme of "Letter of the law". It is not always morally correct or appropriate to individual situations.
Chapter 21 Pg. 283. “… The Negroes were getting to their feet. Reverend Sykes’s voice was as distant as Judge Taylor’s: ‘Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’.” Atticus had left courtroom quite fast and out through another exit. I could feel his frustration. Although, the Negroes had great respect for Atticus due how affectionate he was, when defending Tom. Scout knows how much her father’s work means to him and to her family. He tried his best. I ABSOLUTLY love the way Atticus was is always strong-minded to prove that Tom Robinson was innocent. To me, he’s such an amazing role model and is a great example of always never giving up.
Ch. 19 p. 218 'It came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radley.' While Tom is giving his testimony about what really happened, Scout begins to see how lonely and friendless Mayelle Ewell was. She couldn't have black friends because her dad was racist and she was to poor for any white ones. I understand why Mayella Ewell lied. She has almost nothing and if she went against her fathers and said she wasn't raped; she would be beaten more and probably kicked out of her home. Through Mayella's eyes, it is understandable to have lied because of what would have happened if she told the truth. This connects to when I lied to my parents about a test grade to avoid the consequences. It worked for about a week until I told them because I felt guilty. I wander how Mayella feels lying in court after taking an oath that she’s telling the truth.
Chapter 18 Page 249 "He got it caught in a coton gin...tore all the muscles loose from his bones." This is when Reverend Sykes was telling Jem, Scout and Dill how Tom got crippled in his LEFT arm , after Jem said " Scout, look! Reverend, he's crippled." First just so every one is clear what a cotton gin is i looked it up because i didn't fully know myself. It is a machine that separates the cotton we use from the seeds in it. This quote is when I think readers who may have been reading this by themselves realized that this trial never should've have been brought to court. How could Tom choke Mayella with one hand it would be near impossible to do. This reminds me of the Scottsboro Boys all they did was defend themselve but because they hit white men many of the boys were killed and on top of the assault charges 2 woman said they raped them. The youngest being around 13, such ludicrous should have never been belived. Even after one woman reclaimed her statement the courts still did nothing to bring justice to those wrongly accused. This was a dark time for our court system and we shouldn't hide it instead we should learn from it.
Chapter 20. "Cry about what, Mr. Raymond?...Cry about the hell people give other people - without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people give colored folks, without even stopping to think that they're people too." When Mr. Robinson says this to Scout and Dill, i believe this is the perfect example of the influence of an adult on a child. While the problem of mistreating a colored person is not what Mr. Robinson is addressing, he still manages to teach the children something.
That is a very good quote Scott, I completely forgot about that. It is a very good example of the influence that Mr. Raymond and adults on children. I think the kids really like Mr. Raymond, and they trust him too, that's why Dill took a sip out of his bag without questioning Mr. Raymond.
Chapter 18, Page 242: "Mayella's face contorted, and I was afraid that she would cry again. Instead, she said, 'He done what he was after.'" This was said by Scout after Mr. Gilmer asks her if she's positive that Tom Robinson took full advantage of her. Personally, I don't believe a word she's saying. The fact that her face contorted after she was asked this question causes me to be shocked that no one called her out on it. While Scout says that she was afraid that Mayella was going to cry, I think she was fighting against her instinct to tell the truth in COURT. Last time I checked, that was a federal offense to lie in court. I'm sure they're more lenient because of the case itself and the people involved, but I still think it's just really, really wrong that people didn't find it unfair that blacks and whites weren't getting the same treatment in court, where everything's supposed to be fair and equal.
Ch 18, Pg. 206 "Apparently Mayella's recital had given her confidence, but it was not her father's brash kind: there was something stealthy about hers, like a steady eyed cat with a twitchy tail." this statement by scout shows that Mayella seems stealthy and i have a habit of distrusting people who have to be stealthy and guarded in a court.
Chapter 21 "I shut my eyes. Judge Taylor was polling the jury: 'Guilty… guilty… guilty…guilty…' I peeked at Jem: his hands were white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each 'guilty' was a separate stab between them." This was thought by Scout right as the much awaited verdict came from the judge. Up to this point Atticus had made a very good prescence proving Tom's innocnce but you just don't know, especially during a time like this were racism was a very negeative part of life and nearly affected everything. Sadly despite the tremendous and courageous efforts by Atticus the cookies didn't crumble his way and the end verdict against the charge of rape to Mr.Robinson was guilty. The crowd had a long silence and as the judge ruled the verdict not only was Atticus and Tom emotionally and physically devastated, but also Atticus's children who had watch this trial from start to finish and stood behind everything of what their dad said the whole way through. The children ended up feeling just as bad as both Tom and Atticus. You could just imagine how heartbreaking it was for the Finch family and Tom after such a long struggle it didn't end up in their favor when in my opinion it definitally should have and today with all the different laws and no racism it would have ended up in Atticus's favor as well. The part where i felt extremely bad for Jem was when Scout said every time the judge said guilty it was like Jem was getting stabbed in the heart and I'm sure they weren't the only ones feeling that pain in a melencholy court room for the defense team.
This scene was a really sad one, the hard work that Atticus did to try to defend Mr. Robinson, even when they all know that he did nothing. Worst of all the kids got to experience unfairness and cruelty in the worl. Good quote Mike.
Chapter 20 page 268 "why do you do what you do?....you mean why do I pretend?" Mr. Raymond saw Dill crying and told him to take a sip out of his bag which Scout thought was alcohol but was actually coca cola. This surprised Scout because she always thought Mr. Raymond was a drunk. Mr. Raymond says he only pretends to be drunk because it makes it easier for other folk in maycomb to believe that he lives the way he does because he is a drunk. He also says people in Maycomb wouldn't be able to understand that he lives the way he does because he wants to. I think that is really upsetting because Mr. Raymond has to lie to everyone in town because the people of Maycomb don't understand that he could like black people and have mix children because he simply wants to. This reminds me of the poem "we wear the mask" because Mr. Raymond is wearing a mask and hiding from the entire town of Maycomb.
Chapter 19 Page 256 “…it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world…” To me it is interesting that Scout thinks this because even at a young age she knows Mayella is lying about what happens, and as my classmate probably are enraged that she would lie about what happened but she isn’t. It is amazing to see that Scout went from not being able to see anyone’s point of view for example the accident with her teacher to being able to put herself in Mayellas shoes and see what a hard life she has. While I don’t like what Mayella is doing I think it is important to look at the fact that she is lonely and evidence suggest that she is abused by her father and to anybody reading if you can tell me with certainty that you would be able to be abused get caught with a black man or woman in the 1930’s and tell the truth about it and possibly be killed because your parent would beat you so badly I am not sure I would believe you. This reminds me of how when I was reading Catcher in the Rye I found it hard to put myself in Holden’s shoes because I thought he was ridiculous and didn’t like him as a character unlike Scout I couldn’t put myself in his shoes. Maybe the story would have been different to me if I were able to.
Chapter 21 page "his shoulders jerked as if each "guilty" was a separate stab between them.” To me this was a powerful quote from Scout concerning Jem. At this point I think Jem is old enough to know what’s going on. He realizes this trial is about race more then rape. Not only at this point his father had just lost the trial, but so has the fight of defeating racism. Also the anticipation of the verdict coming out. This was certainly my favorite quote of this chapter.
While this shows Jem understanding more than he did before I am not sure if he has looked at it as a full picture. He definitely knows that Tom shouldn't be guilty based on the evidence and I think this is when he realizes that the Justice System doesn't always work the way it should.
Chapter 19, Page 256 "As Tom Robinson gave his testimony, it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radley." Scout is saying this while she is listening to her father interrogate Tom Robinson. This part of the chapter really stuck out while I was reading because it made me think about how in the book many of the characters almost seem lonely. Like the comparison to Boo Radley, and how he is always stuck in his house. Also Ms. Dubose and and how she seemed to be very lonely. Although she was stubborn about it Jem started to read to her and she started to quit her drug addiction. I think Scout is trying to say that from Tom's side of the story Mayella must have been asking for Tom's help with things around the house and talked to him because she was lonely. Sometimes when you get lonely, it helps to have other people around.
Chapter 21, Pg. 279 "Now don't you be so confident, Mr. Jem, I ain't ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man..." This quote illustrates racism and also the theme of to keep fighting even though you know you are going to lose. In this section of the book, Jem is for certain that Atticus did a job well done in defending Tom Robinson. He thinks that Atticus and Tom have won the trial, but Reverend Skyes tries to bring up the point of the white Jury. Since this book takes place in the South and racism and prejudice take on a big role in the novel, Reverend Skyes brings up a good point that no African Americans have ever won a trial that included a white jury. I think that even though Atticus' facts and evidence that prove that Mr. Ewell did it, I think that the jury convicted Tom because if they did say the Tom was not guilty, they would've face the town's negativity on them for favoring a black man over a white woman. In this case, this greatly comes to similarity of the case of the Scottsboro Boys. It is the same concept and prejudice depends the boys of either life or death.
While this is all true, keep in mind that this case actually was taken from the Scotrsboro Boys case, Harper Lee had read about that case and I imagine felt so bad she put a very similar case in this book to show how upset and terrible this sort of thing is.
In chapter 18, 19-year-old Mayella Ewell was called to the stand. She explains her father's story about the rape. She said that she'd been on the front porch that evening while her father was gone. She also said that Tom came to her and chocked her and as it was happening, she was hollering for help. The next thing she claimed to remember was her father standing over her. As Atticus questioned her, she felt offended when he called her “Miss” or “Ma’ma.” She began to be stubborn with him even though Atticus kept calm and respectful. Atticus was concerned on how Tom could have held her down and raped her if she'd been fighting as hard as she could. And if she'd been screaming, why didn't anyone come to see what was happening? Atticus then thought the idea that maybe she didn't scream until she saw her father in the window. She denied every question Atticus asked about her father. This makes me think that something else was up. I think that her father had something to do with this whole situation. Tom is an innocent man that did nothing wrong. He shouldn’t get the blame for this. I believe that since Mayellas father was a drunk one, he probably raped her and as she saw Tom, blamed it on him.
Ch. 20 p.223 "Gentlemen, a court is no better than each man of you sitting before me on this jury. A court is only as sound as its jury, and a jury is only as sound as the MEN who make it up." Atticus said this to the jury during his final speech to them. I find this very ironic because he knows they are all white men and will vote against him, but, never the less, Atticus is giving it his best shot to win the case. I strongly disagree with the court system during the 1930's because it was only white men, no women or blacks. In my quote it says, “as the MEN who make it." This shows that not everyone was equal during that time period and men felt they were superior. Harper Lee did a very good job of being historically accurate in her, which makes the story even more lovable. The theme of inequality connects to the real world, because many people still feel that African-Americans are the inferior race and Caucasians are superior. This is obviously a ridiculous assumption to have, but the book teaches us what will happen if we think blacks are unequal.
Chapter 20 Page 267 “Scout, it is nothing but Coca-Cola” Dill says this to Scout after he takes a sip out of Mr. Dolphus Raymond’s bag. Scout assumes because of gossip in town that Mr. Raymond’s bag contains whiskey and that he is addicted to it and that is why he hangs out with blacks. However, she is wrong, which you usually are when you believe gossip, and is then fascinated by him. I think this demonstrates a theme in the book that you shouldn’t judge people on their race and what you here about them because it is most likely true. While so far Mr. Raymond has only appeared once I feel he is a very important character because he explains that theme to Scout but in his own way and more. He says he acts like it for the people of Maycomb because he knows it confuse him if they knew he hung out with blacks on his own accord. So he saves them the trouble. I think this is wise and I can relate to this, I don’t care what other people think about me as long as I am living and happy why should I care what others think. Sadly I don’t think Scout fully understands what he was saying I think it will stay with her.
Chapter 19, Page 256-257: "As Tom Robinson gave his testimony, it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world... But she said he took advantage of her, and when she stood up she looked at him as if he were dirt beneath her feet." I think it's absolutely incredible that Scout picked up on this. In fact, I didn't even pick up on this until Scout herself pointed it out. What Scout says about Mayella not having friends, maybe not even knowing what having a friend is like. I think it's absolutely heartbreaking. I can't imagine what it would be like to be by yourself all the time with no one to talk to. If I was her, I'd definitely be kind of desperate for company too. If I was Mayella and living in this time period, and I was basically shunned from the rest of society because of my family's economic status, I'd take any company I could get.
Chapter 20, page 268 In this part of the chapter Dill and Scout are outside talking to Mr. Raymond when he says: "...I'm not much of a drinker, but you see they could never, never understand that I live like I do because that's the way I want to live."
This stuck out to me because this book and mostly about growing up, and here Mr. Raymond seems to be teaching Dill and Scout a lesson about living life the way they would want to and not how other people would want you to. People think that Mr. Raymond is a drinker but all that is in his paper bag is a soda. He drinks it out of the bag because he wants to. Scout doesn't seem to want to be such a girly girl and maybe thats the way she'll grow up, maybe thats the way she will live her life.
Chapter 21, page 279: “… Reverend, but don’t fret, we’ve won it,” he answered wisely. “ … Now don’t you be so confident, Mr. Jem, I ain’t ever seen a jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man…” When Jem, Scout and Dill had finished eating dinner and returned to the courthouse, Jem was talking to Reverend Sykes about what happened while they were gone. The first quote by Jem shows how he is very confident that they will win the case, and how he thinks that there is no way that they can lose. He is talking almost as if they already won the case. Reverend Sykes is telling him not to be so confident about it. It seems like he already knows that they will lose the case. When the verdict is announced, Reverend Sykes acts as if he knew it was coming, while Jem on the other hand was extremely shocked. It’s really sad how a black man has never won a case over a white man. They are not being judged based on the evidence and testimonies, but by the color of their skin. This is an example of the reoccurring theme of racism and discrimination.
Chapter 20,Page 272,"What was evidence of her offense? Tom Robinson, a human being...Tom Robinson was her daily reminder of what she did. What did she do? She tempted a Negro."As said by Atticus. In this quote Atticus describes the faults of Ms. Mayella is not on her part, but rather a victim of cruel poverty and ignorance. Atticus compares her to every child where she she tried to put the evidence of her offense away from her. Atticus also puts Tom Robinson as Ms. Mayella's reminder of her faults. I can relate this to Holden Caufield and his faults. Holden throughout the book continues to struggle communicating with the people he knows and because of this he runs into immature situations which continue to drive him away from people he loves and his teenage desires and emotions soon take over their actions and again don't benefit him.
Chapter 18 page 242 "Atticus got up grinning but instead of walking to the witness stand... Then he walked slowly across the room to the windows" This quote doesn't show a theme but it shows how descriptive Harper Lee is. I can picture myself sitting where Scout and Jem, watching Atticus ask questions to Mayella. I really liked this chapter in the book because the children get to watch Atticus do his job. I also liked how everyone in town was there to watch the trial
Chapter 19 page 265 "It was just him that I couldn't stand," Dill said... "That old Mr. Glimer doing' him thataway, taking so hateful to him." Dill said this when Scout brought him outside of the courtroom because he started to cry. I thought this scene showed Dill's innocence. He didn't really understand that Mr. Glimer was being mean to Tom due to racism. Dill realizes that it wrong but not that the real problem is racism. He thinks that everyone should be treated equal just like Atticus treats people. This kind of makes me think of little kids, how they don't care if someone is different they still want to be their friend. I guess this shows the theme of innocence and growing up.
It most definitely shows the theme of innocence. Even though Dill acts grown up by sticking with Jem and saying that Scout and him are married, he is still a child that doesn't fully understand the world and just wants everyone to be happy. It reminds me of when he explains why he runs away it was a reason many a child has thought of that their parents would be better off wiht out them when thats not true.
In Chapter 19 on page Atticus called the defendant, Tom Robinson to the stand to testify. Tom explained that he passed Mayella Ewell's home every day on his way to work for Mr. Link Deas. Tom said that he would always tip his hat to Mayella, and one day she asked him to come inside the fence and chop up a chiffarobe for her. Scout soon said on page 218 “It came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radley.” Scout also claimed she had no friends what so ever. She couldn't have black friends because her dad was racist and she was to pitiable for any white ones. In my opinion I believe Mayellas father has to something to do with this. I’m pretty sure that if she didn’t, her father would have done something bad to her.
I agree with your last statement and while most of us don't like Mayella I think we should take into account her father and the life she has. What she did wasn't right but there is a reason for it. Abuse is a hard thing to deal with and if she had gone to someone I don't they would have helped her
Chapter 21. "Guilty...guilty...guilty...guilty..." This phrase on page 282 is the responses to the judge polling the jury. I feel like this one sentence alone could be considered the climax of this book. When i read this, I remembered all of the talk of this case from everyone in town. I remembered Scout punching Walter Cunningham and her cousin Francis, for the comments they made about Atticus concerning this case. I couldn't imagine what must have been going through Atticus' head right before this was said. In chapter 11, where Jem is forced to read to Miss Dubose, Jem was tought about courage. Atticus justified Jem's requirement to read beacuse he wanted Jem to see waht real courage was. In this chapter, Atticus shows the same courage that Miss Dubose did. Atticus knew that he most likely wouldn't win the case, but he said he wouldn't be a man if he didnt try. Although at the end of the chapter Atticus walks out of the courtroom alone and quickly, I'm sure he isn't at all ashamed of himself for trying to defend Tom.
I couldn't agree more. You knew this was probably going to happen, but you wished it didn't. I felt hatred towards everyone in the jury after seeing this because I just imagine their lifeless expressions on their faces, and the stupid disgusted look when ever they look at poor Tom Robinson.
Chapter 18 page 251,"When Atticus turned away from Mayella he looked like his stomach hurt, but Mayella's face was a mixture of terror and fury." This was written after Atticus had been questioning Mayella Ewell for a while. Mayella didn't answer many of the questions before this either. This shows that Atticus is finally getting to Mayella and if was smart then they would see what Atticus was doing and that the evidence was already showing that Tom may win. However, I don't think Tom will win just because the jury is all white. This also brings up the theme of racism again because the jury will say that Tom is guilty just because he is black.
That is something that has been on my mind even though the evidence clearly states that Tom is innocent it wont matter because the jury is all white. Atticus knew that from the beginning but he still was a stunning lawyer and tried to make a difference.
Brendan I agree with what you are saying. Throughout the whole trial I couldn't help but feel that no what the evidence, the jury what still rule Tom Robinson guilty because they are racist. i am trying to keep a bit of hope for Tom but his chances are not looking to good with an all white jury. This trial reminds me of the trial of the Scottsboro Boys who were unfairly convited of rape with no evidence, just the word of a white person.
