After Atticus is defeated in the trial when Tom Robinson is declared guilty, Reverend Sykes says to Scout, "Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father's passin'" (Lee 283). Reverend Sykes tells Scout to stand up to show respect for Atticus. Not only does Reverend Sykes commend Atticus with his standing sign of respect, but the rest of the courthouse does as well. The people in the courthouse admire Atticus' open mind, and his willingness to go against the conservative views of the rest of Maycomb. Even though he lost in the final verdict, Atticus did succeed in some things. He made the Maycomb community more aware about the definition of equality. He taught the audience how black people and white people all make the same mistakes and are created equal. He also taught the Maycomb people about assumptions, and the cruelty inside all of the assumptions these people make against black people. "-the evil assumption that all Negroes lie... But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men" (Lee 273). Atticus believes that black people do lie and make mistakes, but so do white people. This is not a matter of race, but a matter of human flaws. Atticus succeeded in making the people inside the courtroom realize the mistakes they all made about assuming that all black people are guilty over white people, and that everyone, no matter what race you are, are created equal.
Do you think people will view black people differently after this trial? If so, how? Do you think that people will view the Ewells differently after the trial? If so, in a positive or negative light?
Tom Robinson's trial doesn't seem different from any other of the "black vs. white" trials in Maycomb since all of them end in the same way. "I ain't ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man," (Lee 279) Reverend Sykes says to Jem and Scout. This hints that, when a black person is accused of a crime against a white person, the black person will always lose... just like Tom Robinson did. However, this trial is in its own way different. People are beginning to feel different about equality. Children like Scout, Jem, and Dill are feeling empathy for black people, and Mr. Link Deas, Tom Robinson's boss, shouts out in court that Tom is a good man. He followed what he knew to be right, but he was thrown out of court... like his voice was being silenced. He is the first example of someone breaking away from the mob of racism in Maycomb, and we can see that the disassembling of the mob is just beginning. I think that it will continue to fall apart as time passes and more people gain enough courage to leave the mob, and the children of the new generation become adults. Once this happens, as it eventually did in modern times, the mob will become smaller, and racism won't be as real as it was in the 30s.
ReplyDeleteTom Robinson's case I believe was like every other black vs. white trial in Maycomb in the way that whites always win, no matter how ill logical it is to support the white person. Atticus is persistent through out the case to help Tom, and the whole view of the black community in Maycomb. Though the out come of the case was sealed from the start we can see that Atticus was a determined lawyer to help Tom Robinson for a crime that he clearly did not do from the facts of the case. "But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men" (Lee 273). Most whites have a very wrong and prejudice idea of blacks, which is that they are always guilty if in court and for any crime in that matter. But towards the end of the case we see that people are growing an empathy for black people and have changed minds, which include Scout and Jem. If there are more people like Atticus who disapprove of racism and are working to stop it, I believe that racism will slowly come to an end in Maycomb County.
ReplyDelete- Irfan
ReplyDeleteThis is very educational content and written well for a change. It's nice to see that some people still understand how to write a quality post.!
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