Prejudice in To Kill a Mockingbird (Essay Sample)

Prejudice is the feeling of unfair dislike directed against an individual or a group because of some characteristic. Prejudice can lead to isolation, vulnerability, disadvantage and discrimination at school, work, in stores, or even where people live. Prejudice has detrimental effects such as making the victim feel less than fully human. When people are undervalued by others, their self-esteem suffers, and they stop trying to improve themselves. Prejudice is seen in books such as To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Animal Farm by George Orwell, and The Scarlet Ibis by James Hurst.

Prejudice in To Kill a Mockingbird is shown as racism by white people toward people of color. Many people who live in the town of Maycomb are racist and prejudiced against black people. “In our courts, when it’s a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins. They’re ugly, but those are the facts of life.”(Lee, 295) Atticus makes a point saying that no one will believe a person of color’s word over a white person, which shows the prejudice that people of color face in Maycomb County. Their words are deemed lies just because of the color of their skin. Maycomb county is a severely racist town, and these characteristics are passed down through families and generations, meaning that it is a never ending pattern. Prejudice can be shown in different ways other than racism, such as beliefs of superiority.

Prejudice in Animal Farm is shown in the superior attitude of the pigs toward the other animals. “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”(Orwell, 42) The pigs were able to read and write a lot better than most of the other animals could. Because they were so smart, they made all the decisions on the farm. They also dealt with finances, trade, and oversaw the animals' work. They also used their knowledge to get whatever they wanted. The pigs on the farm consider themselves equals among themselves. The pigs believe that the other animals, even though they call them equals, are below them and believe that they have authority over them. This idea of superiority leads the pigs to break “the seven commandments” that the pigs themselves wrote, putting themselves above everyone else. Prejudice may be shown in different ways apart from racism, such as acts of hate

Prejudice in The Scarlet Ibis is shown in actions of embarrassment and hate from Doodle's brother toward Doodle. “It was bad enough having an invalid brother, but having one who possibly was not all there was unbearable, so I began to make plans to kill him by smothering him”(Hurst, 333) His brother is embarrassed by Doodle, but tries to teach him how to walk. They then go for a swimming lesson and something horrific happens to Doodle because his brother does not care about him because he is embarrassed by Doodle. Doodle’s brother is embarrassed and hates Doodle just because he was different from him.

In conclusion, prejudice can be shown in many forms. A person's upbringing may cause them to become prejudiced. If parents have prejudices of their own, there is a chance that these opinions will be passed on to the next generation.  Prejudice is seen in books such as To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Animal Farm by George Orwell, and The Scarlet Ibis by James Hurst.