Chapter 20, Pg. 267: “Mr. Raymond sat up against the tree trunk…Just plain Coca-cola?” This quote is from when Mr. Raymond asked Scout and Dill not to tell anyone that he doesn’t actually drink whiskey because it would ruin his reputation. I get where Mr. Raymond is coming from but I don’t think he should be ashamed of who he is. If people know about the Coke maybe they will have mixed feelings about it but it isn’t any of their business anyways. Mr. Raymond hangs out with black people because they are more relatable to him and just because he does this, he shouldn’t be looked down upon. This is a perfect example of the negative effects of racism on an individual because the people of Maycomb make many judgments based on race. In our school today many people make judgments by who you hang out with and this isn’t fair because everyone is equal and should be thought of equally. Would you like it f somebody was judging you negatively by who you were friends with? One, that wouldn’t be fair to the person you are hanging out with just the colored people in Mr. Raymond’s situation and two, you are allowed to be friends with whoever you want.
Jonah, I agree with you completely. I like how you made the connection to our school because I know that most of us have been through this at some point in our lives.
Chapter 21 Page 278 “ If Mr. Finch don’t wear you out, I will- get in that house, sir!” This is when Cal is bringing the children home from the court. As you can tell she is furious, this backs up Atticus’s statement that she is harder on them then a mother and it backs up my idea that Aunt Alexandra is not needed because Cal takes care of everything. Also if Aunt Alexandra really wanted too do all the work Cal does she would and wouldn’t just say she could. Cal amazes me in how much she cares about the children, they aren’t her children and they are white. It is one thing I will never understand is that black nannies took such good care of white children only to have them grow up racist and hate the people who raised them (now I’m not saying this happened to every child but a majority did.) I can relate to worrying about other peoples safety, while I don’t have any younger sibling when I am with family friends and they have younger siblings I feel responsible to look after them when there parents aren’t around. For example my friend, his brother (also my friend) and I were home alone and his brother got really angry and decided to hide from us. My friends brother then decided to play a trick on us and open and close the front door when we were upstairs so we thought he left, we searched the house couldn’t find him (it was nighttime by the way.) Even though he wasn’t my brother we were so close that I felt obligated if he went missing it was one of the scariest moments of my life. Because of that experience I can understand why Cal is so worked up about the kids being missing.
Chapter 21 page 282 " guilty...guilty...guilty....Jem: his hands were white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each "guilty" was a separate stab between them." I think that we all knew that Jury's verdict would be guilty, but Jem was so confident that Atticus would win the case so he was so crushed when the Jury said guilty. I think this was most upsetting to Jem then anyone else because he was so sure and confident about his father and the juries decision. I feel that after this Jem will understand that this case wasn't about evidence but race and how the people of Maycomb discriminate others and would put someone that is obviously innocent in jail because of he is colored. If it was a white man things would probably be different. I'm glad that our world today isn't as racist as before and that things like verdicts aren't based on a persons race but actual evidence.
Ch. 21 p. 236 "It aint fittin for children to hear..." yelled Calpurnia at Jem and Scout as their walking home for supper. Calpurnia yelling at Scout displays the theme of growing up. Calpurnia is about to yell at Jem and Scout, but she trials off. I think she realized that eventually they would have learned about the trial and a black man being accused of raping a woman and their father was even the defense attorney. I respect Calpurnia because she is a great teacher to Jem and Scout, and that is why Atticus has keeps her around. If she felt that Jem and Scout going to the court was a terrible sin, she may have used corporal punishment. But she just yelled at them, because she couldn't let Jem and Scout think they could get away with whatever they wanted. Deep down inside I think Calpurnia was proud they loved their father so much and would risk getting in trouble to see what his job was like. This shows the importance of family and growing up. Having a family and people to talk to is important. In the ‘Catcher in the Rye’ by J.D. Salinger, Holden doesn’t talk to his family or any close friends. This causes him to become mentally and physically sick, or a psychosomatic illness. Without a family, we do not feel loved and there is not many important people in our lives. Your family is your first teaches and, like in the novel, Jem and Scout learn everything from Atticus even things that people may say are to inappropriate for their age.
Chapter 21,Page 226,"Judge, I-this note is from my sister. She says my children are missing, haven't turned up since...I...could you-" As said by Atticus. In this quote we begin to see Scout and Jems sly and sneakiness which allow them to sneak out and escape trouble. We also begin to see these qualities early in the chapter when they sneak over to the Radley's home and see through the window in the midst of the night. I can relate this to Odysseus when he escapes from many of his tricky situations. For example, when Odysseus go to the Cyclops and accidentally get trapped, he finds ways to escape and soon trick the Cyclops into opening the door stone. Furthermore, in comparison to Jem and Scout, they both are back fired later on by these actions and accept the punishments, but still do not learn from their mistakes.
Chapter 18 page 247 "'It's an easy question Miss Mayella, so I'll try again. Do you remember him beating you about the face?' Atticus's voice had lost it's comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. 'Do you remember him beating you about the face?' 'I don't recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.'" This testimony really made me wonder if Mayella was telling the truth or not. If her testimony, what she told Mr. Tate and Mr. Ewell, was true, I don't think this would have been a very difficult question. She makes it sound very annoying and strenuous question to answer, to the court. However, it could be argued that she was just nervous to be on the stand. It can fraught to sit there and be grilled with questions. Also, I found a picture of Mayella when i was looking online at different To Kill A Mockingbird site. It is cool that she looks exactly as I imagined her! http://images.wikia.com/tkam/images/7/75/Mayella_Ewell.jpg
Lauryn, when I was reading I was thinking the same thing. I think if something like that happened to her she would remember since it’s not something easy to forgot. I understand she might have been nervous but I still think if that happened to someone they would want to see the person that did it convicted guilty and wouldn't stop at anything until they were.
Chapter 20 page 271 "This case is as simple as black and white." I chose this quote because, even though we already knew that the trial was based on race, Atticus was the only one who was brave enough to say this to the court. He believes that everyone should be treated equal and even asked the jury to do the right thing. While I was reading Atticus' speech it makes me think of how we were always told to do the right thing, and that some people don't always agree with others idea of appropriate. This also reminds me of a quote that my 6th grade English teacher would say: "Be the change you wish to see". I think Atticus is trying to do this in the courtroom when he is defending Tom.
I noticed the significance in this quote also, Melissa. I think that Atticus is brave for many reasons, and by him saying this, it just further justifies that he actually is brave. It takes a very strong and brave person to say what he said, and I think that he did the right thing by saying it.
Melissa I totally agree with you and I really like your connection to your english teacher. When I found out the verdict of the case it was baffling to me. Even a 7 year old like Scout could see how innocent Tom was but a bunch of whites with tunnel vision couldn't. I wonder how Atticus feels after working so hard and showing all of that evidence. He must feel that the jurors are malevolent, and racist.
Chapter 21 summary. We are revealed in this chapter that Tom Robinson is found guilty. Tom Robinson's fate was sealed right when the case started. The people in the courtroom had been brainwashed by racism. He could never be proved innocent due to this. These people also only heard what they wanted to hear. Their mind was not open and they had only one thought one their mind: Tom Robinson is guilty.
I strongly agree with Tim and I would just like to add one more thing. I agree with what you said about people being brainwashed by racism and because of this i believe that Tom Robinson's fate was sealed even before the case started.
Brendan, I agree with you 100% I don't think Tom Robinson had a chance because of the racism going on. I think everyone knew he wasn't guilty but it was white woman word against a black mans. And at the time what Tom Robinson was saying seemed to not matter to some in the end because of the color of his skin.
Chapter 20, Page 260-261: "It occured to me that in their own way, Tom Robinson's manners were as good as my Atticus's. Until my father explained it to me later, I did not understand the subtlety of Tom's predicament; he would not have dared strike a white woman under any circumstances and expect to live long, so he took the first opportunity to run-a sure sign of guilt." Scout says this after Tom says what happens with Mr. Ewell. I think it's nice that Atticus explains things to his children in a way that he knows they'll understand. I also think, as it's been stated before, that Scout is very educated and smart. She's also an insightful child who notices things that most people wouldn't. This makes me wonder whether or not Atticus asks Scout's opinion on things or not, because I'm sure she has answers for him.
Kathryn, I strongly agree with you I think its great that Atticus shares things with his children that not many parents do. I think when he tells them things like this it helps them for the future and makes them more aware of people and what goes on in the world. Also I think Scout is the type of kid that can handle hearing about this stuff since she always has an opinion on things. Scout defiantly has an opinions not most kids her age have nor would understand.
Chapter 19, This whole chapter was about Tom being in the witness chair. He tells his whole account of what happened. What he says totally contradicts what Mayella says. But of course, even with the evidence who do you think the jury will believe? Mayella. Even with all of the evidence so far pointing that Tom is not guilty, I definately think that Tom will be pronounced guilty. Once again, the theme of racism appears. Also i found this article on the Scottsboro Boys that explains the trial really well. racism.http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/FTrials/scottsboro/SB_acct.html
Ch 19 pg. 222 "She reached up an' kissed me 'side of th' face... Mr. Finch, an' I say lemme pass, but just when I say it Mr. Ewell yonder Hollered through th' window." this testimony from Tom Robinson directly contradicts testimony by Mayella Ewell and shows that at least one of them is lying under oath and that is a serius offense along with the fact that it states a feasible alternate set of events
Chapter 19 page 263-264 "Mr. Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. 'You're a mighty good fellow, it seems- did all this for not one penny?' 'Yes suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more'n the rest of 'em-' 'You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her?' Mr. Gilmer seemed ready to rise to the ceiling." I think that this shows that Mr. Gilmer feels bad for Tom Robinson. Tom is just trying his best to stay out of jail, but he still feels bad for Mayella, who might just put him in jail. Mr. Gilmer obviously doesn't think that Tom show feel bad. Nevertheless, Mr. Gilmer should consider Mayella's family situations and her whole life. She doesn't have an easy life and I can understand how anyone might feel bad for someone like that.
Chapter 18 page 252 "Somehow, Atticus had hit her hard in a way that was not clear to me, but it gave him no pleasure to do so." Atticus had just finished questioning Mayella and he had questioned her real good. So good, that it angered Mayella and half the tim she couldn't even answer. This shows that Atticus did his job perfectly but he didn't feel good about it. He didn't like having to make Mayella so angry, and this shows some of his great compassion. Now, real lawyers today have this stereotypical look as a very boring guy with no emotions or expressions. So to see Atticus showing these kind of emotions to the OTHER side of the case, it really makes you respect him.
Chapter 21, Pg. 282: “I shut my eyes… and his shoulders jerked as if each “guilty” was a separate tab between them. This is what Scout is thinking when the judge is reading off the jury’s decisions. When I read this I couldn’t even believe how stupid all of the jurors are. Deep down I knew that they would most likely rule Tom guilty but with all of the evidence that proved his innocence I had a sliver of hope. This is a great example how racist people can be, that even when they knew the black man was innocent, they still ruled him guilty because of his skin color. I can only imagine how terrible Tom Robinson must feel, an innocent hard working man, ruined by a selfish person. It is almost too much to bear. Thankfully today most trials are not decided by race but there are still some that are. Those people that say “guilty” just because of skin color, should think how they would feel if the same thing was done to themselves. The families of the people unfairly convicted must be devastated knowing that their loved ones are innocent. It is a good thing that Helen Robinson has a loving community because if she didn’t, she wouldn’t be able to survive.
Chapter 20 page 268, "Why do you do like you do?" This was said by Scout to Mr. Raymond after they discovered that he drinks Coke, not whiskey. I think this has to do more with growing up than anything. We all deal with this sometime in our lives. It is just about understanding or misunderstanding. At some point in our lives, we go through a phase where we make immediate judgments about people and don't always think it through. Everyone thought Mr. Raymond was a bad guy but as soon as Scout and Dill got to know him we realized that he wasn't so bad. Sometimes we all need to take the time to get to know someone a little better.
Chapter 20 page 271 "'The state has not produced one iota of medical evidence that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place. It has relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant. The defendant is not guilty, but somebody in this courtroom is.'" This closing argument shows how tenacious of a lawyer Atticus is. He always stands his ground and is always confident. Atticus wouldn't lie. He speaks the truth. This way, the entire courtroom will consider the proven information, instead of the assumptions.
I agree and this also brings up the topic of Atticus's courage again. courage is a big theme in this book and Atticus is a great example of it. He does stand his ground, as you said Lauryn. This is definitely true and shows just how brave and courageous he is. It also shows how much he is willing to do to win this case.
Chapter 21 page 277, "Well, you've heard it all, so you might as well hear the rest." This was said by Atticus to the kids right as the jury left. In the most basic sense, this brings up the theme of growing up again. Atticus understands that all of the kids were old enough and mature enough to hear the main part of the trial so he allows them to come back and hear the end.
Yes, Atticus allowes his children to hear the trial. Do you believe that this can relate to him being a great father, that he knows his children are being raised well enough to understand these kinds of situations?
Yes I guess it does in a way because he is understanding and patient enough to think about the situation. In other cases, some parents may not even look at the situation and just send their kids straight home. So yes, Atticus is a great father through his understanding especially.
Chapter 20 page 268 "It ain't honest...but you see they could never, never understand that i live like i do because that's the way i want to live." Mr.Dolphus Raymond explains to Dill and Scout that he does not hide his drink in a sack because he is drinking liquor but because he is using it as a mask. Like the colored people of the poem "We Wear The Mask", Mr.Raymond does too. He is simply a man that has a different lifestyle then the "regular" whites of Maycomb. People view him as different, in a bad way. He simply just lives the way he wants to live. He doesn't care what others think of him. It is wrong that he wears a mask to keep allowing people to believe he is doing something wrong.
Chapter 21 page 279 "Now don't you be so confident, Mr. Jem, I ain't ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man." In this part of the chapter Reverend Sykes is clarifying to Jem that no colored man has ever won a trial. There is nothing to it, but the fact that the man is colored. Don't we all have equal rights? Does it really matter who's white or not? It is sad to know that during the time of the Great Depression, people still treated each other in a horrifying way.
Ch 18 Pg 251 Mayella Says "That nigger yonder took advantage me'an if you fine fancy gentlemen don't wanna do nothin about it then you're all stnkin cowards..." After her speech she starts to cry. I get her reason to cry because of the really bad spot she is in at the moment. At the time she was also refusing to answer questions. It seems that she is just giving up on the case, and she won't win the case. It's hard being in the spot she is in, another example of putting yourself in someone else's shoes. People may criticize her for giving up but putting yourself in her shoes, you may want to do something similar.
Ch 19 Pg 265 Tom Robinson speaking "No suh,I's scared I'd be in court, just like I am now. Scared of arrest,scared you'd have to face up to what you'd did? No suh, scared I'd hafta face up to what I didn't do." This is a moment where I feel really bad for Tom because he is being pressured to answer questions to a crime that he didn't commit. Another moment where it is tough to be in the shoes of someone, this time it's Tom. Even though the tension is always high in and near the court room, while I was reading this qoute in the book for the first time, it seemed like Tom was pretty calm when he was saying this, because he knows that he didn't do the crime he was being accused of doing.
Ch 20 Pg 269 "Atticus says cheatin’ a colored man is ten times worse than cheatin’ a white man.” This statement is totally true because colored people have to deal with a lot of pain in their lives already. White people are more powerful than black people at the time. White people don't take it as personal as black people and it would hurt black people more. Black people had to deal with racism and hate every day of their lives and cheating won't help make it better. Black people are defenseless and white people have all the back-up in the world. (A.K.A. courts and judges)
Ch 21 Pg 277 “Mister Jem, don’t you know better’n to take your little sister to that trial?” Calpurnia Said. I really,really liked this quote because this shows how much of a mom Calpurnia is to jem and Scout. Calpurnia is known as a nanny to Jem and Scout, but jem and Scout probably think of her as more of a mother that they really never had. She has become part of their family and their lives. I think after Atticus, Calpurnia is the most influential person in the book.
Also, a connection in Ch 21 is that people grow up with a nanny in their homes, and they become a part of their families. I know many people who have someone like Calpurnia in their homes.
Chapter 21 Page "You think they'll acquit him that fast?"... Atticus opened him mouth to answer, but shut it and left us. When I was reading this I was surprised how interested the children were in the trial. Atticus seem to be surprised that Jem had asked a question like that. I really enjoyed this and the past couple of chapters. I like how everyone was just silently waiting. I feel like this is the only part in the book where not much is going on but yet so much is happening.
Chapter 19 page 263/264 "You're a mighty good fellow, it seems-did all this for not one penny?" "Yes, sug. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more'n the rest of 'em-"...Here you can't help but love what Tom Robinson says. He is a black man that almost no one cares about, and is used to do hard work for no money, and he says he felt sorry for the white girl. He did a very kind thing, that most people would not even think about doing. There was no incentive too and he probably could have done other things, but he decides to help someone who clearly has it better then him and he still felt bad for her.
Chapter 21 page 283 "'Miss Jean Louise?' I looked around. They were all standing. All around us, and in the balcony on the opposite wall, the Negroes were getting to their feet. Reverend Sykes's voice was as distant as Judge Taylor's: 'Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father's passin'.'" The people in the courtroom have a lot of respect for Atticus because he defended his client well and he spoke nothing but the truth. He worked very hard to make sure that people had their facts straight. So, when Reverend asks Scout to stand, she finally understands how much her father's work means to many of the people in Maycomb.
Chapter 18 "In Maycomb county, it was easy to tell when someone bathed regularly, as opposed to yearly lavations..." This was said about Mayella during the trial. I found this quote so surprising. I knew that some of the people weren't the cleanest, like the Ewells, but this was even more surprising. Today, I know most people feel strange if they don't take a shower for a days, I can't even imagine only taking a real shower only a few times a year. I know they would wash themselves down, but still. I guess I would have been used to it if that was how I lived all my life.
I thought the same thing when i read this Charlotte. I guess that Mayella never knew the feeling of being clean and that is why she might not bathe as often. Nowaday if someone bathed yearly it would be made fun of that person would be an outcast. Im surprised that the Ewell's are not very sick from being so dirty. Today they would probably have many infections and diseases.
Chapter 20 page 274 "But there is one way this country in which all men are created equal...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." This quote is great because it's so true that you just can't dissagree. If America was born on freedom and equal rights and especially our justice system, then how can courts not be equal for all. This case would be nothing if Tom Robinson was white but because he looks different people start pointing fingers, and in a place where people all should get the same treatment, then that just isn't right. It's like today when people choose the black guy over the white guy in basketball just because of how he looks rather then how he plays. It is a problem that still is around, although not as bad, but one that hopefully one day people can overcome.
