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Rhiannon Noble

Mrs. Finn

English 9 H

13 March 2019

To Kill A Mockingbird Essay

Many people think that coming of age is the main theme of To Kill A Mockingbird, well

then they must be blind, because the overall theme of this novel is most definitely racism.

Conflict over racism drives a lot of the most memorable scenes of the novel. Racial conflict can

be displayed throughout the story, and how the characters learn from their experiences of racism.

Prejudice is shown throughout the whole novel though, because it’s not just race that is making

these biased white people discriminate against people, it’s also other factors like their class, age,

and personal beliefs. It creates a lot of the conflict, and overall represents how prejudice is not

right. Prejudice in general, but particularly racism is a core part of To Kill A Mockingbird.

The novel contains several racist acts. Scout asks father, Atticus, what the word

“n*gger-lover” meant. Atticus explains, “n*gger-lover is just one of those terms that don’t mean

anything- like snot-nose. It’s hard to explain- ignorant, trashy people use it when they think

somebody is favoring them over and above themselves. It’s slipped into usage with people like

ourselves, when they want a common, ugly term to label somebody.” What Atticus says is

simply the truth about the majority of people in the town, especially the Ewells. He refers to the
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Ewells being ignorant, trashy, and selfish. This is proof how the antagonistic characters of To Kill

A Mockingbird were prejudiced to people who liked the black race.

Towards the middle of the story, there are other examples of prejudice. There’s a lot of

little things to notice in the book like how the courtroom was arranged with the people of color in

the balcony, and only whites allowed to sit up front. In addition, the jury was all white race, so

they could’ve easily all been very biased. These are just some minor examples of racial prejudice

throughout the novel. A very important quote, “There’s something in this world that makes men

lose their heads-they couldn’t be fair if they tried. In our courts, when it’s a white man’s word

against a black man’s, the white man always wins. They’re ugly but those are the facts of life.”

This reflects how times were back then, and even are still nowadays. In the justice system, the

people with power get their way no matter what the costs are, and in this case the people in

power were the Ewells because since Tom was black the jury didn’t believe him solely because

he was black. Prejudice is shown through the entire trial, and this quote sums up the entirety of

the book itself. It represents the meaning of prejudice by saying how it’s crazy to have biased

opinions without reason,which is literally is the definition of prejudice. Therefore, this quote is

exquisite example of prejudice.

All in all, To Kill A Mockingbird is a great book for showing very realistic examples of

racial injustice. This story represents how times were back in the 1930s, and shows how morals

will be learned through accepting the prejudice. To Kill A Mockingbird should be taught in

honors English in the 9th grade because it is a really good story that teaches about racism,
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coming of age, injustice, and other important overall themes. It should only be taught in honors

though because a lot of kids that don’t take honors should just be learning about smaller stories

about racial injustice. Also, this book might not be understood as well in younger grades

because kids under the age 14 are usually not aware of the issues in the novel. In conclusion, To

Kill A Mockingbird is a great book that tells a great story of prejudice and racism.