To Kill a Mockingbird Themes

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Ahmed El Wakeel                                                                                                                      1/1/2012

To Kill a Mockingbird Final Essay

There are many controversial novels that have been written and published throughout time; most of those were captivating, insightful and breathe-taking. Such novels always touch on significant and important controversial factors such as the portrayal of certain group, or hate crimes. But, the peculiar combination in a novel is when a family novel touches and illustrates a numerous amount of controversial factors in society. Such controversial factors may exist to this day and others were long dead. The novel that includes this very combination is the respectable Pulitzer Prize winner To Kill a Mockingbird by the magnificent and extremely talented author Harper Lee. To Kill a Mockingbird does focus on symbolizing and illustrating many notorious things in society either contemporary or not. Disregarding the mesmerizing plot of the novel, we can state that the author, Harper Lee, mainly focuses on signifying culture and society at that time which explains the fact that the novel had been numerously challenged by organizations and others to be removed from libraries or other places where the novel is obtainable and available to the people. In my opinion, the elements of this very book that touch on controversial issues are rape or other hate crimes, racist stereotypes, black discrimination and most fundamental of all, the class system in Maycomb. I see that all of these controversial elements are very insightful and captivating due to the fact that they are seen from a perspective of a little girl which shows how wrong these things; other than that, because they generally raise awareness about such fundamental things.

The very first point that is going to be thoroughly discussed and analyzed is going to be the portrayal of black people as oppressed and showing indirect racism towards the African Americans of Maycomb at the time the novel was set. There are two perspectives that this element of the novel can be analyzed with and used to explain the purpose of placing this controversial factor in this fascinating novel. The very first perspective is awareness; the element of illustrating the black people in Maycomb as oppressed and discriminated can be used to make awareness to the reader. This can ensure that the reader or the audience will be told and explained to how black people were treated at the time the novel was set in. This perspective raises awareness for the audience and the readers of what used to happen in the US or in certain parts at that specific period of time. Another different perspective that can be used to analyze or explain this controversial and notorious factor in the novel is preventing further discrimination or showing that something should have been done. In brief, the novel was narrated and told through the eyes of little girl; thus, the perspective and the opinion of the girl towards the Negro discrimination in Maycomb was that it had to stop, which is emotionally and mentally natural due to the fact that she is a minor and she also is the daughter of lawyer that defenses Negros. Moreover, this perspective of the movie can demonstrate how implementing this factor in the novel may have showed that things had to stop regarding the discrimination for the sake of everyone. The third and last perspective in which this factor can be seen with is just plain racism, hate and regarding Negro discrimination as an inappropriate topic to be writing about. Some people view the element of black people discrimination in this particular novel as Harper Lee just trying to stimulate hate, therefore they believe that this novel should have been removed from obtainable places but instead it was an awarded a Pulitzer in literature. In conclusion, a striking statement that can be made is that the controversial and divisive element in the novel which is Negro oppression and discrimination and portraying racism towards African Americans in the 1930s helped contribute to the magnificence of the novel and showing great controversy in American literature.

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The second a probably most significant factor portrayed in the novel is the class system. Without any dispute we can state that there has been a social underclass either regarding Negros or other members of society who are just plain appalling such as the Ewells or the Cunninghams. The element of having classes in this novel is very insightful and captivating, for class stimulates stereotypes and prejudice towards many people in the movie such as Negros. Lee approaches class from a more complex perspective, due to the fact that she demonstrates how issues regarding class or gender or race intensify ...

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