Chapter 20, page 270: “he’s just gone over the evidence,” Jem whispered “and we’re gonna win, Scout. I don’t see how we can’t. He’s been at it ’bout five minutes. He made it as plain and easy as-well, as plain and easy as- well, as I’da explained it to you. You could’ve understood it, even.” I thought when Jem and Scout were talking about this I thought Jem was starting to show how grown up and mature he has become. Throughout the story we see Jem growing up and I really I think this quote shows that he did grow up. The trial was on a very mature topic and Jem saying this really showed that he wasn’t a little kid anymore. There are kids today that can talk more mature to people then others. I think Jem is going to be one of those kids since he has been through lots of tough experience that not all kids face.
Chapter 20 page 269, "Cry about the simple hell people give other people -- without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people give colored folks, without even stopping to think that they're people, too." This is said by Mr. Raymond when Scout takes Dill outside after he was crying. Mr. Raymond brings up a very good point when he says this. He really emphasizes on the fact that it is unfair for white people to be treated black people unequally when they are people too. The fact that African Americans "are people too" is brought up many times in this book. For example, later in chapter 20 on page 273 when Atticus is making his speech to the jury, he says, "You know the truth, and the truth is this: some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some Negro men are not to be trusted around women -- black or white. But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men." As you can see in Atticus' speech, he also agrees with Mr. Raymond that African Americans are people too and should be treated just the same.
Chapter 21 page 282, "'Guilty...guilty...guilty...guilty...' I peeked at Jem: his hands were white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each "guilty" was a separate stab between them." When Judge Taylor read out "guilty", I was somewhat shocked but I was also expecting it. I felt really bad for Jem and Scout because they had faith in their father and were sure they were going to win, especially Jem. I felt really bad for Atticus too because he made some great points in his speech and made it clear that Tom Robinson was innocent. Atticus put so much time into winning this trial and like he said earlier in the book, "Courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. It's knowing you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do." Attisuc tried even when he knew he would lose. We all knew Tom Robinson was innocent, even all the characters in the book. This comes to show you just how unfairly blacks were treated and how much they were disliked.
Chapter 19 "Tom was a black-velvet Negro, not shiny, but soft black velvet. The whites of his eyes shone in his face, and when he spoke we saw flashed of his teeth." This is Scout's description of Tom Robinson during the trial. One of the best things Harper Lee does well is her imagery she uses. This is just an example of the way she doesn't say things in the simplest way. The way she writes, I can really picture things perfectly, much better then if she just said what it looked like. It makes the book much more exciting and gives the book more depth. This is just one reason I love "To Kill a Mockingbird" so much.
ch 20 pg 229 "I could say hell with 'em, I don't care if they don't like it. I do say I don't care if they don't like it, right enough- but I don't say the hell with 'em, see?" Mr. Dolphus tells this to Scout and Dill when he tries to explain the difference between completely ignoring someone else's views and completely ignoring someone else's views while appearing not to which can mean the difference between dislike and social exile.
Chapter 21 page 279 "Now don't you be so confident, i ain't ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man..." Now we all probably already knew this and would expect this, but after reading the case and what the jury had heard I get absolutly disgusted by this. As humans were all created equal and people like Atticus know that but the other mindless, senseless, people in the jury know nothing but hate and what they see with there eyes. Tom Robinson couldn't have been more innocent and they all know it but they don't want him to be free because he's not "as good as them" so they dont care about anything they heard. I also love that Jem is like a kid and he even knows that Tom's innocent, just showing you that sometimes grownups are more ignorant then kids.
Chapter 21, page 283: “Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’.” When I read this I thought this is the first time blacks and white were somewhat on the same page in Maycomb. I remember when Cal brought Jem and Scout to church and Lula walked up to Cal asking why they were there and they shouldn’t be here. Now at the trial the group of black people stood up as Atticus walked out as a sign of respect. When I read that it made me really happy to see how much appreciation they were giving Atticus. I think Atticus really deserved it, since he was the only white person that stepped up to help a black man. Also I don’t think Scout relized how much people really appreciate Atticus. In chapters passed Scout said how her dad was embarrassing and think when she sees this she realized that her dad is not embarrassing he is an important man to Maycomb and its people.
Chapter 20 "Because you're children and you can understand it," Mr. Raymond says this to Scout when she asks why he shared his biggest secret with them. I love this quote, because it is totally true. People underestimate what children can do or understand. In earlier parts of the book, it is explained times when Atticus tells the children things most parents wouldn't tell their children. Atticus is a great father, because, like Mr. Reynolds, he understands children. He treats them as more adults then others do. Not only does he give them more trust, he is teaching them a great lesson. Now if Scout and Jem have their own children, they will be great parents, and teachers, just like their fathers.
Chapter 18, Pg. 243: “So you did, so you did ma’am…Long’s you keep makin fun of me.” In this quote Atticus is talking to Mayella Ewell in a respectful manner but Mayella thinks he is making fun of her. This quote me that even when in court, Atticus is still a kind and courteous gentlemen. Unlike many lawyers who may treat witnesses disrespectfully, Atticus makes sure to be respectful while still being stern. Atticus’s conduct reminds me of my 4th grade teacher who was respectful even when he was unhappy with you. I think Atticus’s behavior in court is a big reason why he is so respected. This quote also made me realize just how different life for the Ewell’s is. It shows me this because when Atticus called Mayella “ma’am” or “miss. Mayella” she thought he was mocking her. Most women would be used to being called “ma’am” or “miss” but Mayella has obviously never been treated with respect, or never leaves the house. Do you think in the Ewell home women are treated the way they should be? I personally don’t think so.
ReplyDeleteJonah, I love that you related Atticus to your teacher. I think lawyers and teachers have a lot in common. Both jobs acquire patience. A lawyer needs patience with witnesses, and a teacher needs patience with students. Not everyone wants to answer questions, and not everyone learns at the same pace. I really like your connection. I don't think the Ewell women are treated the way they should be. Mayella should be respected, and honored as the oldest daughter of Mr.Ewell. I also think she should be respected because they don't have a mother, so I assume she carried an important role in the family.
DeleteEileen, I have to disagree with you about your feelings on Mayella although she did was the main caretaker of the Ewell family I really don't think she is worth anyone "honoring" her. She took advantage of a sweet kind man, she ruined his life with her lies, and I don't care what she did for her family. Anyone who did that in my eyes, isn't worth the time of day.
DeleteEileen, I agree with you when you talked about the lawyers and the teachers but, I have have to go with Sam on this one. Although Mayella is the oldest daughter that still don't give her the right to go around making up lies in order to get some money out of it, especially on a poor young black man just because she knows the jury will believe her over him. In my eyes that is extremely selfish and like Sam said it ruined his life. Another thing, what if Tom was found guilty instead of inoccent then she would have sent an innocent man to jail for no reason once so ever and disgraced his name all for nothing. I'm sorry but the way I see it Mayella shouldn't be "honored."
DeleteSpot on Sam.
I have to disagree with you Allison and Sam. While I know that Mayella made a mistake by taking Tom Robinson to court and lying, put yourself in her shoes for a moment. She has seven siblings that she primarily takes care of because he father is pretty much useless, and is still beaten severely by him. She lives outside the dump, has no friends, and lives off the pity of the community. Not even her younger siblings respect all she does for them. Mayella never had a role model like Atticus, and parents are your first teachers. Look at her father, if he was her first teacher I'm surprised she turned out half as well. While she may not deserve the respect of someone with a clean conscience, she should be treated better than the way she is.
DeleteI understand where your coming from and I totally understand that. But now put yourself in my shoes who knows someone who's been in Tom situation and how I saw their life destroyed by a sick lie. Now that is why I believe she needs help, but I can not and absolutely will not feel sorry for her.
DeleteJonah and Eileen, I strongly agree with what you’re saying. Atticus is a very kind and respectful man whether he's in court or not. His actions make him a good person and a great role model for his kids. I also like the comparison you used about your 4th grade teacher, because I can relate to the same thing Jonah. In my opinion I also thought that Mayella hasn’t been treated with respect, due to the way she gets offended rapidly.
DeleteI agree with Leah you have to put yourself in her shoes and Sam I think you should look at it without your outside knowledge and really think about all the hardships Mayella has and while I don't know the situation that you are personally talking about I think it is important to recognize that from evidence presented in court her father probably abuses her. Most people in a situation like that try to please the people that abuse them to avoid the pain, trust me I know who were in similar situations. I'm not saying that what Mayella did but I think she deserves some compassion.
Deletechapter 18 pg 239 "in maycomb it was easy to tell if someone bathed regularly,as opposed to yearly lavation:Mr.Ewell had a scalded look; as if an overnight soaking had edprived him of protective layers of dirt."THis shows that there is a very clean part of maycomb and a very poor side the rich are all having baths every night and the poor are coverd in dirt for weeks on end this shows a great diversity that is normally only know in that time between white and black people so you know this has to be a very strange town. This little section of the begging of chapter 18 is trying to show that mr ewell is a dirty not very clean man compared to others.
ReplyDeleteChapter 18 page 242- “We’ve done business in this court for years and years, and Mr. Finch is always courteous to everybody, He’s not trying to mock you, he’s trying to be polite. That’s just his way.” During the trial, Judge Taylor explains to Mayella that Atticus is a courteous person because she feels she is being mocked when he refers to her and ma’m and miss. Atticus is a role model, to not only his children but to his community. He resembles the characteristics of a hero. Atticus is not a hero with superpowers like Spiderman, but he is a hero because he teaches morality. Atticus is a person who is well educated, accepting of other’s, and caring. He is a hero because he teaches his children how to read and write, instead of spending time playing football, or hunting; he accepts Calpurnia, and Tom Robinson, and all the colored folks; and he cares for everyone no matter who they are, like Mrs.Dubose.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19 page 266-Scout is explaining to Dill that Mr. Gilmer has the right to talk to Tom Robinson how ever he wants to during the trial. Dill does not seem to understand why and Scout says, “Well, Dill, after all he’s just a Negro”. At this point in the novel I don’t think she understands equality among different races so well. Like other protagonists we have read about through out the school year like Holden, Odysseus, Madame Loisel, and many more, Scout is growing and learning more about life. Scout understands that there is tension between the whites and the colored people of Maycomb, but does she understand that everyone is equal? Yes, not everyone may be viewed equal, but as human, they are. With the amazing teachers she has in her life, maybe she will learn to comprehend racism more.
Chapter 19 response. Scout is completely surrounded by racism in her life and I think that is would be hard for her to not pick up on it. Atticus is definetly doing a good job teaching his children about equality but he can't shelter his children from racism because almost the entire town is racist.
DeleteTim, you make a good point that most of the town is racist but, i disagree. Scout is a very different little girl she is not like any other girl in the town and she is very bright so with that being said I feel that Scout is not likely to turn out like everyone else just because everyone is racist around her doesn't mean that she will turn out that way to but, I get what you are trying to say. Everyone is the pilot of their own live.
DeleteEileen when I read this quote it got me thinks about how Scout didn't really understand the tensions between races. Like Tim I think that because she is surrounded by racism it makes her view on the treatment of blacks a little blurry. Even with Atticus teaching her that everyone is equal Scout doesn't grasp it yet. How Mr. Gilmer is treating Tom is not acceptable and I believe he is a bad influence on Scout.
DeleteEileen, in response to chapter 18, I disagree with you that Atticus is similar to Mrs. Dubose in that they are both accepting. Mrs. Dubose was an extremely opinionated woman and wasn't accepting of colored people because she insulted Atticus for representing Tom Robinson. Although, both Mrs. Dubose and Atticus are courageous and will stick to their morals even though they may conflict with others'. Morality is definitely a theme in the novel.
DeleteLeah, I didn't mean to say they were similar, I was trying to explain that he accepted her even though she was not like-able. Sorry if that was not clear.
DeleteEileen, I agree with you and Tim about this. Scout is surrounded by all types of Racism. She is young however, so she might not exactly know what the term means, but she does understand that something is wrong between the two races. And like Tim said, Atticus is doing a good job teaching her that racism .is wrong.
DeleteChapter 18 page 243 " won't answer a word as long as you keep on mocking' me....calling me ma'am an sayin' miss Mayella" I feel like this quote is really sad because Mayella thinks Atticus is making fun of her but he actually is being polite by saying ma'am and miss. This shows how little Mayella is respected by her family members, which she should be because she is the oldest daughter and takes care of the family while the Mr. Ewells goes out hunting.This leads me to believe that because she is poorly respected by her family that her father possibly abused her or will abuse her if she tells what really happened that day she got hurt. I feel really bad for Mayella and how she is forced to live. This makes me think of girls and boys today that have to suffer through this because they have an alcoholic parent(s). Although it isn't clear who hurt Mayella, there are many cases similar to Mayella's that we hear on the news all the time and it's upsetting because sometimes all you can do about it is feel bad for them and wished it hadn't happened.
ReplyDeleteJackie, I like how you brought up all the psychological issues this young girl faces. She obviously does have problems and I think if Mayella was living today it be much diffrent to how shes dealing with all of it now.
DeleteJackie, I agree with you that Mr. Ewell was probably the one who beat Mayella. Also, I like how you connected her condition to teenagers today who have alcoholic parents because children of alcoholics week was only a few weeks ago at fox lane. Mayella is obviously extremely scared of her father to be willing to put Tom Robinson's life in danger to save herself.
DeleteJackie, i agreed with you and Leah. i had the same feeling that Mr.Ewell was the one who hit the Mayella. and i thought she was probably wasnt well respected/treated by the other family members, she has to do everything because she's oldest.im sort of feel bad for her.
DeleteChapter 18 page 245 "Miss Mayella said Atticus.in spite of himself, a nineteen-year-old girl like you must have friends...You Makin' fun o' me agin, Mr.Finch" This is really saddening to hear. This girl has clearly been abused and taken advantage of her whole life, to think that when someones nice to you think it's a joke. That's really sad. But at this point in the story I can't really say I'm sorry for her. I feel bad for someone who is in a situation like this. I admire someone in a situation like this and prevails. I lose all respect for someone when they're in this predicament and bring down innocent people with them. When Mayella does this I do believe she was using Tom to cope with her loneliness but that is no excuse to completely ruin his life just because she can't escape her own. Don't get me wrong I think this girl needs serious help, I just wish she hadn't ruined Tom's life while she was at it.
ReplyDeletesam i completly agree. it is sad to think that she cant step up and tell the truth. she must be in a really bad emotional state to lie like this, even after taking the oath.
DeleteSam I fully agree with you. It is really sad that Mayella is such a lonely and abused person but her untruthfull alligations about Tom are not acceptable. If Mayella hadn't accused Tom of raping her I might have been sorry for her. I think that Mr. Ewell beat Mayella after he saw her with Tom and is now making her testify that he raped her because he doesn't want to get caught. Mayella should have her no good father sent to jail for all that he has done to her or else she will be trapped in her horrible life forever.
DeleteJonah I love that theory you got going on there, and I completely agree.
DeleteSam, i agreed with what you said up there. i remembered how Tom said that she seemed had no one to help her.i felt sorry for her too. it just.. she's already 19 and a half and when Atticus asked her if she had any friends, she hesitated and thought he was making fun of her.
DeleteChapter 18 page 247-248 "'It's not an easy question Miss Mayella, so I'll try again. Do you remember him beating you about the face?' Atticus's voice had lost it's comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. 'Do you remember him beating you about the face?' 'I don't recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.'" During this scene in the court, I started to really understand what was going on in the case. This is just a little part of the scene but even with this, you really understand what Atticus is getting to. Reading this chapter, I started to understand and realize what its really like during a real trial. I was really into this chapter and felt connected and as if I was actually there. One thing that confused me though, is why Mayella won't just admit it was her father, because it really seems like it was him. We don't know for sure if it was Mr. Ewell but judging by the reaction of Mayella after getting drilled with questions from Atticus, it is very convincing it is Mr. Ewell who is guilty. I feel bad for Mayella in this case because she seems very sensitive and is stuck in a position where she as to lie and is very uncomfortable. She is the victim of something that wasn't her fault and is forced to lie.
ReplyDeleteHannah, I think Mayella does it because it is easier to blame someone else then to look into a deeper issue like saying her father abused her. I agree this scene really kept me on my toes, I'm very hooked into the trial now!
DeleteSam, I agree with you that Mayella is trying to ignore the real problem but I also think that she isn't saying that it was her father who beat her because if she does he will most likely go to jail and then who will help her put food on the table? She has so many siblings and can barely support them with her father's help. She seems to be stuck between a rock and a hard place.
DeleteI disagree with her motives for defending her father. Although you bring up a good point I think it's because it's harder to admit what is actually going on also in the South Family structure and reputation is everything and how would she look if she blamed her father? How would she look if he said she's lying? See it's much easier to blame Tom. But I do agree she really is in a difficult situation.
DeleteChapters 19 page 257 “Tom Robinson was probably the only person who was ever decent to her. But she stood up there saying he took advantage of her, and when she stood up and looked at him as if he was dirt between her feet”. This is a truly heartbreaking point in the trial for me. This is the one person who treats her with respect like an actual person. He is the one person who fills the void, this is her one friend. Mayella then just goes and turns on him like he means nothing. In my opinion Mayella isn’t worth the ground between Tom’s feet. She’s going to end up completely alone and it serves her right because she destroyed the life of the one person who even gave her the time of day. We all come to a point when someone does something horrible to us and we try to justify it with stupid excuses, but sometimes we just can’t’. Sometimes they just do it out of the disparity of their own lives. Just like Mayella. I hope later on in the story we get to see Mayella deal with the pain and guilt she’s inflicted on this innocent man.
ReplyDeleteSam, I agree that Mayella made a terrible decision to completely destroy the life of her only real friend. It's completely terrible that she would feel that it's okay to do this to an innocent man, and I agree that she will have to pay large consequences for her actions. But I wonder, why did she actually do this to Tom? was it to save her father?
DeleteI think she did this to Tom because how Tom describes it, she was trying to "seduce" him and her father saw. Rather then saying that 1. She was being beat by him, and 2. She was trying to get with an African American, which I'm sure in Mr.Ewell's eye's is a great dishonor to their family name. So to sum that all up it would be easier to you Tom as the scapegoat rather then Bob Ewells abuisveness and Mayellas "urges".
DeleteWow Sam! I strongly agree with your point of view with this quote. Her actions were awful, especially since they were towards such an innocent man! I do also hope she gets what she deserves, and pays large consequences. But adding to Alyssa’s question, I think she was trying to save her father, since she didn’t want to bring such a dishonor to her family name.
Deletech.18
ReplyDeleteMayella Ewell is called to the stand. She testifies that she asked Tom Robinson to chop up a dresser in return for a quarter, and that when she turned around Tom attacked and raped her. In cross-examination, Atticus shows that Mayella is terribly lonely. When Atticus asks Mayella to identify Tom, and Tom stands up, it becomes clear that Tom’s left arm is useless: it was destroyed in an accident. If Tom can’t use his left arm, then how could he have beaten and raped Mayella? Atticus asks Mayella wasn’t Bob Ewell the person who beat her? Mayella refuses to answer.
atticus was doing a great job in court. the way he was able to piece together all the evidence reminded me of the movie "my cousin vinny". in the movie, a man new to being a lawyer was given his first case. nobody thought he would be able to win the case but in the end he did. i am hoping that atticus will win the case and save tom robinson. because of his hurt arm and all the other evidence, the only logicasl reason why the jury finds him guilty would be because of racial prejudice.
