Problems of race discrimination of the USA in the XX century
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us addresses the jury with a passionate speech on equality as he entreats them to come up with a "not guilty" verdict:. there is one way in this country in which all men are created equal-there is one human institution that makes a pauper the equal of a Rockefeller, the stupid man the equal of an Einstein and the ignorant man the equal of a college president. That institution, gentlemen, is a court. and in our courts all men are created equal. (Lee, 1960, pp.266-267)
Tom Robinsons lack of suspicion gets him into trouble in the first place; he willingly walks into Mayellas home thinking she needs his help. When she accosts him, he runs and is caught by Bob Ewell who claims he tried to rape his daughter, which begins the story of Tom Robinsons trial. Atticuss success in planting the seeds of doubt in the townspeoples mind about Bob Ewells honesty causes the varmint to seek revenge, accelerating the story to its climactic moment when Bob Ewell attempts to murder the Finch children, ". he knows in his heart that very few people in Maycomb really believe his and Mayellas yarns" (Lee, 1960, p.275); and so forth.the interest of justice, witnesses are called to testify to provide an insight into what happened between Tom and Mayella. Bob Ewells version of the events that occurred is clearly a lie, and as a consequence he is not able to put the bad reputation he has had in the past with the townspeople behind him,
". He knows in his heart that very few people in Maycomb really believe his and Mayellas yarns. He thought hed be a hero but all he got for his pains was. was, okay, well convict this Negro but get back to your dump." (Lee, 1960, pp.275-276);racial injustice fictionalized in classic "To Kill a Mockingbird" was really as usual business during the time depicted in the novel. Such injustice and even worse things, such as hangings and murder, were part of the culture of that time.was quite clear to the white jury that the alleged perpetrator was innocent. They convicted him because he was black, yes, but they also convicted him because they had to protect their own fragile worldview. In that worldview, white women are not attracted to black men. To accept that the woman was the aggressor was impossible, given that worldview. In the minds of the jury and most of the whites in town, the black man had to have attempted to assault the white woman because anything else was impossible.seems hard to believe, but they may have actually convinced themselves that the black man was guilty and the white woman was his victim. To believe otherwise would be to begin the unraveling of their culture, their society, their most cherished beliefs about themselves and the world. Rather than wait for his case to be put before the court of appeals, Tom Robinson, believing the past will not change attempts to escape prison and is shot down, "I guess Tom was tired of white mens chances and preferred to take his own" (Lee, 1960, p.260);
The Negroes in the community already suffer from their past history of slavery, and as Toms honest recollections of the events of November 21 do not result in justice, an opportunity for the Negro community to rise above their past is lost.
The court demands its witnesses to give their honest recollection of what happened on November 21 at the Ewells shack in order that justice may be served. This goal is not achieved; Bob and Mayella Ewell lie about what they remember, and as they have lied to the sheriff, Heck Tate, his memory is biased; Tom Robinson tells what really happened but is still found guilty of a crime he did not commit.main character, Atticus Finch is exceptionally good at compromising. An example of this is where he comforts Scout by saying if she goes to school and gets an education then they will carry on reading together against her teachers word.is completely anti racist. Although he dislikes the dirt of Maycomb County like the Ewell family, he accepts Negroes as an every day normal human being. During the period which the book is written around, black peoples were thought of as trash, but Atticus humiliated many white people by hiring Calpurnia to work in the house and look after Jem and Scout. Atticus has much respect from black communities by doing this, and after Tom Robinsons court case; even thought he is found guilty; the Negros who attended the trial stood up as he left the shocked court room respecting him.Finch has a great ability to cope with pressure. He does not care about other peoples views including his nephew Francis who calls him a nigger Lover. Mr Harry Johnsons dog, Tim Johnson, had caught onto rabies. Atticus is a very astute father, after Calpurnia had rung him to tell him, he tells her to keep inside the children