Maycomb County

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From misjudgments to social standings, these topics are shown in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. The book takes place in Maycomb County, Alabama in the 1930s. Maycomb County is stocked with those who tend to not be open minded and jump to conclusions about others. This story vaguely uses the subject of certain people’s lives in the area, people such as Arthur Radley and Mayella Ewell. These two individuals are not seen as normal in many ways by the eyes of those around them, causing many negative actions to erupt into their day-to-day life. When certain individuals are viewed as “different” in society, they tend to be shut out by others. Boo Radley is a very loyal and compassionate man, but no one seems to be able to recognize that.…show more content…
This causes the neighborhood to question about his existence and make rumors. These rumors are mostly horror stories and told to children in order to make sure they don’t take a step into his porch. Prejudging him as a scary man, Jem and Scout believe “Boo was about six-and-a-half feet tall...dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch…his hands were bloodstained …There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time” (Lee 16). The word “jagged” connotes to irregularity. When a person is “six-and-a half feet tall”, has their “eyes popped” and “drooled most of the time” they are seen as a very unusual and different person. Therefore, his intimidating physical descriptions makes everyone stay away and shut him out of their lives. Throughout all of the major events that occurs in Maycomb, Boo Radley…show more content…
Mayella is from a white family but lives by the garbage dump (“Dirt Road”) near the African American settlement. During the trial, Jem observes that the Ewell’s “..check was far from enough to feed the family, and there was a suspicion that Papa drank it up anyway-...the younger children had perpetual colds…she’s a victim of poverty and ignorance” (244~245). “Victim” connotes to abuse. There are many aspects in which Mayella is receiving abuse from. Her father, Bob Ewell, “drank” up all the family’s money mostly for buying alcoholic beverages. This causes him to be physically and emotionally abusive towards his daughter, making her also feel shut out from him. The area which she lives in is abused with “poverty and ignorance”, and therefore is not seen as a normal white family in society. Others hearing about the Ewell’s living conditions makes them feel pity towards the family, so they show the equal amount of respect that a normal white family receives. However, they don’t realize that Mayella is actually a 2 faced person and should not deserve any pity. Since they live near the African American settlement, they do not want to be looked upon as people that are as poor as a black man. In order for the family to have a higher stand in social class, they treat African Americans with a lot of aggression. This includes violence, bad use of language, lying, and even framing an innocent black

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