Meredith I loved that point in the trial, it really made me want to see if it impacts the verdict of the trial. But it also made my heart break but now its obvious that he didn't do it and he's still be tried.
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DeleteMeredith, I love how you thought of and connected to "My Cousin Vinny." I actually just watched that movie for the first time in what feels like years over the weekend. I also find it interesting that the movie also took place in Alabama, just like the story does in "To Kill a Mockingbird."
DeleteChapter 20 page 268 "Some folks don't- like the way I live ... It helps folks if they can latch onto a reason" I really like this quote because I think it really relates to everyone. Also it's a trait humans still cary on today. People didn't like Mr.Raymond for no reason at first,but then Mr.Raymond gave them a reason. Humans always want an explantaion for things and he proves this to the children here. Although, it wasn't a good lesson to teach Dill and Scout, it did help them learn to not judge before they know someone. I think Mr.Raymond taught a good lesson just not encouraging them to go out and give people to assume their assumations are true.
ReplyDeleteit is so saddening that just because he is caring for the african americans he is being this judged and hated. mr. raymonds teachings really did teach them a great lesson, like you said.
DeleteSam and Meredith I strongly agree. When i hear about Atticus being judged just because he's trying to help out Tom my heart breaks. Sam, I liked how you talked about the lesson Mr. Raymond taught Dill and Scout wasn't a good one although it helped teach them not to judge others.
Deletech. 19 p.266
ReplyDelete"i know all that scout. it was just the way he said it made me sick. just plain sick."
in this chapter, dill, scout and jem are watching the trial when dill starts to cry. at first it was silently but then he started to get louder. jem told scout to take dill out side. Dill says he can’t stand the way Gilmer was talking to Tom. dill was clearly upset about this. this shows a reoccuring theme of growing up. dill is definatly growing up and maturing if he notices this form of racism and it truly upsets him. As a child, Dill can’t accept and condemns the way adults treat each other without dignity.
Meredith, I completely agree with you in the fact that Dill is growing up. I believe that him being so affected by people being racist, shows that he is developing the ability to care for others. He has a very mature outlook on the situation, and this showed me a different side of Dill.
Deletech.20 p.269
ReplyDelete"cry about the simple hell people give other people-without even thinking. cry about the hell white people give colored folks, without even stopping to think that the're people,too"
Raymond is an eccentric rich white man. He gets little respect from the white people in the town because he’s always drunk and lives with a black woman and has fathered interracial children. But Dill and Scout learn that Raymond isn’t actually a drunk: he only drinks Coca-cola. Mr. Raymond explains that he fakes being a drunk so people won’t bother him for living the way he wants. raymond reminds me of the charachter Skeeter from "The Help". Skeeter was very caring and simpathetic to the african american maids. she just wants to help them get more respect and she doesn't like the way that they were treated. raymond is very similar to this and Mr. Raymond is another man who sees the evil of racism.
Chapter 19 analysis. Tom Robinson tells his part of the story which is similar in context but the outcome of his story is much different. Tom seems to be honest, helpful and respectful of everyone even the Ewells. He even says that he feels sorry for her. Tom is obviously innocent due to his truthful nature and Attticus's evidence. But no matter how clear the evidence is Tom is doomed to be guilty or worse. I think that this connects to the title of the book. It is said to be a sin to kill a mockingbird because they don't do anything wrong, all they do is sing. Tom Robinson reminds me of the mockingbird: he doesn't deserve to die because he didn't do anything wrong and is clearly innocent.
ReplyDeleteTim, that's a really good point you bring up. I think it's really great that Tom is respectful towards the Ewells, despite what they are putting him through. This just shows what a good person he is. I agree that in some way, Tom is like a Mockingbird. I believe that it's wrong for Tom to possibly die for being accused of committing a crime that he didn't in fact commit.
DeleteTim, I am actually in love how you made the connection between Tom and the Mockingbird. I think The Mockingbird also represents innocence, if (when) Tom is found guilty it will almost be like killing innocence and justice which refers to the title "To Kill A Mocking Bird"
DeleteI agree with how you think Tom is like a mockingbird. He's never bothered anyone nor has he done any wrong. He is only in court mostly because of the color of his skin. When he told his situation with Mayella, it was almost the opposite of what she had said before. I believed Tom all along because he explained the situation calmly and simple, unlike Mayella who was in absolute panick and slightly changing her story every once in a while.
ReplyDeleteChapter 18- "Somehow, Atticus had hit her hard in a way that was not clear to me, but it gave him no pleasure to do so." An apparent theme throughout the book is what a great father and role model Atticus is. Chapter 18 not only showed a rather professional side of Atticus, but also a man with a pure heart. When I came across this line, it really stood out to me. Obviously, I'm not a lawyer, but I would think that if I were in Atticus' position, I would be incredibly happy. I would feel content and proud of what I have accomplished. He went into a trial with almost no hope of winning his case. But as he stands there in the courtroom, it becomes clear to the reader that Atticus is good at what he does, and there is in fact hope for Tom Robinson. Atticus is forced to ask Miss Mayella brutal questions, however they are giving him the answers he needs. He should be proud that he is getting through to this woman, however he gets no satisfaction. I believe that this was really hard for Atticus. He humiliated this woman in front of her peers. This proves that Atticus has a good heart and truly feels bad for Mayella.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19- "As Tom Robinson gave his testimony, it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radely, who had not been out if the house in 20 years." I found this chapter to be very sad. I feel bad for Mayella. I know maybe she is lying about whether Tom actually attacked her or not, but part of me is sympathetic towards her. While I think it's absolutely terrible if she is in fact lying, when Scout made this statement, I felt very sad. This situation made me think of a quote I once heard. "Sometimes the loneliest people are the ones whom are surrounded by many." I really think this is true. While we are all sympathetic towards Boo Radley, we don't really know how he feels. Maybe he has found a way to be content. While it's clear that Miss Mayella is constantly surrounded by people, it's also clear that something is missing in her life. This made me think that it isn't how many people you are surrounded with that matters, but WHO you are surrounded by, that really counts.
i also feel bad for(mostly upset with) Mayella because she wasn't able to say the truth. not only is she bringing herself down but she had to bring an innocent man down with her. everybody knows that she is just dying to yell out that it wasn't Tom and it was her father.
DeleteChapter 18 Page: 247
ReplyDelete“‘It’s not an easy question Miss Mayella, so I’ll try again. Do you remember him beating you about the face?’ Atticus’s voice had lost it’s comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. ‘Do you remember him beating you about the face?’ ‘I don’t recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.’” Mayella’s weak testimony calls the reader to become even more suspicious of her claims. According to Mr. Tate and Mr. Ewell’s testimony, Mayella was certainly beaten up. It’s odd for Mayella’s reaction to the question to be so questionable if she is telling the truth. This connects to the world because thewre was a story on the news of a woman that claimed Justin Bieber was the father of her baby. Both of these are examples of how people can lie for financial, publicity or any selfish reason in general the main point point is that not everyone can be trusted.
Chapter 19 Page: 263
“Mr. Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. ‘You’re a mighty good fellow, it seem- did all this for not one penny?’ ‘Yes suh. I felt sorry for her, she seemed to try more’n the rest of ‘em-’ ‘You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her’ Mr. Gilmer seemed ready to rise to the ceiling.” I t seems as though Mr. Gilmer thinks it is horrible that Tom Robinson, a poor black field worker, fells sorry for Mayella, a white citizen of Maycomb. It should be acceptable, considering the condition that she lives in, but in regard to the rascal standards of the time, Tom’s statement causes some resentment.
Chapter 20 Page: 271
“The state has not produced one iota of medical evidence that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place. It has relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant. The defendant is not guilty, but somebody in this courtroom is.” Atticus’ strong closing arguments prove what an excellent lawyer he is. Atticus speaks only the truth and tries to force those in the courtroom, including his children, to examine courage, but to Atticus, it is absolutely necessary. This connects to our world today because Atticus is trying to prove to the jury that even though Tom is a black man doesn’t mean that he committed this crime. This relates to the world today because even though racism is not as heavy as it was back then but will still have a lot of racist people out there and we always will.
Chapter 21 Page: 283
“Miss Jean Louise?’ I looked around. They were all standing. All around us, and in the balcony on the opposite wall, the Negroes were getting to their feet. Reverend Sykes’s voice was as distant as Judge Taylor’s: ‘Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’.” The people on the balcony have great respect for Atticus due to how deeply he pursued the case and how well he defended Tom. Atticus worked to let the truth be known. When Reverend Sykes asks Scout to stand, she understands how much her father’s work means to him and the rest of those seated with her in the balcony. This relates to everyone because Atticus was extremely determined to prove that Tom Robinson was innocent and believed that he could do it. Atticus is a great example of if you put your mind to something you can always success.
reply to chapter 21:
Deletei also enjoyed this part of the book. the fact that these African Americans were still so respectful and kind-hearted towards atticus, even after he lost the case, baffled me. i totally agree with your last statement. even though atticus didn't win the case ,he most definitely changed minds, and hearts, trying.
Allison, I agree with you. This was also my favorite part of the book so far. What Atticus has done for Tom is outstanding. His hard work defiantly pays off and the sure does deserve the respect he’s given. Scout and Jem should be very proud of him and the things he has done. I honestly could say that he is an inspiration to me at this point.
Deletech. 20 page 269, Mr. Raymond says, "You haven't even seen this town, but all you gotta do is step back inside that courthouse". Mr. Raymond finally shines a light on the dark side of the town. When Mr.Raymond says this he is telling Scout that the hidden world of racism is being displayed in that courthouse. Scouts innocence is still well preserved so she doesn't quite get how terrible Tom Robinson is being treated. Mr. Raymond all around prefers blacks over whites and like Miss Maudie he does not want to attend the trial so he stays outside.
ReplyDeletei like mr. raymond.Mr. Raymond is another man who sees the evil of racism. But rather than confront it, like Atticus, he hides from the confrontation behind lies.
DeleteChapter 19, Pg. 265: “Like I says before, it weren’t safe for any n****r to be in a-fix like that.” This Tom Robinson’s response, when he is asked why he ran away from the Ewell’s house. This quote shows me how quick white people were to blame everything on a colored person. Tom knew he had to run because if he didn’t, Mr. Ewell would assume that he was raping his daughter because he was black. It is so unfair how no one cared what the colored person had to say, they just came to a conclusion based on skin color. This relates to when Mr. Radley was talking about how he saw a black person in his yard. He didn’t actually see a black person, he assumed it was because in his eyes blacks are trouble makers and out to get you. This is a terrible assumption because most colored people are just working hard to make a living. Mr. Radley’s assumption is like the assumption that many people today make, that all Muslims are terrorists. I can only how the innocent people feel about the crazy accusations. I know I wouldn’t like it if everyone made unfair assumptions about me. Would you like that?
ReplyDeleteWhen I read this I thought the same thing, I hated how people assumed it meant he was guilty. He was obviously just scared for what he knew would come out of being in that situation.
DeleteI also thought the same thing when I read this. Just because he is a different color, he should be given the chance to explain his side of the story. It is very unfair that Mr. Gilmer is taking Tom's words and twisting to make it sound like he is guilty. Tom was scared and knew he would end up in court one way or another, due to social inequality, but he tried to avoid it as best as he could.
DeleteJonah, i agree with you,the color was probably the only reason for the all mistreatments and the unfairness for the black people. people judge others based on the color of their skin during that time , which was really unfair.
DeleteJonah, I also agree with you. People back then were always ready to get a colored person in trouble. No matter what something is people would assume a black person did it. that shows how bad racism was back then. Also i like how you brought up the muslims in this. Everybody is ready to blame a muslim when there is a terrorist attck. Its not fair how people make their conceptions.
DeleteYeah, I agree with you when I read it I thought it's so racist to assume that a colored person did everything. I also like your Muslim referance. It is very true that the common folk assume that the terrorist attacks are because of Muslims, good connection.
DeleteChapter 20- "Some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral...But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men. (Page 273) As I was reading through Atticus' speech to the jury, I was really interested in what he was saying, but this was the line that really moved me. Atticus is basically explaining to the jury, that they shouldn't make their decision about the trial based on race. He is explaining to them that it isn't fair to judge Tom Robinson because they have heard of other blacks committing a similar crime. This line made me think of modern day stereotypes. I have always been really sensitive to stereotypes, and I believe that it's simply because they are wrong. I honestly think that people need to stop judging individuals based on their culture, religion, economic status, etc. Like we are discussing in Global for example, one should not judge a Muslim and fear that they are a terrorist simply because a Muslim created the 9-11 attack. Generalizations are wrong, and I believe that people should learn to be more sensitive to them, just like Atticus.
ReplyDeleteI strongly agree, stereotypes are grow way out of proportion and are not fair to use against good people. We should always remember to treat others the way we would want to be treated. This line stuck out to me as well because if was the first time Atticus bluntly stated his belief that everyone should be equal in court. Earlier in the novel, you could infer that this was important to him and maybe one of the reasons he became a lawyer, but it wasn't stated in it's integrity until now. I think that these lines are really coming from Atticus' heart. While other lawyers are just focused on being paid, he's trying to make a difference.
DeleteI agree with you Alyssa. People should not be judged based on their religion, culture, or anything else like that. It is completely unfair and stereotypical. I also really like how you connected it to what we are learning about in global. Leah, I also agree with you. Treating others the way you want to be treated is basically the philosophy in my house, and I think that it is an extremely important lesson that people need to learn and live by.
DeleteChapter 21- For me, this was a really sad chapter. In the past couple of chapters, I couldn't help but hope that Atticus and Tom would win the trial. Unfortunately, they didn't win. This made me think of two very simple quotes that I've heard many times: "Nice guys usually finish last" and "Life isn't fair." While I have to say that sometimes I feel that nice guys do finish last, I don't always agree. However, in this case, it was true. We have all seen the Disney Movies where the Princess chooses the nice Prince, not the bad guy. The movies where there is always a happy ending. I wish I could say this is true in real life. Unfortunately, many aspects play into real life situations. I believe that it was completely unfair that Tom didn't win this case. It is very clear to me that the jury was simply racist and weren't really considering the evidence, but I guess life just isn't always fair.
ReplyDeleteI also feel that sometimes nice guys finish last. My heart sunk for Tom at the end of chapter 21 and I actually re-read it, hoping the verdict would change. Although, if Tom had won, I would feel like the novel was unrealistic. Since the trial was based on an actual one, it wouldn't have been correct to have Tom win. Hopefully, he will eventually turn out on top. It is sad that I wouldn't expect the better man to win, there are many flaws in our modern society.
DeleteChapter 18, page 248: “No. I don’t recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.” “Was your last sentence your answer?” “Huh? Yes, he hit- I just don’t remember, I just don’t remember… it all happened so quick.” In this scene, Atticus is questioning Mayella on the witness stand in court. He is asking her about if she remembered getting hit in the face. Mayella’s answers are not always clear, and at many points throughout this scene, she seems quite confused with what she should say. I think that this helps to prove that Tom Robinson didn’t in fact hit and rape her, even though we don’t know for sure. If he did, she wouldn’t be stumbling on her words, trying to decide what to say. I think that Mayella is trying to protect her father by lying on the witness stand. Even though not proven, I still believe that Mayella’s father, Mr. Ewell, was the one who hurt her. I feel bad for Mayella, yet at the same time I don’t. I have lied to protect people before, so I can understand where she is coming from there. However, they way she pretty much ruined Tom Robinson’s life forever does not make me feel bad for her at all. She blamed an innocent man of a heinous crime, and I don’t think that people should feel bad for her because of that.
ReplyDeleteChapter 18, page 245, "A nineteen year old girl like you must have friends. Who are your friends?" the witness frowned as if puzzled, "Friends?"
ReplyDelete"Yes, don't you know anyone near your age, or older, or younger?"
When Atticus asked Mayella these questions while she was on trial, I was really not expecting her to be so confused with the idea of friends. It makes perfect sense though, her being so completely and utterly alone. She works so hard and doesn't expect any compensation, how could she understand friendship? Friendship is literally defined as a state of mutual trust and respect. Who can Mayella really trust? She doesn't have the family stability that is crucial for an adolescent. Mayella is a perfect example of loss of innocence and growing up to fast, just like Ponyboy from "The Outsiders". Ponyboy is a greaser who must go into hiding after he witnesses a friend murder someone, both of his parents have also died so he's taken care of by his older brothers. Mayella and Ponyboy may be in completely different situations but both have demanded them to leave behind childhood and rise to the occasion.
Chapter 19, page 256, "She watered them red flowers everyday-"
ReplyDeleteWhen Tom Robinson says this, while on trial, it is the second time that Mayella's red flowers are mentioned. The first time, her cleanliness was mentioned simultaneously, which is interesting because being clean wasn't taken for granted then like is today. The red flowers have become a symbol of Mayella's civilizedness as well as her happiness. In the same way that Miss Maudie takes joy from her flowers, Mayella does, too. She values them over material possessions. The Ewell family is known for being wild, dirty and rude. By having pristeen flowers in the midst of her garbage dump yard, it is a sign that Mayella is more civilized than her family. They also show that she is a good person trapped in a chaotic lifestyle because her red flowers are among old furniture and other thrown out objects that had been collected form the dump for her family to recycle because they cannot afford to buy new things.
I really love how you caught this, I would have never thought of it!
DeleteI agree Sam, nice catch Leah! I didn't even think about it until you mentioned it above. I like how you said "she is a good person trapped in a chaotic lifestyle", I totally agree and in some ways, I feel bad for her. It reminds me of the quote "don't judge a book by its cover." Mayella is dirty and rude on the outside but she has a part of her that isn't so bad.
DeleteGreat job Leah. I didn't notice this until you pointed it out. I completely agree with you that the flowers represent how civilized Mayella is, and how she takes joy from them. Adding on to what Hannah said, it feels like the outside of Mayella, the "dirty and rude side", seems to show up when she is around others, and her other side seems to appear when she is not around others. I think that this has to do with her lack of education, and how poor her first role model, her dad, must have been.
DeleteI do feel that Mayella is in an unfair state and that she might be more acceptable then the other Ewells. But my pity is still saved for Tom Robinson and his situation. I do not think that Mayella is a good person or will ever become one. Partly it is not her fault because her father corrupted her.
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ReplyDeleteChapter 20, page 269: "Atticus says cheatin' a colored man is ten times worse than cheatin' a white man....says it's the worse thing you can do."