and ring local neighbours warning them not to venture out into the street. (p98-100) He does not enjoy grabbing the lime light and first off tells the sheriff Heck Tate, that he better shoot mad Tim Johnson. However, many would falter under pressure, and Heck was one that would. Heck has confidence in Atticus so much that he wants him to take the one shot and put the dog out of its misery. He succeeded in the task, the street came alive and Jem and Scout stood beleaguered that their father had that much personal fortitude. His children did not know that Atticus was the deadest shot in Maycomb County until Miss Maudie informed them of this feat. Atticus had now gained much more respect, and even more respect off his own children.accused Tom Robinson was a Negro so many white people would be after his scalp. Atticus had Tom moved into Maycomb Jail house. One evening he took an extension lead with a light bulb on the end of it into town with him one evening. Atticus was a cool and calculated character and in this instance it is pointed out. A bunch of anti-Negros had gathered outside the Jail house, where Tom Robinson was being held. The gang/bunch had a joint IQ of most likely below 90, so putting them in their place was not a hard job for Atticus Finch, the local attorney. Whilst the men became agitated at Atticuss refusal to let them have Tom, Mr Finch refused to resort to violence in this matter. Atticus, having refused to believe Heck Tate that a group would try to stir up some bother over Toms occupancy of the jail house, took the precaution to look after his client and as ever, take care of his own and his familys business.Lees psychological understanding is brilliant in this work and this book is about much more than simple racial injustice. It is about the heart of humans and our capability to build stories and myths that allow us to commit terrible crimes in the name of justice, democracy, and freedom.second story Going to meet the Man, that we are going to analyze is written by James Baldwin (1924-1987) Harlem born black writer, like the novelist Ralph Ellison, went about protesting in his own way. As far as his novels are concerned, Baldwins way involved a preoccupation with the intertwining of sexual with racial concerns, particularly in America.
Nobody Knows My Name (1962), a collections of essays, explored among others black-white relations in the U. S., William Faulkners views on segregation, and Richard Wrights work. Wright had encouraged Baldwin when he was an aspiring writer but they never became close friends. The book became a bestseller as The Fire Next Time (1963), in which the author appraised the Black Muslim (Nation of Islam) movement, and warned that violence would result if white America does not change its attitudes toward black Americans. Baldwins reports on the civil rights activities of the 1960s made him special target of the U. S. FBI, that alone accumulated a 1750-page file on him. In the title essay of Notes Of a Native Son (1955) Baldwin took examples from his own family and the Harlem riot of 1943 to describe the experience of growing up black in America.interest in what it means to be black and homosexual interrelation to mainstream white society is most fully and interestingly expressed in his third novel, Another Country (1962). The novel contains scenes full of lively detail and intelligent reflection, expressed in a manner that takes advantage of the novels expansive form. After the assassination of Martin Luther King in 1968 and drawbacks in civil-rights movement, Baldwin started bitterly to acknowledge that violence may be the only route to racial justice. Some optimism about peaceful progress would later return, but in the early 1970s he also suffered from writers block. "Any writer, I suppose, feels that the world into which he was born is nothing less than a conspiracy against the cultivation of his talent--which attitude certainly has a great deal to support it." (Baldwin in Collected Essays, 1998)
Evidence of The Things Seen (1983) was an account of unsolved murder of 28 black children in Atlanta in 1980 and 1981. In his short stories collected in Going to meet the Man" (1965) the racial terrorism of America as he perceived it made its own grotesque stylistic statement. The writers challenge was to maintain steady control in the face of atrocities that might otherwise disrupt the narratives ability to contain such events.main character, acting town sheriff, Jesse, has a racist beliefs, he thinks that he is a just, good man in what he does for the citizens. He informs his wife of Big Jim Cs attempt at making quiet a batch of black men who were singing; the account is intermingled with vehement racism, though the man is sure that he is doing the right thing. J. Baldwin describes the black people from the white mans perspecti