Consider how chapter twenty-four presents the ideas of hypocrisy, prejudice and dignity.
In Maycomb, the town in which Harper Lee’s book ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ is set, hypocrisy and prejudice are prevalent in most of its citizens. Although many of the characters morals are admirable, you soon realise that what people say and what people do are not always related. Mrs Grace Merriweather falls into this category. She is seen to be ‘the most devout lady in Maycomb’ and her eyes ‘always filled with tears when she considered the oppressed’ yet she is just as prejudiced to the black citizens or ‘darky’s’ as the majority of the ladies of the ‘Maycomb Alabama Methodist Episcopal Church South’ are.
Mrs Merriweather appears to be the most hypocritical character in this chapter. Throughout, she contradicts herself – she tells Scout about ‘those poor Mrunas’ and how she made a ‘pledge in her heart’ to help them and then shortly after she complains about how ‘there’s nothing more distracting then a sulky darky.’ This is particularly unfair as the reason the ‘darky’s’ are sulky is because of their own injustice. However, the most hypocritical thing she does is criticize Atticus for defending Tom Robinson whilst in his house, eating his food and in front of his sister and his daughter. Scout does not realise, but Miss Maudie and Aunt Alexandra do. Although this chapter shows us how Aunt Alexandra is slowly changing, she does not say anything because she is a ‘Fine Folk.’ Miss Maudie, on the other hand, says to Mrs Merriweather ‘His food doesn’t stick going down, does it?’ This shows us a lot about Miss Maudie’s character. She, like Atticus tries to be the ‘same on the street as she is at home.