ReplyDeleteWhile it is obvious that Scout recognizes that Atticus treats colored people better than most, I'm not sure she really grasps the severity of the situation. Scout says these lines while speaking with Mr. Dolphus, who pretends to be drunk so that he won't be judged for having a colored wife and mixed children. She states Atticus' opinion but has not yet said her own. We can infer that she has the same beliefs as her father, but I think that for the most part racism just goes over her head. This line also shows a similarity between Mr. Dolphus and Atticus, they are both tolerant. Atticus is setting a good example for people who are anti-racist and is becoming a symbol for change. This is similar to how Katniss was the symbol for governmental revolution in "The Hunger Games" I wonder if Mr. Dolphus will reveal that he is not a drunkard after seeing Atticus' example.
Chapter 21, page 279: "Now don't you be so confident, I ain't ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man..."
ReplyDeleteHow sad, that a colored man has never won in court in Maycomb. In the novel, when the jury was away so long, I thought that maybe they were going to make he right decision. It's mind-blowing that racism in this county is so prominent that the idea of a colored man's word counting over that of a white man's is completely unheard of. This reminded me of Hammurabi's Code, which we learned about in Global. This set of laws is said to embody "an eye for an eye" but isn't really so upon further examination. This is just like how everyone should be equal in court but this dream rarely becomes a reality. In Hammurabi's Code, the harshness of your punishments varies based on your social class. For the same crime, a richer man may pay a small fine, while a lower-class man could loose a limb or suffer physical reparations. In To Kill a Mockingbird, the jury is only looking at race and not the real evidence.
Chapter 18, Page 250,"One question at a time, Atticus. Give the witness a chance to answer." From this we can infer that Atticus's tough questioning is proving that maybe the witness had been telling lies and maybe Tom Robinson's liberation will be much faster than expected, but without jumping to conclusion, what if Tom Robinson was guilty? what if all these acquisitions are correct and accurate? Could we draw a conclusion about the population of African Americans? Through the use of racism many people have to ability to make assumptions and opinions based on an action of one small percentage of the population of on group, society, or race. I could relate this to the world of Muslim Religion and incorrect assumptions that are made. Many believe that he religious group of Muslims are terrorists or maybe Arabic's being terrorists, this incorrect statement could be corrected by simply saying that Arabic's are just people of citizens who speak the language of Arabic and may or may not be Muslim. Furthermore, Muslim Extremist make up a very small percent of the population of Muslims. The problem is, is that the rest of the population are the real Muslims or the average citizens. Even if we picture certain groups of people as they are described through propaganda, doesn't mean we can draw a conclusion to the rest population and what they may actually be like.
ReplyDeletech.21 p.276
ReplyDelete"judge, i- this note is from my sister. she says my children are missing, haven't turned up since noon...i...could you-"
this is said by atticus after calpurnia hands him a note during the trial. Mr. Underwood then calls out and says that they are not missing that they, in fact, have been watching the trial the whole time.Atticus tells them to go home and eat dinner but after much begging from the children, he relentlessly says they can come back for the verdict if it hasn’t already been delivered. Aticcus knew what was going to happen and was trying to protect Jem and Scout from the anger and racism of the trial. after quick thought, Atticus realized that they could not be protected from this and let them return.this shows both themes of racism and growing up. the trials unfair verdict was, most defiantly, racial discrimination but most of all, if Atticus let the children return then he must have thought the children had grown up and could handle the verdict.
I agree Meridith! Atticus allowing them to hear the verdict relates to the theme of growing up. After Scout and Jem begged him to stay, Atticus probably realized hearing the verdict wouldn't be any worse than the trial. That being said, I feel that Scout is extremely young to be attending such a racial trial, but Atticus, being such a great teacher, will explain to Scout that blacks and whites are equal and not to be ashamed of losing the trial because he gave it his best shot.
DeleteChapter 18, Pg. 249 "He got it caught in a cotton gin, caught it in Mr. Dolphus Raymond's cotton gin when he was a boy...like to bled to death...tore all the muscles loose from his bones-" This is said by Reverend Sykes when he explains about Tom Robinson being crippled to both Jem and Scout. As we can infer, back in chapter 17, Mr. Ewell supposedly saw Mayella with a black eye in her left eye. This made me come to think of what Reverend Skyes told Jem and Scout. Atticus was trying to show that Mr. Ewell could have beaten up Mayella. With evidence that shows that Mr.Ewell was a right handed, Atticus asks him to sign a piece of envelope signing his name. If Mayella's right eye were to be blacked and she was beaten mostly on the right side of her face, it would show that a left-handed person have done it. But according to Reverend Skyes, Tom Robinson could not have beaten up Mayella because of how Tom has no full use of his left hand because of the accident he got when he was a child. We can infer, that most likely Tom Robinson is not guilty and that Mr. Ewell beat up her daughter, based on the evidence that shows. Based on this trial, I think this is because of social class or jealously. Mr. Ewell appears to be at the bottom of the social class, but as for Tom Robinson, it appears he is higher than Mr. Ewell. I think Mr. Ewell beat up his daughter to make Tom look bad and have a bad look on him by other people. We can connect this today of how jealously could lead towards something like this and how the theme of racism could be brought up to this.
ReplyDeleteWell put James! I think Mr. Ewell is so prejudice and racist that when he sees a black man, Tom Robinson, near his daughter he actually beats her (There is sufficient evidence of that). Also, it shows how African-Americans were viewed during the 1930's if a father beat up his daughter, and said "a black man raped her". This is very upsetting, but it does show the strong themes of racism and being prejudice in the novel.
DeleteChapter 18 , page 239, “ she seemed somehow fragile looking m but when she sat facing us in the witness chair she became what she was, a thick-bodied girl accustomed to strenuous labor.” I like how Scout is making observation, she doesn’t know Mayella much. As a matter of the fact, Scout probably heard many things about the Ewell family in town. From what Scout told us, I can somehow picture Mayella. Mayella doesn’t have a mom around her to take care of her and the other kids, also since Mr.Ewell hunts all the time, and she’s the oldest she has to do the mother’s part, to take care of the other little kids and do all the house works, it’s not hard to imagine how hard it is for her to do all those hard labors.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19, page 261,” Mr. Finch, if you was a nigger like me, you’d be scared, too.” I feel pretty bad for Tom Robinson, I can feel the segregation and the mistreatments based on their colors in Maycomb by that time. Tom Robinson probably was panicked and didn’t know what to do and he cannot help himself in that awkward and crazy situation. For a colored man, he doesn’t have any right to say anything during that time. In the book, it mentioned that, when Mr. Ewll saw it through the window, he was holler and threaten tom that he was going to kill him, I think anybody would be scared under that kind of circumstances.
ReplyDeletechapter 18, page 251: "She answered no more questions". This is the part during the trial when Mayella seems like she has lost hope in winning the trial and begins to cry. She refuses to answer all questions from Atticus from here on out. I see this as completely unfair, and I am a man of fairness. Just because you are losing the game doesn't mean you can quit. I can relate to this because sometimes I feel my parents are unfair to me (but mostly it is for my own good) and even if I can prove a point they will oppose it and I think they wont admit that I am right. Mrs. Sarna, you being a mother, how do you feel about this? Because from my point of view, it seems that even though my parents want the best for me, they can be a little like Mayella sometimes.
ReplyDeleteJared, you make a really good point. It is unfair to Atticus that Mayella will not answer any more of his questions. I also am glad you pointed out that Mayella has lost the hope in winning the trial and starts crying. I had never thought of it like that because in the book, Scout sees it as a way for Judge Taylor to feel bad for her and give in a little. But I liked how you said, "just because you are losing the game doesn't mean you can quit."
DeleteChapter 19 page 265, "'No suh, I's scared I'd be in court, just like I am now.' 'Scared of arrest, scared you'd have to face up to what you'd did?' 'No suh, scared I'd hafta face up to what I didn't do.'" During this scene and this chapter, I felt really bad for Tom because he was being drilled with uncomfortable questions about something that didn't even happen. Although it is too early to tell, Tom Robinson seems completely innocent but he is being blamed for something he didn't do. When I read this quote, I gained a lot of respect for Tom because he was standing up for himself when he new he would probably end up losing anyways. Based on the way Tom Robinson talks, he is probably not an educated man, but he seemed very smart, especially when he said this, I felt he really knew what he was talking about and wasn't going to let anyone twist his words. There are many major themes in this novel and education is definitely one of them.
ReplyDeleteI was just listening to a song and they apply almost perfectly to the situation during this scene in the court with Tom Robinson. The lyrics say, "Yes, I feel a little bit nervous,//Yes, I feel nervous and I cannot relax,//How come they're out to get us?//How come they're out when they don't know the facts?" The song is called Hurts Like Heaven by Coldplay. What a coincidence!
DeleteChapter 20, page 272, “She was white, and she tempted a Negro. She did something that, in our society, is unspeakable. She kissed a black man. Not an old uncle, but a strong, young Negro man. No code mattered to her before she broke it, but it came crashing down on her afterwards.” Atticus was right about it, during that period of the time, it doesn’t fit and it’s not reasonable for a white woman to try to seduce a black man. Mayella was imprudent and unconsidered. She couldn’t fight off her desire and didn’t know she was going to get into a big trouble. Well, we all make mistakes in our life, and the mistakes would somehow affect ourselves or someone who’s around us.
ReplyDeleteJanny, you gave a great reason as to why Tom Robinson would be so terrified to stay and see what happened after Mr. Ewells came into the house. If I were Tom, I would also be scared to stay because even if I hadn't done anything, I knew I would be blamed for something I hadn't done and that's exactly what happened to Tom.
DeleteChapter 19, Page 260,"It occurred to me that in their own ways, Tom Robinson's manners were as good as Atticus's." As said by Scout. Scouts statement concerning Tom Robinson is true. Throughout this chapter, Tom Robinson is interrogated and questioned by Atticus and Mr. Gilmer. Tom Robinson's manners and sound of innocence almost make it seem he didn't do the crime even if the possibilities of him winning are very low. I truly do believe with Scouts statement, i believe that Tom Robinson is well disciplined and well mannered. Furthermore, they way he explains his side of the story is more idealistic and practical as compared to Ms. Mayella's story. I could relate this to the Scottsboro Boys who were tried for attacking two white boys after jumping out of the freight train as said by this article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottsboro_Boys. The Scottsboro Boys and Tom Robinson both share a common characteristic which is hope.
ReplyDeleteHarrison, I am really glad that you used this quote. I agree with you that Tom's manners and sounds of innocence make it seem like he didn't commit the crime. And it's sad yet true; his chances of winning the case are low, being that he is a black man accused of raping a white woman. I also like how you made the connection between Tom and the Scottsboro Boys, and how they both had hope.
DeleteHarrison, I too like what you said about this quote. Tom Robinson's manners are so good they make him sound like he should be innocent, as you said. Also going back to what Sophie said about his chances of winning are low, it can relate to segregation. nobody believes the black man so in the end the white person obviously wins.
DeleteChapter 21, page 277 “Mister Jem, don’t you know better’n to take your little sister to that trial?”Well ,I feel like Calpurnia was acting like a mom and try to avoiding those things from the kids especially scout , because she’s only eight year old girl. Although I can tell Cal wants to know when Jem asked her if she wanted to hear about it .But she was pretty upset and thought it was inappropriate for the little kids to know too much stuff about it and they should be ashamed
ReplyDeleteChapter 19, page 261: “Mr. Finch, if you was a n****r like me, you’d be scared, too.” This is said by Tom Robinson while he was testifying in court. Atticus had just asked him why he ran when Mr. Ewell came in, and he said that it was because he was scared. This quote said by Tom was a really powerful quote in my opinion, because it shows how life back then was really unfair for the blacks, and how you could always potentially be in danger. Tom was scared, because he knew that he would be in danger, once Mr. Ewell came in. So he ran. He didn’t think much about it; he just did it. I really feel bad for Tom. He didn’t do anything wrong. He was just trying to be friendly and help out, and then he gets put into an extremely difficult and uncomfortable position, which later winds him up in court. It’s sad to think how even in the world today, people trying to help out one another can sometimes wind up causing them to get into trouble, even though they didn’t necessarily do anything wrong.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19 page 265 "dill started to cry and couldn't stop...then his sobs were heard by several people in the balcony." Towards the end Mr. Gilmer started prosecuting Tom Robinson. While this was happening Dill began to cry until Jem asked Scout to take him outside. Dill explained to Scout that the reason he was crying was because of the way they were speaking to Tom Robinson. This part stood out to me because I feel the same way Dill feels about Mr. Gilmer. I get that Mr. Gilmer is just doing his job but he prosecutes Tom Robinson in such a tyrannical manner that it just makes you want to cry. Scout says "thats how prosecutors are" but then Dill makes a good point by saying that Atticus didn't act the way Mr. Gilmer did when he was Prosecuting Mr. Ewells and Mayella, I think Dill is right. Atticus did his job and still showed respect and I feel that Mr. Gilmer should do the same as Atticus but sadly we all know isn't.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Jackie because although Mr. Glimer is doing his job, he could be more respectful and not so harsh to Tom. Atticus on the other hand is doing his job, but he isn't ganging up on Mayella like Mr. Gilmer is acting with Tom.
DeleteChapter 18, Page 243. “Long’s he keeps on callin’ me ma’am and sayin’ Miss Mayella. I don’t have to take his sass, I ain’t called upon to take it.” As we all saw in this part of the chapter, people were a little bit confused after Mayella said this. It made them wonder about what her life was like. In one of my earlier blog posts, I mentioned that often times children can represent what their family is like. Since the Ewells are not very well off, it can be assumed and proven that they aren’t very well educated. To make a connection, at the beginning of the book we talked about how the police bent the rules for them, allowing them to not go to school. Mayella, being not very well educated thought that Atticus was being sassy to her when he wasn’t. I think her mistake in this social situation is based off of her family and her lack of school.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19, Page 256. “As Tom Robinson gave his testimony, it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radley…” Wow, when I saw this quote I was immediately shaken by this great connection. Just like Boo, Mayella Ewell tried to reach out to make friends and she did, sort of. The connection between her and Tom were the various jobs he did. Looking back to the beginning fo the book, the connection between Boo and the kids were the child gifts. I think what should happen next in the book is they should have Boo testify and defend Tom. If only Boo would explain what he has in common with Mayella.
Chapter 20, Page 269. “Atticus says cheatin’ a colored man is ten times worse than cheatin’ a white man.” I agree with this statement that Scout told to Mr. Robinson. I strongly belive that during this time period, cheating on a colored man was worse than cheating on a white man. I may be wrong, but isn’t it true that most blacks were in the low part of society and life was bad enough already? If life was bad enough for them dealing with all the rascism, then it would be cruel to cheat them and make their lives even worse. The white men had it better, they didn’t have to deal with rascism. And that is why I believe its worse to cheat on a colored man. Also, you know that modern saying that people hear a lot, “taking candy from a baby”? The baby can represent the black men, at this time they were very vulnerable and unprotected, whereas the white men weren’t because they were better protected by justice of court systems of this time.
Chapter 21, Page 278. “Aunt Alexandra met us and nearly fainted when Calpurnia told her where we were.” I don’t find this quote to be super significant, but it reminded me of a time when I got lost at the park and finally found my dad. We both were so happy to see each other, and had a bit of relief afterwards. The other reason why I chose this one is because I am just picturing Aunt Alexandra in this situation. I imagined her freaking out and scrambling all over town to find the children. I guess Aunt Alexandra slipped up this time.
Chapter 20, page 268: “Wh-oh yes, you mean why do I pretend? Well, it’s very simple,” he said. “Some folks don’t-like the way I live…” When Dill started crying in the courthouse, Jem told Scout to take him outside. While outside, Scout and Dill came across Mr. Dolphus Raymond. Mr. Raymond allowed Dill to take a sip from his bag to make him feel better. Scout is very concerned, but Dill tells her after he drank some that it is just Coca-Cola. Then Scout starts questioning Mr. Raymond about it. She asks him, “Why do you do what you do?” His respond is saddening. He said that he pretends, because people don’t like and appreciate the way that he lives. He pretends that he is drunk so that people would understand why he won’t change his ways. This shows how Mr. Raymond cannot show his true identity, and it connects to the theme of racism and discrimination. He is almost being pressured to pretend to drink alcohol out of the bag, because then it would give people a somewhat reasonable answer as to why he is the way he is.
ReplyDeleteChapter 18 pages 250-251 Atticus is asking Mayella questions upon what happened the night she was attacked, during the trial. He is asking her if Tom Robinson really was responsible for the attack or did her father hit her. When he asks her if her father has ever harmed her, and if he was the one that hurt her, she hesitates to answer the question and doesn't answer the question. This inferes that Mayella's dad could of been the one that hurt her and she is covering that pain by blaming Tom Robinson because he happened to be there right before she was injured. This is connected to the theme of education because Atticus is using all his knowledge to ask specific questions to Mayella. He also asks questions more than once to make she if she might change her answers. He also ask questions that may seem simple, but in reality they reviel a lot more than what people would expect.
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ReplyDeletechapter 18
ReplyDelete"'It's not an easy question Miss Mayella, so I'll try again. Do you remember him beating you about the face?' Atticus's voice had lost it's comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. 'Do you remember him beating you about the face?' 'I don't recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.
Mayella's weak testimony calls the reader to become even more suspicious of her claims. According to Mr. Tate and Mr. Ewell's testimony, Mayella was certainly beaten up. It's odd for Mayella's reaction to the question to be so questionable if she is telling the truth.
chapter 19
Mr. Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. 'You're a mighty good fellow, it seems- did all this for not one penny?'
'Yes suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more'n the rest of 'em-'
'You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her?' Mr. Gilmer seemed ready to rise to the ceiling."
It seems as though Mr. Gilmer thinks it is horrible that Tom Robinson, a poor black field worker, feels sorry for Mayella, a white citizen of Maycomb. It should be acceptable, considering the condition that she lives in, but in regard to the racial standards of the time, Tom's statement causes some resentment.
Chapter 18, page 241: Mr. Gilmer waited for Mayella to collect herself: she had twisted her handkerchief into a sweaty rope; when she opened it to wipe her face it was a mass of creases from her hot hands. I think this quote tells us she’s lying and scared. Mayella kept pausing and thinking and never could go into detail with her story. I think if something like that happened to someone, you would remember. I understand that you wouldn’t want to talk about it again, but wouldn’t you want justice? I think Mayella is scared of her dad and doesn’t want to see anything happen to him because of her. As the trail went on and Atticus was questioning her, she was getting more nervous because people were starting to see that she wasn’t telling the truth.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19, page 166: The way that man called him ‘boy’ all the time an’ sneered at him, an’ looked around at the jury every time he answered-“ “Well Dill, after all he’s just a Negro.” “I don’t care one speck. It right, somehow it ain’t to do ‘ em that way. Hasen’t anybody got any business talking ‘ like that – it just makes me sick.” When Dill says this to Scout I thought of Atticus and I saw a difference in Dill. I thought of Atticus because in chapter 11 when he was telling Scout that he try’s to love everyone no matter what their skin color is. I saw a change in Dill because Dill useally is the one that acts all tough. When he was pushing Jem to go touch the Radlys house and when he told Scout she was a girl and could leave when they were going to touch the Radly house. Now Dill is showing his emotions to Scout and not acting tough and just showing how he really feels.
