Prejudice to Kill a Mockingbird Essay

Prejudice denotes a prejudgment and negative opinion formed without adequate knowledge or justification. Individuals who are prejudicial are often biased and act unfavourably to other groups, particularly those of differing race and socio-economic status. Ideas and themes about prejudice are strongly evoked through Harper Lee’s 1960 novel â€Å"To Kill a Mocking-bird† and the poem â€Å"The Child† by Valerie Church. â€Å"To Kill a Mocking-bird† explores the prejudices associated with the coloured and underprivileged community group in a small town of the central Alabama which contrasts to the simplistic nature of a mentally-disabled boy in â€Å"The Child†. Through the juxtaposition of ideas conveyed in both texts, audiences are confronted with a greater understanding of the differing aspects of prejudice. Racism is and continues to be one of the most common types of prejudice experienced and exercised within the international community. Traditionally, the importance of race and skin tones was believed to signify the wealth or superiority of an individual or group. Written in the 1960’s America, Lee’s novel concentrates on the negative impact and effect of the orthodox prejudices held against the coloured community. Derogative connotation to the minority black community as â€Å"niggers†, portray the constant racial prejudice experienced by them within the small town of. Although the protagonist family are of Anglo descent, they fall victims to racial prejudice in their attempt to defend a black person in the court of law. The importance of skin tone is expressed through imagery, where Atticus explains the need to symbolically â€Å"climb† into someone’s â€Å"skin† to consider the light of their circumstances. Further, the repetition of â€Å"nigger lover† connotes the negative attitude Atticus and the Finch family experiences in response to helping Tom Robinson, one of the mockingbirds in the text. Lee’s employment of the mockingbird as a motif symbolises the harmless and caring nature of the black community who â€Å"never annoy you† but are heavily prejudiced against simply because of the colour of their skin. As the salient theme within the text, â€Å"To Kill a Mocking-bird† highlights the dire impact of radical prejudice and the disparity between members of difference races within 1960’s America. Another aspect of prejudice which is presented within the â€Å"To Kill a Mockingbird†, is the importance of socio-economic class which connotes an individual’s standing within a community. Within the text, the town of Maycomb is divided into three distinct socio-economic classes from the well respected white working class, the â€Å"white trash† to the African American community. The classes are about the same as each other as they have the same type of people in each, the good and the bad. Scout soon realises, â€Å"there’s just one kind of folks. Folks†. Even the children in Maycomb are aware of the socio-economic class between the groups of people in the town. It is most noticed on the first day Scout went to school; Walter did not bring his lunch and Miss Caroline tried to lend him a quarter. As the Cunninghams did not borrow what they could not lend back, Walter refused and Miss Caroline became frustrated until Scout responded with â€Å"he’s a Cunningham† which reveals even adolescents in the community actively categorise individuals into stereotypes. Lee has used the freedom of the black community to portray a small town’s reaction to their freedom. Those from the black community fortunate enough to have an education were well respected as they had good jobs compared to the rest of the black community. There is a fourth social class briefly mentioned as there only a couple of them. Children of Dolphus Raymond, they are half black and half white. They do not fit in either the black nor white community as they have blood of the other race. As Jem says ‘Around here, once you have a drop of Negro blood that makes you all black’, refers to the townsfolk’s thoughts and beliefs on people with a black heritage. Physical and emotional separation is a prominent theme conveyed in both â€Å"The Child† and â€Å"To Kill a Mocking-bird†. Church’s â€Å"The Child† opens with the persona’s use of third person to recount their sight of a small boy with â€Å"an incomplete brain†. The use of the metaphoric connotation to the boy offers audiences the view that child is mentally- disadvantaged and is subject to prejudice of the general public with their â€Å"cruel eyes†. This representation emphasises the importance of physical appearance especially in a society which often judge and assess an individual by their exterior. As Church conveys that the boy experiences â€Å"mocking voice of the other boys†, this emphasises the importance of physical appearance to become accepted in the community even though traditionally, adolescents are presumed to be innocent and free of prejudice. Although physically, the young boy has a â€Å"simple exterior†, Church highlights that the boy is subject to prejudice due to his physical appearance which reveals his disabled nature. Further, this poem also highlights circumstances in which individuals deal with prejudices as the young boy reverts to smiling â€Å"simply at the onlookers†. Whilst â€Å"totally happy in his world†, Church use of imagery emphasises the positive responses to prejudice even though he is still physically separated from civilisation as he is standing â€Å"on the opposite kerb† being mocked by the other boys. The repetition of the young boy’s physical separation from the others assists in emphasising the physical aspect of prejudice. Valerie Church’s â€Å"The Child†, is an emotive poem which strongly addresses the physical nature of prejudice and the simplistic views by a young boy to combat issues of prejudice. Prejudice is both a physical and emotive concept which is prevalent within society. Harper Lee’s â€Å"To Kill a Mocking-bird† and Valerie Church’s â€Å"The Child† are texts which offer insight to the effect of prejudices based on both race and physical appearance. Both texts address the dire consequences of prejudicial acts and comments which continue to separate those in a society. Thus, the study of both texts has allowed audiences to gain a deeper and more extensive insight in the various aspects of prejudice. Word Count: 1,000Ã'Ž