¶ … Kill a Mockingbird
A Textual Analysis of the Character Development within this Short Story
The short story by Harper Lee, "To Kill a Mockingbird," is an illustration of how people viewed the various stereotypical traits, which are deeply ingrained in the culture and associated with the various demographics that were present in the South during the period in which the story was set. The 1930s in the South was a period in the United States that most people cannot fully envision due to the fact that there have been many systemic changes in the country's culture. However, despite many drastic differences that are present in the contemporary period relative to the story's setting, on the other hand there are also many similarities that continue to persist until this day. For example, one of the primary themes in the story centers upon a sense of racial injustice that was present in the society depicted. Although the case can be made that the U.S. has undergone many fundamental evolutions towards becoming a more just and humane society, there is still undeniably a large level of racial injustice that still lingers in the minds of many individuals, in many overt as well as...
For example, the story focuses on the court case of Tom Robinson who is an African-American that was accused and being tried for the crime of sexually molesting a younger girl. The young woman was white and thus the racial differences that are present in the victim and the perpetrator work to exaggerate the racial injustices and biases that are already widely accepted and deeply embedded in most members of the local community. For example, many of the local white members of the local community uphold a belief that all, or nearly all, Negros lie and Negro men are especially not to be trusted.
Tom's lawyer, Atticus, believed that the evidence in this case would clearly benefit his client Tom and that the evidence strongly supported the fact that his client was innocent of the charges that he faced. In the presence of such evidence, from Atticus's perspective, it actually seemed as if the circumstances could be used to point out the inherent injustice that is strongly…
Racial Discrimination and the Death Penalty The United States Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics reported that at the end of the year 2000 that there was 1,381,892 total number of prisoners under the jurisdiction of federal or state adult correctional authorities (State pp). During 2000, the prison population rose at the lowest rate since 1972 and had the smallest absolute increase since 1980 (State pp). Relative to the number
Racial Discrimination: How it Affects the People of South Africa and Its Impact on the Field of Social Work Racial discrimination has for long been a part of the South African history. It is the country of Apartheid. Apartheid was the official policy of racial segregation implemented legally in South Africa by the ruling National Party governments from 1948 till 1994. Under the apartheid legislation, the rights of the non-white inhabitants
As such, the question of fairness is not easily decided. Yet, we see that the Supreme Court has upheld racial profiling if used as a complementary technique. The American people as well support the utilitarian view that racial profiling is fair when evaluated in the context of all stakeholders, even if it seems unfair to a small few. The philosophical outlook of some may lead them to label racial
Racial Profiling Enforcement of law and order in the most efficient manner is one of the crucial and most challenging tasks. In order to keep the social environment peaceful and progressive, it is important for the law enforcement agencies to function with maximum efficiency within the ethical boundaries. However, in recent years, the law enforcement agencies in the United States, especially the police department, has been criticized for being biased and
Research also showed that offenders tend to be part of or return to communities with high concentrations of offenders. The concentration of offenders in these neighborhoods affects the community negatively by increasing the stigma associated with the community and also saddling the community with additional problems without providing added resources needed for restoring or maintaining order. The ultimate consequence is the that the criminal justice system destabilizes informal networks
Prisons The American criminal justice system can be divided into three components: law enforcement, the courts, and corrections. Each has its own unique problems and challenges that it must face in order to accomplish its combined goal of ensuring safety and justice throughout society. But one problem that all must face is the problem of overcrowding. With nearly 300 million people in the United States, there actual number of people