"'It's not an easy question Miss Mayella, so I'll try again. "Do you remember him beating you about the face?' Atticus's voice had lost it's comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. 'Do you remember him beating you about the face?' 'I don't recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.' ". This was a question asked by Atticus to a quite trembled and nervous Mayella. The setting in which this event takes place is in the courtroom. This is where the reader can tell how scared Mayella was and it didn't help that the small courtroom was filled to its maximum and all the pressure in my view and attention was put on Mayella. At this point all Atticus wanted was the truth and he knew something wasn't right. Atticus is a very knowledgeable man and he could see from the emotions of Mayella that she was either forced to say something or she is just plain lying. Also her lack of confidence told everyone or most people in the audience that gave some hope for the blacks was that no one could trust her claims and Atticus became very hesitant about what she was saying and he didn't know if she was lying or not. What I personally do not understand is why when Mr. Ewell and Mr.Tate got to the stand they were so confident and repeated over and over that she was the victim and obviously was beaten, but then the question is still not anwsered in who is telling the truth or not and Atticus has a very job on his hands. Looks like someone didn't solemnly swear when there right hand was on the book. A connection to modern day is the same way people are interrogated. One way the interrogaters find out if the person is lying or not is by their facial emotions and speech just how Atticus is examining Mayella.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19, Pg. 266 "Well, Mr. Finch didn't act that way to Mayella amd old man Ewell when he cross-examined them. The way that man called him 'boy' all the time an' sneered at him, an' looked around at the jury every time he answered-" In this point of the chapter, Dill questions why Mr. Gilmer behaves or speaks differently to Tom Robinson. Scout says that it is his job to speak to him that way, but Dill still seems to not understand why he does that and thinks that this is unfair. I think Mr. Gilmer represents a universal character in this chapter of both in the world today or back then, and in this novel. Mr. Gilmer's treatment towards Tom Robinson seems to be effortless, comparing the way he talks to Mayella. For me, I agree with what Dill says to Scout in the book. He says that its is unfair in a way of how Mr. Gilmer talks to Tom. I guess this has to do with racism once again because of the time period. This could also relate to theme of the negative affects of racism on an individual, community, and a legal system. The jury is white, so it is most likely that Tom Robinson will not win this case. This certain event in the book reminds me of how it can connect to celebrities sons or daughters. They want to get a job the right way, but most jobs they try to hire them for, hire them because of their parents being famous. This relates to the book of how Tom Robinson will not win because of his background and looks, and the concept of racism at the time.
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ReplyDeleteCh. 18 p. 209(different book!) "When hes-riled, has he ever beaten you?" Mayella looked around..."Answer the question, Miss Mayella" said Judge Taylor. Atticus is doing his cross-examination of Mayella Ewell when he asks about Mr. Ewell beating her. She takes a pause and looks around at the judge, court reporter and Atticus. Her taking a pause shows that there’s a possibility that she is lying about being raped and her father actually beat her. This connects to the theme of being prejudice because even though Ms. Mayella is obviously lying about what happened, it’s her word against a black mans. They are prejudging Tom Robinson because his skin color is black and assuming he committed the crime. We see people being prejudice in our world when we see a woman with a Burka and assume she is forced to wear it. Even though many Islamic women choose to wear them and are not forced to, but we assume they are.
ReplyDeleteChapter 18 Page 240: “That’s enough now. Don’t be’fraid of anybody here, as long as you tell the truth…” Judge Taylor said this to Mayella because when she was called to the stand she was crying. I think that this quote means that as long as you tell the truth then you don’t have to be worried about anything. In a way Judge Taylor is trying to calm her, but also I think that he’s trying to get a point through her head. A point meaning that if you don’t tell the truth and if you are lying, then you have a right to be frightened. This can relate to the real world especially with younger kids when they get in trouble. They are frightened if they are lying but are calm if they are not. This was a good line said by Judge Taylor to somewhat get Mayella to think twice.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19 Page 261: “Mr. Finch, if you were a n****r like me, you’d be scared, too.” Tom Robinson replied this towards Atticus’ question. I think that what Tom said here sent us all a very strong and powerful message. This quote refers to how bad times were during the Great Depression, segregation wise. Tom was scared because once Mr. Ewell saw him, Tom knew instantly that something bad was going to happen. This had happened to all blacks. Meaning that if a white person saw a black person doing something bad, even if it was a miss interpretation (like how it is here) the black person would ultimately get into trouble. This quote just shows a clearer understanding of how unfair life was like for a black person.
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ReplyDeleteChapter 19 page 197 "Mr. Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. 'You're a mighty good fellow, it seems did all this for not one penny?' 'Yes suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more'n the rest of 'em' 'You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her?' Mr. Gilmer seemed ready to rise to the ceiling." This quote is when Mr. Gilmer was interrogating Tom Robinson in court. In this event Mr.Gilmer asks Tom what were his motives for helping Mayella's chores. The reason that Tom said he helped her was because he felt bad for her because of her financial situation and where she lived in town behind a dumpster. Also Tom knew about her father like most people throughout town and he was known as a quite mean and dirty person who was lazy and didn't care for anyone else except himself. In this instance I think the reason why he is claiming this rape is to get money for the court because he is extremely poor and also of course is not fond of blacks and he thinks that if he blames it on a black man he can get the jury to agree with him just because of Tom's skin color. This is a very sly move by Mr.Ewell but in the end i think the person that will prevail is Atticus due to the way he is proving Tom's innocence and showing how skin color has nothing to do with things but finding out the truth does.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20: Towards the end of this chapter, Atticus starts saying his speech to the jury. His speech was to get the jury to think about all the evidence that was provided earlier in the trial, and hopefully make the right decision about Tom Robinson. In his speech Atticus sent some very strong messages to the men sitting in the jury. One of those messages consisted of something of what Thomas Jefferson said “All men are created equal.” If this is true then how come black people were not justified equally? What Atticus said got me to think more deeply about what is going on. Atticus wanted to get the jury to think hard about their decision, and make it a fair trial.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21 Page 282: “Guilty…guilty…guilty…guilty…” exclaimed the jury. I picked this quote because it just goes to show, how unfair everything was for black people back then. The jury consisted of all white men and really they didn’t care about what Tom Robinson and Atticus had to say. The case was over before it began. The jury knew that they were going to say, that any black man was guilty already. This is like what happened with The Scottsboro Boys. They kept on getting proven guilty without a fair fight. This says that black people didn’t have a say in anything, they were always being treated without proper respect and that they couldn’t do a thing about it. It just isn’t right.
As I read in chapter 20 on page 269, Mr. Raymond says "Cry about the simple hell people give other people – without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people gives colored folks, without even stopping to think that they're people, too." While the kids still haven’t shut the display of emotions, they also haven’t dammed up their intake of impressions from the outside. Calling it "instinct" implies that this way of relating to the world is something everyone naturally goes through. I could understand why Mr. Raymond isn’t respected much, due to his drunkenness and living condition. Although, I think the whites are being ignorant, because they don’t really know if it’s true. For example, Dill and Scout son learn he only drinks Coca-cola. I hate to see that people judge one another due to the littlest things. I absolutely understand why Mr. Raymond fakes being a drunk; so people won’t judge him for actually living the way he wants.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree with you Natalie, it's a shame that people judge others by what they look like or how they live and don't even try to give them a chance to fully introduce themselves for who they truly are.
DeleteChapter 19, Page 256: "Negroes wouldn't have anything to do with her because she was white." This quote was describing how the blacks feel about whites. This really goes to show how the racism went both ways during this historical time period. Although it was mostly whites that mistreated blacks and judged them, this caused the blacks to also judge the whites. Just because Mayella was white, most blacks didn't want to be near her. Just because someone is white, doesn't mean they necessarily don't like blacks. Take Atticus for example. He's defending a black isn't he? This can connect to our world today because prejudice almost never goes one way.
ReplyDeleteJared, you bring up a very good point here. Most people would think that racism is only directed to the blacks. But you have to interpret things differently, just like you did, to realize that black people are also somewhat racist to whites as well. So basically, racism is directed back and forth between people.
DeleteChapter 19 page 260, " Did you resist her advances?" asked Atticus to Tom, he responded "Mr. Finch, I tried. I tried to 'thout bein' ugly to her. I didn't wanta be ugly, I didn't wanta push her or nothin." This is part of the questioning Atticus does to Tom Robinson during trial. This quote makes me think of how innocent people are charged with crimes because they were trying to defend themselves. During the setting of this book, it was even worst if a colored person tried to defend themselves from a white person because if they just touched a white person, they most likely would be found guilty of a crime. A colored person would be accused of hurting a white person because first the white person would tell a huge lie, just like I feel Mayella is doing, and second the judge would favor a white person over whatever a colored person had to say, because the judge would be usually white. This trial reminds me of a movie i watched named "Time to Kill" because it also takes place during the Great Depression and it is about a 10 year old colored girl who was raped by two white racist men and they were found not guilty, so then her father goes out to hunt the men and ends up killing them. He is then sent to jail for murder, but then a white man becomes very interested in the case and wants to help the colored father and name him not guilty. The white lawyer was very brave to help a colored man and he reminds me much of Atticus.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20 page 269, "You haven't seen enough of the world yet. You haven't even seen this town, but all you gotta do is step back inside the courthouse," said Mr. Raymond to Scout. this happened when Jem told Scout to take Dill outside of the courtroom because Dill had started to cry and when they walked out they saw Mr. Raymond sitting outside. What I think Mr. Raymond was trying to say was that Scout was still too young to understand a lot of the things that were happening during Tom Robinson's trial. Also that Scout had a lot of things to learn because what she thought of the town or thy people around her, would soon change due to what they said about Tom Robinson's trial and what the end result would be. This connects to the theme of growing up and Scout is in the process of seeing many thing she hadn't realized.
Chapter 21 page 282, Scout shut her eyes. Judge Taylor was polling the Jury: "Guilty...guilty...guilty...guilty.." This quote illustrates that although Atticus had good reasons that Tom Robinson was not guilty and the evidence clearly showed that Mayella was lying, people still favored her as a victim of a rape caused by a colored man. This is clearly discrimination because people knew that there was no clear evidence that Tom Robinson committed the crime, yet they still accused him because of his color and his race. This was an unfair trial, but because colored people have no voice in anything, whites have won again, unfairly.
Chapter 19. “Mr. Finch, if you was a nigger like me, you’d be scared, too.” page 261. This is a statement by Tom Robinson to Atticus. I was surprised when I read this quote for a few reasons. One, it shows how severe the racism was in this time period. The fact that Tom was only scared because he knew what would happen to a man like him shows one of the many negative effects of racism on an individual. Two, it shows how corrupt the legal system at this time was. Tom knew he was innoscent, but he ran anyway because he knew he would be found guilty.
ReplyDeleteScott, I used this exact quote also! I feel that it sent a very strong message to not only myself but to Atticus. This statement probaly got Atticus to think for a minute and put himself into Toms shoes. It also shows how bad racism was back then being that Tom says this.
DeleteChapter 20 page 203 "'The state has not produced one iota of medical evidence that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place. It has relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant. The defendant is not guilty, but somebody in this courtroom is." In this quote it shows Atticus's closing agrument to the jury. Basically what Atticus is trying to portray is that a man should not be judged on his skin color whether it be white, black, blue, or brown everyone is equal and putting an innocent man away for the rest of his life for a crime he never committed is wrong and extremely unfair. Atticus knowns deep down that Tom didn't commit the crime and someone in the court is guilty and is using someones skin color to cover for their poor decision which is messed up in my opinion. Also the so called "eye witnesses" information is skeptical and I'm pretty sure it is not a coinsdence that the information is coming from people that know each other in town. All these cross examining of the eye witnesses and the long hours Atticus put in this case i believe will pay off and prove Tom's innocence. I wish Atticus could come to real life and see how the world has changed and our nation has come so far against racism and how equality and freedom is something is known for, and everyone is united and we com e together as one. Let me just say I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!
ReplyDeleteChapter 20, Pg. 274 "But there is one way in this country in which all men are created equal-there is one human institution that makes a pauper the equal of a Rockefeller, the stupid man the equal of an Einstein, and the ignorant man the equal of any college president. That institution, gentlemen, is a court." Atticus' speech is a classic. He makes a compelling argument that all men are created equal and that place is in especially in a court room. For example, if equal means "same," a quick look around will tell you that all men (humans) are not equal. By this I mean that even though we may look different and might be different, like different religions and different ethnicity, etc., we have the right to be treated the same. I think Atticus is pointing this out to everyone in the court room to emphasize that race does not matter, in which you have to blame someone that is different, in this case being black or white. But I also think that Atticus thinks that this concept hurts people with less opportunity.
ReplyDeleteIn connection with this, I can relate to this of how my uncle would apply for jobs, but then get rejected because of stereotypes. It is here, where I wished that everyone would stand by the saying of everyone is created equal. I find with what Atticus said, that it connects to the theme of "Letter of the law". It is not always morally correct or appropriate to individual situations.
Chapter 21 Pg. 283. “… The Negroes were getting to their feet. Reverend Sykes’s voice was as distant as Judge Taylor’s: ‘Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’.” Atticus had left courtroom quite fast and out through another exit. I could feel his frustration. Although, the Negroes had great respect for Atticus due how affectionate he was, when defending Tom. Scout knows how much her father’s work means to him and to her family. He tried his best. I ABSOLUTLY love the way Atticus was is always strong-minded to prove that Tom Robinson was innocent. To me, he’s such an amazing role model and is a great example of always never giving up.
ReplyDeleteCh. 19 p. 218 'It came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radley.' While Tom is giving his testimony about what really happened, Scout begins to see how lonely and friendless Mayelle Ewell was. She couldn't have black friends because her dad was racist and she was to poor for any white ones. I understand why Mayella Ewell lied. She has almost nothing and if she went against her fathers and said she wasn't raped; she would be beaten more and probably kicked out of her home. Through Mayella's eyes, it is understandable to have lied because of what would have happened if she told the truth. This connects to when I lied to my parents about a test grade to avoid the consequences. It worked for about a week until I told them because I felt guilty. I wander how Mayella feels lying in court after taking an oath that she’s telling the truth.
ReplyDeleteChapter 18 Page 249 "He got it caught in a coton gin...tore all the muscles loose from his bones." This is when Reverend Sykes was telling Jem, Scout and Dill how Tom got crippled in his LEFT arm , after Jem said " Scout, look! Reverend, he's crippled." First just so every one is clear what a cotton gin is i looked it up because i didn't fully know myself. It is a machine that separates the cotton we use from the seeds in it. This quote is when I think readers who may have been reading this by themselves realized that this trial never should've have been brought to court. How could Tom choke Mayella with one hand it would be near impossible to do. This reminds me of the Scottsboro Boys all they did was defend themselve but because they hit white men many of the boys were killed and on top of the assault charges 2 woman said they raped them. The youngest being around 13, such ludicrous should have never been belived. Even after one woman reclaimed her statement the courts still did nothing to bring justice to those wrongly accused. This was a dark time for our court system and we shouldn't hide it instead we should learn from it.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20. "Cry about what, Mr. Raymond?...Cry about the hell people give other people - without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people give colored folks, without even stopping to think that they're people too." When Mr. Robinson says this to Scout and Dill, i believe this is the perfect example of the influence of an adult on a child. While the problem of mistreating a colored person is not what Mr. Robinson is addressing, he still manages to teach the children something.
ReplyDeleteThat is a very good quote Scott, I completely forgot about that. It is a very good example of the influence that Mr. Raymond and adults on children. I think the kids really like Mr. Raymond, and they trust him too, that's why Dill took a sip out of his bag without questioning Mr. Raymond.
DeleteChapter 18, Page 242: "Mayella's face contorted, and I was afraid that she would cry again. Instead, she said, 'He done what he was after.'" This was said by Scout after Mr. Gilmer asks her if she's positive that Tom Robinson took full advantage of her. Personally, I don't believe a word she's saying. The fact that her face contorted after she was asked this question causes me to be shocked that no one called her out on it. While Scout says that she was afraid that Mayella was going to cry, I think she was fighting against her instinct to tell the truth in COURT. Last time I checked, that was a federal offense to lie in court. I'm sure they're more lenient because of the case itself and the people involved, but I still think it's just really, really wrong that people didn't find it unfair that blacks and whites weren't getting the same treatment in court, where everything's supposed to be fair and equal.
ReplyDeleteCh 18, Pg. 206 "Apparently Mayella's recital had given her confidence, but it was not her father's brash kind: there was something stealthy about hers, like a steady eyed cat with a twitchy tail." this statement by scout shows that Mayella seems stealthy and i have a habit of distrusting people who have to be stealthy and guarded in a court.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21 "I shut my eyes. Judge Taylor was polling the jury: 'Guilty… guilty… guilty…guilty…' I peeked at Jem: his hands were white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each 'guilty' was a separate stab between them." This was thought by Scout right as the much awaited verdict came from the judge. Up to this point Atticus had made a very good prescence proving Tom's innocnce but you just don't know, especially during a time like this were racism was a very negeative part of life and nearly affected everything. Sadly despite the tremendous and courageous efforts by Atticus the cookies didn't crumble his way and the end verdict against the charge of rape to Mr.Robinson was guilty. The crowd had a long silence and as the judge ruled the verdict not only was Atticus and Tom emotionally and physically devastated, but also Atticus's children who had watch this trial from start to finish and stood behind everything of what their dad said the whole way through. The children ended up feeling just as bad as both Tom and Atticus. You could just imagine how heartbreaking it was for the Finch family and Tom after such a long struggle it didn't end up in their favor when in my opinion it definitally should have and today with all the different laws and no racism it would have ended up in Atticus's favor as well. The part where i felt extremely bad for Jem was when Scout said every time the judge said guilty it was like Jem was getting stabbed in the heart and I'm sure they weren't the only ones feeling that pain in a melencholy court room for the defense team.
ReplyDeleteThis scene was a really sad one, the hard work that Atticus did to try to defend Mr. Robinson, even when they all know that he did nothing. Worst of all the kids got to experience unfairness and cruelty in the worl. Good quote Mike.
