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Essay: Exploring Injustice & Inequality in “To Kill a Mockingbird,” the Classic 1962 American Film

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  • Published: 19 February 2023*
  • Last Modified: 22 July 2024
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  • Words: 1,156 (approx)
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  • Tags: To Kill a Mockingbird essays

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A classic American film, To Kill a Mockingbird, showcases the injustices of a rigid, segregated society. Director, Robert Mulligan, carefully brings to life the novel by Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird. The movie debuted in 1962 but took place in the 1930s. It features two kids whose father is a lawyer defending a black man in a trial. To Kill a Mockingbird brilliantly tackles the struggles of racism, outcasts and stereotypes.

Atticus Finch, played by Gregory Pack, is an intelligent and caring father who has two kids, Scout and Jem, played by Mary Badham and Phillip Alford. They live in a small town called Maycomb, Alabama. Scout and Jem are curious young kids who view their father as a hero. They follow their father to the court where he is defending a colored man named Tom Robinson. Tom was accused of raping a white young woman by the name of Mayella Ewell. Instead, Mayella’s father, Bob Ewell, caught her kissing Tom, and so he beat her harshly. Atticus provides overwhelming evidence that there was no way Tom was capable of the crime, yet the court still convicts Tom. Later, Tom tries to run away but is shot and killed. Atticus who was previously a highly appreciated lawyer, is now looked down upon by many people of the town for defending someone of color.

From the beginning, the kids are intrigued by their neighbor Boo Radley. He is the town outcast, said to be dangerous and mad. He would leave little trinkets in a tree for Jem to find. They would always go try to look into their house and see him, but were always warded off by Boo’s father. One night, Jem and Scout are attacked by Bob Ewell, but Boo Radley came out of his house, saved the children and kills Bob Ewell. Instead of reporting the event as such, it is recorded that Jem had killed Bob and there was no mention of Boo’s involvement. In the beginning of the movie, Atticus tells Scout that killing a mockingbird is a sin because all they do is sing for our enjoyment. At the end, she relates this to keeping Boo out of the attack, because it would end up being like killing a mockingbird.  

The location for this film is in the south, specifically in a small, rural town in Alabama. An interesting cultural landscape is the dispersion of families throughout the town. The wealthy, high-status families live towards the center of the town, and the poorer live towards the outskirts. In this city and time, there was a major social hierarchy, with wealthy white families at top and colored people at the bottom. The courthouse was also a very interesting cultural landscape. Typically, a courthouse is seen to be a place of fairness and justice, the opposite occurred. There are certain interesting biophysical landscape featured as well. There are many bushes and trees around the town. The kids are always using the giant bushes as a hiding place. No matter what part of the town, there is always some kind of natural block for them to hide behind, giving them a look into the adult issues around the town. Another interesting biophysical landscape is shown when a mad dog is seen in the town. We are shown a barren street that is very wide. There are many trees surrounding the road and a hill in the distance. The road looks like a dirt road but adequately paved. Furthermore, the wealthy homes usually feature more trees and landscaping. Some have small personal farms, as well. By having these farms, we know that they have enough money to afford supplies and tending to the patch.

There are many different issue present throughout this movie. One of the most important cultural geographic issues is the issue of racism and segregation in the South. Simply because Tom Robinson was a colored man resulted in his conviction and death, when it was he was so clearly innocent. In the 1930s, people of color faced many trials within society. They had no way to be seen as equal, and this reflected in their jobs, housing, and communities. In the South, inequality would dominate their lives. There also is a physical geographic issue. Over the course of the film, Jem discovers little gifts in a knothole of a tree. In order to stop this, Nathan Radley fills the hole with cement. By doing so, he may have killed the tree. Introducing a new element could thereby create diseases or damages to the tree. Also, because the patching is of different material and nature, it may create new gaps with changes to weather (www.gardeningknowhow.com).

These issues are only specific to the United States because of its history. This movie takes place well after the Civil War. Even though slavery was abolished, it didn’t mean that people of different colors were equal. The South still remained heavily conditioned for poor treatment and resentment on both sides. Trapped in a cycle of poverty, people of color were almost unable to get educated and find a proper job. In To Kill a Mockingbird, women would often be caretakers for white families, and men would do laborious jobs like working on a farm. They were still expected to pay high regard for people of higher class, like completing difficult tasks for no pay. Even in court they were not able to sit on the same level as the rest of the community– they had to sit on the upper level, away from everyone else. Furthermore, To Kill a Mockingbird takes place during the Great Depression. This economic issue is exclusive to the United States at the time. We see this taking a toll on the lower class people of Maycomb. For example, Mr. Cunningham pays for Atticus’s legal assistance with nuts, or goods instead of money. This is all he has, just like many lower class people in the town.

Racism, inequality, injustice, and economic issues are, however, very universal issues. The Czech Republic is an example of a country heavily influenced by racism. A Harvard study found that the Czech Republic is one of the most racist countries in Europe. They are particularly hostile towards Muslims and refugees. The Czech Republic emphasizes a strong importance of nationalism. An article by EuropeNow claims, “to this very day, the Czechs define their identity and nationality by means of their language: you are Czech only if you speak the Czech language fluently. Those individuals who do not speak Czech tend to be, implicitly, stripped of their intrinsically human qualities” (http://www.europenowjournal.org). Their leaders speak out against refugees entering their community. Fear fuels their speech and actions. They even had a petition to barre Islam from their country. Hostile attitudes against people of different backgrounds remain a problem for many countries. It is a flaw our world is riddled with.

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