DeleteChapter 20 page 268 "why do you do what you do?....you mean why do I pretend?" Mr. Raymond saw Dill crying and told him to take a sip out of his bag which Scout thought was alcohol but was actually coca cola. This surprised Scout because she always thought Mr. Raymond was a drunk. Mr. Raymond says he only pretends to be drunk because it makes it easier for other folk in maycomb to believe that he lives the way he does because he is a drunk. He also says people in Maycomb wouldn't be able to understand that he lives the way he does because he wants to. I think that is really upsetting because Mr. Raymond has to lie to everyone in town because the people of Maycomb don't understand that he could like black people and have mix children because he simply wants to. This reminds me of the poem "we wear the mask" because Mr. Raymond is wearing a mask and hiding from the entire town of Maycomb.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19 Page 256 “…it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world…” To me it is interesting that Scout thinks this because even at a young age she knows Mayella is lying about what happens, and as my classmate probably are enraged that she would lie about what happened but she isn’t. It is amazing to see that Scout went from not being able to see anyone’s point of view for example the accident with her teacher to being able to put herself in Mayellas shoes and see what a hard life she has. While I don’t like what Mayella is doing I think it is important to look at the fact that she is lonely and evidence suggest that she is abused by her father and to anybody reading if you can tell me with certainty that you would be able to be abused get caught with a black man or woman in the 1930’s and tell the truth about it and possibly be killed because your parent would beat you so badly I am not sure I would believe you. This reminds me of how when I was reading Catcher in the Rye I found it hard to put myself in Holden’s shoes because I thought he was ridiculous and didn’t like him as a character unlike Scout I couldn’t put myself in his shoes. Maybe the story would have been different to me if I were able to.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21 page "his shoulders jerked as if each "guilty" was a separate stab between them.” To me this was a powerful quote from Scout concerning Jem. At this point I think Jem is old enough to know what’s going on. He realizes this trial is about race more then rape. Not only at this point his father had just lost the trial, but so has the fight of defeating racism. Also the anticipation of the verdict coming out. This was certainly my favorite quote of this chapter.
ReplyDeleteWhile this shows Jem understanding more than he did before I am not sure if he has looked at it as a full picture. He definitely knows that Tom shouldn't be guilty based on the evidence and I think this is when he realizes that the Justice System doesn't always work the way it should.
DeleteChapter 19, Page 256
ReplyDelete"As Tom Robinson gave his testimony, it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radley." Scout is saying this while she is listening to her father interrogate Tom Robinson. This part of the chapter really stuck out while I was reading because it made me think about how in the book many of the characters almost seem lonely. Like the comparison to Boo Radley, and how he is always stuck in his house. Also Ms. Dubose and and how she seemed to be very lonely. Although she was stubborn about it Jem started to read to her and she started to quit her drug addiction. I think Scout is trying to say that from Tom's side of the story Mayella must have been asking for Tom's help with things around the house and talked to him because she was lonely. Sometimes when you get lonely, it helps to have other people around.
I also notice this quote as I was reading. It kind of made me feel sad for Mayella and Boo. I defiantly agree with your last statement.
DeleteChapter 21, Pg. 279 "Now don't you be so confident, Mr. Jem, I ain't ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man..." This quote illustrates racism and also the theme of to keep fighting even though you know you are going to lose. In this section of the book, Jem is for certain that Atticus did a job well done in defending Tom Robinson. He thinks that Atticus and Tom have won the trial, but Reverend Skyes tries to bring up the point of the white Jury. Since this book takes place in the South and racism and prejudice take on a big role in the novel, Reverend Skyes brings up a good point that no African Americans have ever won a trial that included a white jury. I think that even though Atticus' facts and evidence that prove that Mr. Ewell did it, I think that the jury convicted Tom because if they did say the Tom was not guilty, they would've face the town's negativity on them for favoring a black man over a white woman. In this case, this greatly comes to similarity of the case of the Scottsboro Boys. It is the same concept and prejudice depends the boys of either life or death.
ReplyDeleteWhile this is all true, keep in mind that this case actually was taken from the Scotrsboro Boys case, Harper Lee had read about that case and I imagine felt so bad she put a very similar case in this book to show how upset and terrible this sort of thing is.
DeleteIn chapter 18, 19-year-old Mayella Ewell was called to the stand. She explains her father's story about the rape. She said that she'd been on the front porch that evening while her father was gone. She also said that Tom came to her and chocked her and as it was happening, she was hollering for help. The next thing she claimed to remember was her father standing over her. As Atticus questioned her, she felt offended when he called her “Miss” or “Ma’ma.” She began to be stubborn with him even though Atticus kept calm and respectful. Atticus was concerned on how Tom could have held her down and raped her if she'd been fighting as hard as she could. And if she'd been screaming, why didn't anyone come to see what was happening? Atticus then thought the idea that maybe she didn't scream until she saw her father in the window. She denied every question Atticus asked about her father. This makes me think that something else was up. I think that her father had something to do with this whole situation. Tom is an innocent man that did nothing wrong. He shouldn’t get the blame for this. I believe that since Mayellas father was a drunk one, he probably raped her and as she saw Tom, blamed it on him.
ReplyDeleteCh. 20 p.223 "Gentlemen, a court is no better than each man of you sitting before me on this jury. A court is only as sound as its jury, and a jury is only as sound as the MEN who make it up." Atticus said this to the jury during his final speech to them. I find this very ironic because he knows they are all white men and will vote against him, but, never the less, Atticus is giving it his best shot to win the case. I strongly disagree with the court system during the 1930's because it was only white men, no women or blacks. In my quote it says, “as the MEN who make it." This shows that not everyone was equal during that time period and men felt they were superior. Harper Lee did a very good job of being historically accurate in her, which makes the story even more lovable. The theme of inequality connects to the real world, because many people still feel that African-Americans are the inferior race and Caucasians are superior. This is obviously a ridiculous assumption to have, but the book teaches us what will happen if we think blacks are unequal.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20 Page 267 “Scout, it is nothing but Coca-Cola” Dill says this to Scout after he takes a sip out of Mr. Dolphus Raymond’s bag. Scout assumes because of gossip in town that Mr. Raymond’s bag contains whiskey and that he is addicted to it and that is why he hangs out with blacks. However, she is wrong, which you usually are when you believe gossip, and is then fascinated by him. I think this demonstrates a theme in the book that you shouldn’t judge people on their race and what you here about them because it is most likely true. While so far Mr. Raymond has only appeared once I feel he is a very important character because he explains that theme to Scout but in his own way and more. He says he acts like it for the people of Maycomb because he knows it confuse him if they knew he hung out with blacks on his own accord. So he saves them the trouble. I think this is wise and I can relate to this, I don’t care what other people think about me as long as I am living and happy why should I care what others think. Sadly I don’t think Scout fully understands what he was saying I think it will stay with her.
ReplyDeleteChapter 19, Page 256-257: "As Tom Robinson gave his testimony, it came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world... But she said he took advantage of her, and when she stood up she looked at him as if he were dirt beneath her feet." I think it's absolutely incredible that Scout picked up on this. In fact, I didn't even pick up on this until Scout herself pointed it out. What Scout says about Mayella not having friends, maybe not even knowing what having a friend is like. I think it's absolutely heartbreaking. I can't imagine what it would be like to be by yourself all the time with no one to talk to. If I was her, I'd definitely be kind of desperate for company too. If I was Mayella and living in this time period, and I was basically shunned from the rest of society because of my family's economic status, I'd take any company I could get.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20, page 268
ReplyDeleteIn this part of the chapter Dill and Scout are outside talking to Mr. Raymond when he says:
"...I'm not much of a drinker, but you see they could never, never understand that I live like I do because that's the way I want to live."
This stuck out to me because this book and mostly about growing up, and here Mr. Raymond seems to be teaching Dill and Scout a lesson about living life the way they would want to and not how other people would want you to. People think that Mr. Raymond is a drinker but all that is in his paper bag is a soda. He drinks it out of the bag because he wants to. Scout doesn't seem to want to be such a girly girl and maybe thats the way she'll grow up, maybe thats the way she will live her life.
Chapter 21, page 279: “… Reverend, but don’t fret, we’ve won it,” he answered wisely. “ … Now don’t you be so confident, Mr. Jem, I ain’t ever seen a jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man…” When Jem, Scout and Dill had finished eating dinner and returned to the courthouse, Jem was talking to Reverend Sykes about what happened while they were gone. The first quote by Jem shows how he is very confident that they will win the case, and how he thinks that there is no way that they can lose. He is talking almost as if they already won the case. Reverend Sykes is telling him not to be so confident about it. It seems like he already knows that they will lose the case. When the verdict is announced, Reverend Sykes acts as if he knew it was coming, while Jem on the other hand was extremely shocked. It’s really sad how a black man has never won a case over a white man. They are not being judged based on the evidence and testimonies, but by the color of their skin. This is an example of the reoccurring theme of racism and discrimination.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20,Page 272,"What was evidence of her offense? Tom Robinson, a human being...Tom Robinson was her daily reminder of what she did. What did she do? She tempted a Negro."As said by Atticus. In this quote Atticus describes the faults of Ms. Mayella is not on her part, but rather a victim of cruel poverty and ignorance. Atticus compares her to every child where she she tried to put the evidence of her offense away from her. Atticus also puts Tom Robinson as Ms. Mayella's reminder of her faults. I can relate this to Holden Caufield and his faults. Holden throughout the book continues to struggle communicating with the people he knows and because of this he runs into immature situations which continue to drive him away from people he loves and his teenage desires and emotions soon take over their actions and again don't benefit him.
ReplyDeleteChapter 18 page 242
ReplyDelete"Atticus got up grinning but instead of walking to the witness stand... Then he walked slowly across the room to the windows" This quote doesn't show a theme but it shows how descriptive Harper Lee is. I can picture myself sitting where Scout and Jem, watching Atticus ask questions to Mayella. I really liked this chapter in the book because the children get to watch Atticus do his job. I also liked how everyone in town was there to watch the trial
Chapter 19 page 265
ReplyDelete"It was just him that I couldn't stand," Dill said... "That old Mr. Glimer doing' him thataway, taking so hateful to him." Dill said this when Scout brought him outside of the courtroom because he started to cry. I thought this scene showed Dill's innocence. He didn't really understand that Mr. Glimer was being mean to Tom due to racism. Dill realizes that it wrong but not that the real problem is racism. He thinks that everyone should be treated equal just like Atticus treats people. This kind of makes me think of little kids, how they don't care if someone is different they still want to be their friend. I guess this shows the theme of innocence and growing up.
It most definitely shows the theme of innocence. Even though Dill acts grown up by sticking with Jem and saying that Scout and him are married, he is still a child that doesn't fully understand the world and just wants everyone to be happy. It reminds me of when he explains why he runs away it was a reason many a child has thought of that their parents would be better off wiht out them when thats not true.
DeleteIn Chapter 19 on page Atticus called the defendant, Tom Robinson to the stand to testify. Tom explained that he passed Mayella Ewell's home every day on his way to work for Mr. Link Deas. Tom said that he would always tip his hat to Mayella, and one day she asked him to come inside the fence and chop up a chiffarobe for her. Scout soon said on page 218 “It came to me that Mayella Ewell must have been the loneliest person in the world. She was even lonelier than Boo Radley.” Scout also claimed she had no friends what so ever. She couldn't have black friends because her dad was racist and she was to pitiable for any white ones. In my opinion I believe Mayellas father has to something to do with this. I’m pretty sure that if she didn’t, her father would have done something bad to her.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your last statement and while most of us don't like Mayella I think we should take into account her father and the life she has. What she did wasn't right but there is a reason for it. Abuse is a hard thing to deal with and if she had gone to someone I don't they would have helped her
DeleteChapter 21. "Guilty...guilty...guilty...guilty..." This phrase on page 282 is the responses to the judge polling the jury. I feel like this one sentence alone could be considered the climax of this book. When i read this, I remembered all of the talk of this case from everyone in town. I remembered Scout punching Walter Cunningham and her cousin Francis, for the comments they made about Atticus concerning this case. I couldn't imagine what must have been going through Atticus' head right before this was said. In chapter 11, where Jem is forced to read to Miss Dubose, Jem was tought about courage. Atticus justified Jem's requirement to read beacuse he wanted Jem to see waht real courage was. In this chapter, Atticus shows the same courage that Miss Dubose did. Atticus knew that he most likely wouldn't win the case, but he said he wouldn't be a man if he didnt try. Although at the end of the chapter Atticus walks out of the courtroom alone and quickly, I'm sure he isn't at all ashamed of himself for trying to defend Tom.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more. You knew this was probably going to happen, but you wished it didn't. I felt hatred towards everyone in the jury after seeing this because I just imagine their lifeless expressions on their faces, and the stupid disgusted look when ever they look at poor Tom Robinson.
DeleteChapter 18 page 251,"When Atticus turned away from Mayella he looked like his stomach hurt, but Mayella's face was a mixture of terror and fury." This was written after Atticus had been questioning Mayella Ewell for a while. Mayella didn't answer many of the questions before this either. This shows that Atticus is finally getting to Mayella and if was smart then they would see what Atticus was doing and that the evidence was already showing that Tom may win. However, I don't think Tom will win just because the jury is all white. This also brings up the theme of racism again because the jury will say that Tom is guilty just because he is black.
ReplyDeleteThat is something that has been on my mind even though the evidence clearly states that Tom is innocent it wont matter because the jury is all white. Atticus knew that from the beginning but he still was a stunning lawyer and tried to make a difference.
DeleteBrendan I agree with what you are saying. Throughout the whole trial I couldn't help but feel that no what the evidence, the jury what still rule Tom Robinson guilty because they are racist. i am trying to keep a bit of hope for Tom but his chances are not looking to good with an all white jury. This trial reminds me of the trial of the Scottsboro Boys who were unfairly convited of rape with no evidence, just the word of a white person.
DeleteChapter 20, Pg. 267: “Mr. Raymond sat up against the tree trunk…Just plain Coca-cola?” This quote is from when Mr. Raymond asked Scout and Dill not to tell anyone that he doesn’t actually drink whiskey because it would ruin his reputation. I get where Mr. Raymond is coming from but I don’t think he should be ashamed of who he is. If people know about the Coke maybe they will have mixed feelings about it but it isn’t any of their business anyways. Mr. Raymond hangs out with black people because they are more relatable to him and just because he does this, he shouldn’t be looked down upon. This is a perfect example of the negative effects of racism on an individual because the people of Maycomb make many judgments based on race. In our school today many people make judgments by who you hang out with and this isn’t fair because everyone is equal and should be thought of equally. Would you like it f somebody was judging you negatively by who you were friends with? One, that wouldn’t be fair to the person you are hanging out with just the colored people in Mr. Raymond’s situation and two, you are allowed to be friends with whoever you want.
ReplyDeleteJonah, I agree with you completely. I like how you made the connection to our school because I know that most of us have been through this at some point in our lives.
DeleteChapter 21 Page 278 “ If Mr. Finch don’t wear you out, I will- get in that house, sir!”
ReplyDeleteThis is when Cal is bringing the children home from the court. As you can tell she is furious, this backs up Atticus’s statement that she is harder on them then a mother and it backs up my idea that Aunt Alexandra is not needed because Cal takes care of everything. Also if Aunt Alexandra really wanted too do all the work Cal does she would and wouldn’t just say she could. Cal amazes me in how much she cares about the children, they aren’t her children and they are white. It is one thing I will never understand is that black nannies took such good care of white children only to have them grow up racist and hate the people who raised them (now I’m not saying this happened to every child but a majority did.) I can relate to worrying about other peoples safety, while I don’t have any younger sibling when I am with family friends and they have younger siblings I feel responsible to look after them when there parents aren’t around. For example my friend, his brother (also my friend) and I were home alone and his brother got really angry and decided to hide from us. My friends brother then decided to play a trick on us and open and close the front door when we were upstairs so we thought he left, we searched the house couldn’t find him (it was nighttime by the way.) Even though he wasn’t my brother we were so close that I felt obligated if he went missing it was one of the scariest moments of my life. Because of that experience I can understand why Cal is so worked up about the kids being missing.
Chapter 21 page 282 " guilty...guilty...guilty....Jem: his hands were white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each "guilty" was a separate stab between them." I think that we all knew that Jury's verdict would be guilty, but Jem was so confident that Atticus would win the case so he was so crushed when the Jury said guilty. I think this was most upsetting to Jem then anyone else because he was so sure and confident about his father and the juries decision. I feel that after this Jem will understand that this case wasn't about evidence but race and how the people of Maycomb discriminate others and would put someone that is obviously innocent in jail because of he is colored. If it was a white man things would probably be different. I'm glad that our world today isn't as racist as before and that things like verdicts aren't based on a persons race but actual evidence.
ReplyDeleteCh. 21 p. 236 "It aint fittin for children to hear..." yelled Calpurnia at Jem and Scout as their walking home for supper. Calpurnia yelling at Scout displays the theme of growing up. Calpurnia is about to yell at Jem and Scout, but she trials off. I think she realized that eventually they would have learned about the trial and a black man being accused of raping a woman and their father was even the defense attorney. I respect Calpurnia because she is a great teacher to Jem and Scout, and that is why Atticus has keeps her around. If she felt that Jem and Scout going to the court was a terrible sin, she may have used corporal punishment. But she just yelled at them, because she couldn't let Jem and Scout think they could get away with whatever they wanted. Deep down inside I think Calpurnia was proud they loved their father so much and would risk getting in trouble to see what his job was like. This shows the importance of family and growing up. Having a family and people to talk to is important. In the ‘Catcher in the Rye’ by J.D. Salinger, Holden doesn’t talk to his family or any close friends. This causes him to become mentally and physically sick, or a psychosomatic illness. Without a family, we do not feel loved and there is not many important people in our lives. Your family is your first teaches and, like in the novel, Jem and Scout learn everything from Atticus even things that people may say are to inappropriate for their age.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21,Page 226,"Judge, I-this note is from my sister. She says my children are missing, haven't turned up since...I...could you-" As said by Atticus. In this quote we begin to see Scout and Jems sly and sneakiness which allow them to sneak out and escape trouble. We also begin to see these qualities early in the chapter when they sneak over to the Radley's home and see through the window in the midst of the night. I can relate this to Odysseus when he escapes from many of his tricky situations. For example, when Odysseus go to the Cyclops and accidentally get trapped, he finds ways to escape and soon trick the Cyclops into opening the door stone. Furthermore, in comparison to Jem and Scout, they both are back fired later on by these actions and accept the punishments, but still do not learn from their mistakes.
ReplyDeleteSorry, but my page number is incorrect and should be 276.
DeleteChapter 18 page 247 "'It's an easy question Miss Mayella, so I'll try again. Do you remember him beating you about the face?' Atticus's voice had lost it's comfortableness; he was speaking in his arid, detached professional voice. 'Do you remember him beating you about the face?'
ReplyDelete'I don't recollect if he hit me. I mean yes I do, he hit me.'" This testimony really made me wonder if Mayella was telling the truth or not. If her testimony, what she told Mr. Tate and Mr. Ewell, was true, I don't think this would have been a very difficult question. She makes it sound very annoying and strenuous question to answer, to the court. However, it could be argued that she was just nervous to be on the stand. It can fraught to sit there and be grilled with questions.
Also, I found a picture of Mayella when i was looking online at different To Kill A Mockingbird site. It is cool that she looks exactly as I imagined her! http://images.wikia.com/tkam/images/7/75/Mayella_Ewell.jpg
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DeleteLauryn, when I was reading I was thinking the same thing. I think if something like that happened to her she would remember since it’s not something easy to forgot. I understand she might have been nervous but I still think if that happened to someone they would want to see the person that did it convicted guilty and wouldn't stop at anything until they were.
DeleteChapter 20 page 271
ReplyDelete"This case is as simple as black and white." I chose this quote because, even though we already knew that the trial was based on race, Atticus was the only one who was brave enough to say this to the court. He believes that everyone should be treated equal and even asked the jury to do the right thing. While I was reading Atticus' speech it makes me think of how we were always told to do the right thing, and that some people don't always agree with others idea of appropriate. This also reminds me of a quote that my 6th grade English teacher would say: "Be the change you wish to see". I think Atticus is trying to do this in the courtroom when he is defending Tom.
I noticed the significance in this quote also, Melissa. I think that Atticus is brave for many reasons, and by him saying this, it just further justifies that he actually is brave. It takes a very strong and brave person to say what he said, and I think that he did the right thing by saying it.
DeleteMelissa I totally agree with you and I really like your connection to your english teacher. When I found out the verdict of the case it was baffling to me. Even a 7 year old like Scout could see how innocent Tom was but a bunch of whites with tunnel vision couldn't. I wonder how Atticus feels after working so hard and showing all of that evidence. He must feel that the jurors are malevolent, and racist.
DeleteChapter 21 summary. We are revealed in this chapter that Tom Robinson is found guilty. Tom Robinson's fate was sealed right when the case started. The people in the courtroom had been brainwashed by racism. He could never be proved innocent due to this. These people also only heard what they wanted to hear. Their mind was not open and they had only one thought one their mind: Tom Robinson is guilty.
ReplyDeleteI strongly agree with Tim and I would just like to add one more thing. I agree with what you said about people being brainwashed by racism and because of this i believe that Tom Robinson's fate was sealed even before the case started.
DeleteBrendan, I agree with you 100% I don't think Tom Robinson had a chance because of the racism going on. I think everyone knew he wasn't guilty but it was white woman word against a black mans. And at the time what Tom Robinson was saying seemed to not matter to some in the end because of the color of his skin.
DeleteChapter 20, Page 260-261: "It occured to me that in their own way, Tom Robinson's manners were as good as my Atticus's. Until my father explained it to me later, I did not understand the subtlety of Tom's predicament; he would not have dared strike a white woman under any circumstances and expect to live long, so he took the first opportunity to run-a sure sign of guilt." Scout says this after Tom says what happens with Mr. Ewell. I think it's nice that Atticus explains things to his children in a way that he knows they'll understand. I also think, as it's been stated before, that Scout is very educated and smart. She's also an insightful child who notices things that most people wouldn't. This makes me wonder whether or not Atticus asks Scout's opinion on things or not, because I'm sure she has answers for him.
ReplyDeleteThis is Chapter 19... sorry!
DeleteKathryn, I strongly agree with you I think its great that Atticus shares things with his children that not many parents do. I think when he tells them things like this it helps them for the future and makes them more aware of people and what goes on in the world. Also I think Scout is the type of kid that can handle hearing about this stuff since she always has an opinion on things. Scout defiantly has an opinions not most kids her age have nor would understand.
DeleteChapter 19, This whole chapter was about Tom being in the witness chair. He tells his whole account of what happened. What he says totally contradicts what Mayella says. But of course, even with the evidence who do you think the jury will believe? Mayella. Even with all of the evidence so far pointing that Tom is not guilty, I definately think that Tom will be pronounced guilty. Once again, the theme of racism appears. Also i found this article on the Scottsboro Boys that explains the trial really well. racism.http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/FTrials/scottsboro/SB_acct.html
ReplyDeleteCh 19 pg. 222 "She reached up an' kissed me 'side of th' face... Mr. Finch, an' I say lemme pass, but just when I say it Mr. Ewell yonder Hollered through th' window." this testimony from Tom Robinson directly contradicts testimony by Mayella Ewell and shows that at least one of them is lying under oath and that is a serius offense along with the fact that it states a feasible alternate set of events
ReplyDeleteChapter 19 page 263-264 "Mr. Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. 'You're a mighty good fellow, it seems- did all this for not one penny?' 'Yes suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more'n the rest of 'em-' 'You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her?' Mr. Gilmer seemed ready to rise to the ceiling." I think that this shows that Mr. Gilmer feels bad for Tom Robinson. Tom is just trying his best to stay out of jail, but he still feels bad for Mayella, who might just put him in jail. Mr. Gilmer obviously doesn't think that Tom show feel bad. Nevertheless, Mr. Gilmer should consider Mayella's family situations and her whole life. She doesn't have an easy life and I can understand how anyone might feel bad for someone like that.
ReplyDeleteChapter 18 page 252 "Somehow, Atticus had hit her hard in a way that was not clear to me, but it gave him no pleasure to do so." Atticus had just finished questioning Mayella and he had questioned her real good. So good, that it angered Mayella and half the tim she couldn't even answer. This shows that Atticus did his job perfectly but he didn't feel good about it. He didn't like having to make Mayella so angry, and this shows some of his great compassion. Now, real lawyers today have this stereotypical look as a very boring guy with no emotions or expressions. So to see Atticus showing these kind of emotions to the OTHER side of the case, it really makes you respect him.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21, Pg. 282: “I shut my eyes… and his shoulders jerked as if each “guilty” was a separate tab between them. This is what Scout is thinking when the judge is reading off the jury’s decisions. When I read this I couldn’t even believe how stupid all of the jurors are. Deep down I knew that they would most likely rule Tom guilty but with all of the evidence that proved his innocence I had a sliver of hope. This is a great example how racist people can be, that even when they knew the black man was innocent, they still ruled him guilty because of his skin color. I can only imagine how terrible Tom Robinson must feel, an innocent hard working man, ruined by a selfish person. It is almost too much to bear. Thankfully today most trials are not decided by race but there are still some that are. Those people that say “guilty” just because of skin color, should think how they would feel if the same thing was done to themselves. The families of the people unfairly convicted must be devastated knowing that their loved ones are innocent. It is a good thing that Helen Robinson has a loving community because if she didn’t, she wouldn’t be able to survive.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20 page 268, "Why do you do like you do?" This was said by Scout to Mr. Raymond after they discovered that he drinks Coke, not whiskey. I think this has to do more with growing up than anything. We all deal with this sometime in our lives. It is just about understanding or misunderstanding. At some point in our lives, we go through a phase where we make immediate judgments about people and don't always think it through. Everyone thought Mr. Raymond was a bad guy but as soon as Scout and Dill got to know him we realized that he wasn't so bad. Sometimes we all need to take the time to get to know someone a little better.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20 page 271 "'The state has not produced one iota of medical evidence that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place. It has relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant. The defendant is not guilty, but somebody in this courtroom is.'" This closing argument shows how tenacious of a lawyer Atticus is. He always stands his ground and is always confident. Atticus wouldn't lie. He speaks the truth. This way, the entire courtroom will consider the proven information, instead of the assumptions.
ReplyDeleteI agree and this also brings up the topic of Atticus's courage again. courage is a big theme in this book and Atticus is a great example of it. He does stand his ground, as you said Lauryn. This is definitely true and shows just how brave and courageous he is. It also shows how much he is willing to do to win this case.
DeleteChapter 21 page 277, "Well, you've heard it all, so you might as well hear the rest." This was said by Atticus to the kids right as the jury left. In the most basic sense, this brings up the theme of growing up again. Atticus understands that all of the kids were old enough and mature enough to hear the main part of the trial so he allows them to come back and hear the end.
ReplyDeleteYes, Atticus allowes his children to hear the trial. Do you believe that this can relate to him being a great father, that he knows his children are being raised well enough to understand these kinds of situations?
DeleteYes I guess it does in a way because he is understanding and patient enough to think about the situation. In other cases, some parents may not even look at the situation and just send their kids straight home. So yes, Atticus is a great father through his understanding especially.
DeleteChapter 20 page 268 "It ain't honest...but you see they could never, never understand that i live like i do because that's the way i want to live." Mr.Dolphus Raymond explains to Dill and Scout that he does not hide his drink in a sack because he is drinking liquor but because he is using it as a mask. Like the colored people of the poem "We Wear The Mask", Mr.Raymond does too. He is simply a man that has a different lifestyle then the "regular" whites of Maycomb. People view him as different, in a bad way. He simply just lives the way he wants to live. He doesn't care what others think of him. It is wrong that he wears a mask to keep allowing people to believe he is doing something wrong.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21 page 279 "Now don't you be so confident, Mr. Jem, I ain't ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man." In this part of the chapter Reverend Sykes is clarifying to Jem that no colored man has ever won a trial. There is nothing to it, but the fact that the man is colored. Don't we all have equal rights? Does it really matter who's white or not? It is sad to know that during the time of the Great Depression, people still treated each other in a horrifying way.
Ch 18 Pg 251 Mayella Says "That nigger yonder took advantage me'an if you fine fancy gentlemen don't wanna do nothin about it then you're all stnkin cowards..." After her speech she starts to cry. I get her reason to cry because of the really bad spot she is in at the moment. At the time she was also refusing to answer questions. It seems that she is just giving up on the case, and she won't win the case. It's hard being in the spot she is in, another example of putting yourself in someone else's shoes. People may criticize her for giving up but putting yourself in her shoes, you may want to do something similar.
ReplyDeleteCh 19 Pg 265 Tom Robinson speaking "No suh,I's scared I'd be in court, just like I am now. Scared of arrest,scared you'd have to face up to what you'd did? No suh, scared I'd hafta face up to what I didn't do." This is a moment where I feel really bad for Tom because he is being pressured to answer questions to a crime that he didn't commit. Another moment where it is tough to be in the shoes of someone, this time it's Tom. Even though the tension is always high in and near the court room, while I was reading this qoute in the book for the first time, it seemed like Tom was pretty calm when he was saying this, because he knows that he didn't do the crime he was being accused of doing.
Ch 20 Pg 269 "Atticus says cheatin’ a colored man is ten times worse than cheatin’ a white man.” This statement is totally true because colored people have to deal with a lot of pain in their lives already. White people are more powerful than black people at the time. White people don't take it as personal as black people and it would hurt black people more. Black people had to deal with racism and hate every day of their lives and cheating won't help make it better. Black people are defenseless and white people have all the back-up in the world. (A.K.A. courts and judges)
Ch 21 Pg 277 “Mister Jem, don’t you know better’n to take your little sister to that trial?” Calpurnia Said. I really,really liked this quote because this shows how much of a mom Calpurnia is to jem and Scout. Calpurnia is known as a nanny to Jem and Scout, but jem and Scout probably think of her as more of a mother that they really never had. She has become part of their family and their lives. I think after Atticus, Calpurnia is the most influential person in the book.
Also, a connection in Ch 21 is that people grow up with a nanny in their homes, and they become a part of their families. I know many people who have someone like Calpurnia in their homes.
DeleteChapter 21 Page
ReplyDelete"You think they'll acquit him that fast?"... Atticus opened him mouth to answer, but shut it and left us. When I was reading this I was surprised how interested the children were in the trial. Atticus seem to be surprised that Jem had asked a question like that. I really enjoyed this and the past couple of chapters. I like how everyone was just silently waiting. I feel like this is the only part in the book where not much is going on but yet so much is happening.
Chapter 19 page 263/264 "You're a mighty good fellow, it seems-did all this for not one penny?" "Yes, sug. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more'n the rest of 'em-"...Here you can't help but love what Tom Robinson says. He is a black man that almost no one cares about, and is used to do hard work for no money, and he says he felt sorry for the white girl. He did a very kind thing, that most people would not even think about doing. There was no incentive too and he probably could have done other things, but he decides to help someone who clearly has it better then him and he still felt bad for her.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21 page 283 "'Miss Jean Louise?' I looked around. They were all standing. All around us, and in the balcony on the opposite wall, the Negroes were getting to their feet. Reverend Sykes's voice was as distant as Judge Taylor's: 'Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father's passin'.'" The people in the courtroom have a lot of respect for Atticus because he defended his client well and he spoke nothing but the truth. He worked very hard to make sure that people had their facts straight. So, when Reverend asks Scout to stand, she finally understands how much her father's work means to many of the people in Maycomb.
ReplyDeleteChapter 18 "In Maycomb county, it was easy to tell when someone bathed regularly, as opposed to yearly lavations..." This was said about Mayella during the trial. I found this quote so surprising. I knew that some of the people weren't the cleanest, like the Ewells, but this was even more surprising. Today, I know most people feel strange if they don't take a shower for a days, I can't even imagine only taking a real shower only a few times a year. I know they would wash themselves down, but still. I guess I would have been used to it if that was how I lived all my life.
ReplyDeleteI thought the same thing when i read this Charlotte. I guess that Mayella never knew the feeling of being clean and that is why she might not bathe as often. Nowaday if someone bathed yearly it would be made fun of that person would be an outcast. Im surprised that the Ewell's are not very sick from being so dirty. Today they would probably have many infections and diseases.
DeleteChapter 20 page 274 "But there is one way this country in which all men are created equal...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." This quote is great because it's so true that you just can't dissagree. If America was born on freedom and equal rights and especially our justice system, then how can courts not be equal for all. This case would be nothing if Tom Robinson was white but because he looks different people start pointing fingers, and in a place where people all should get the same treatment, then that just isn't right. It's like today when people choose the black guy over the white guy in basketball just because of how he looks rather then how he plays. It is a problem that still is around, although not as bad, but one that hopefully one day people can overcome.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20, page 270: “he’s just gone over the evidence,” Jem whispered “and we’re gonna win, Scout. I don’t see how we can’t. He’s been at it ’bout five minutes. He made it as plain and easy as-well, as plain and easy as- well, as I’da explained it to you. You could’ve understood it, even.” I thought when Jem and Scout were talking about this I thought Jem was starting to show how grown up and mature he has become. Throughout the story we see Jem growing up and I really I think this quote shows that he did grow up. The trial was on a very mature topic and Jem saying this really showed that he wasn’t a little kid anymore. There are kids today that can talk more mature to people then others. I think Jem is going to be one of those kids since he has been through lots of tough experience that not all kids face.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20 page 269, "Cry about the simple hell people give other people -- without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people give colored folks, without even stopping to think that they're people, too." This is said by Mr. Raymond when Scout takes Dill outside after he was crying. Mr. Raymond brings up a very good point when he says this. He really emphasizes on the fact that it is unfair for white people to be treated black people unequally when they are people too. The fact that African Americans "are people too" is brought up many times in this book. For example, later in chapter 20 on page 273 when Atticus is making his speech to the jury, he says, "You know the truth, and the truth is this: some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some Negro men are not to be trusted around women -- black or white. But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men." As you can see in Atticus' speech, he also agrees with Mr. Raymond that African Americans are people too and should be treated just the same.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21 page 282, "'Guilty...guilty...guilty...guilty...' I peeked at Jem: his hands were white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each "guilty" was a separate stab between them." When Judge Taylor read out "guilty", I was somewhat shocked but I was also expecting it. I felt really bad for Jem and Scout because they had faith in their father and were sure they were going to win, especially Jem. I felt really bad for Atticus too because he made some great points in his speech and made it clear that Tom Robinson was innocent. Atticus put so much time into winning this trial and like he said earlier in the book, "Courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. It's knowing you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do." Attisuc tried even when he knew he would lose. We all knew Tom Robinson was innocent, even all the characters in the book. This comes to show you just how unfairly blacks were treated and how much they were disliked.
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ReplyDeleteChapter 19 "Tom was a black-velvet Negro, not shiny, but soft black velvet. The whites of his eyes shone in his face, and when he spoke we saw flashed of his teeth." This is Scout's description of Tom Robinson during the trial. One of the best things Harper Lee does well is her imagery she uses. This is just an example of the way she doesn't say things in the simplest way. The way she writes, I can really picture things perfectly, much better then if she just said what it looked like. It makes the book much more exciting and gives the book more depth. This is just one reason I love "To Kill a Mockingbird" so much.
ReplyDeletech 20 pg 229 "I could say hell with 'em, I don't care if they don't like it. I do say I don't care if they don't like it, right enough- but I don't say the hell with 'em, see?" Mr. Dolphus tells this to Scout and Dill when he tries to explain the difference between completely ignoring someone else's views and completely ignoring someone else's views while appearing not to which can mean the difference between dislike and social exile.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21 page 279 "Now don't you be so confident, i ain't ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man..." Now we all probably already knew this and would expect this, but after reading the case and what the jury had heard I get absolutly disgusted by this. As humans were all created equal and people like Atticus know that but the other mindless, senseless, people in the jury know nothing but hate and what they see with there eyes. Tom Robinson couldn't have been more innocent and they all know it but they don't want him to be free because he's not "as good as them" so they dont care about anything they heard. I also love that Jem is like a kid and he even knows that Tom's innocent, just showing you that sometimes grownups are more ignorant then kids.
ReplyDeleteChapter 21, page 283: “Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’.” When I read this I thought this is the first time blacks and white were somewhat on the same page in Maycomb. I remember when Cal brought Jem and Scout to church and Lula walked up to Cal asking why they were there and they shouldn’t be here. Now at the trial the group of black people stood up as Atticus walked out as a sign of respect. When I read that it made me really happy to see how much appreciation they were giving Atticus. I think Atticus really deserved it, since he was the only white person that stepped up to help a black man. Also I don’t think Scout relized how much people really appreciate Atticus. In chapters passed Scout said how her dad was embarrassing and think when she sees this she realized that her dad is not embarrassing he is an important man to Maycomb and its people.
ReplyDeleteChapter 20 "Because you're children and you can understand it," Mr. Raymond says this to Scout when she asks why he shared his biggest secret with them. I love this quote, because it is totally true. People underestimate what children can do or understand. In earlier parts of the book, it is explained times when Atticus tells the children things most parents wouldn't tell their children. Atticus is a great father, because, like Mr. Reynolds, he understands children. He treats them as more adults then others do. Not only does he give them more trust, he is teaching them a great lesson. Now if Scout and Jem have their own children, they will be great parents, and teachers, just like their fathers.
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