Scout's First Day at School in To Kill a Mockingbird Essay Sample

In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Scout’s first day of school assists readers in learning that one can tell what socioeconomic class someone is in solely based on the way they look. The Cunningham family is known as one of the families in severe poverty in Maycomb. They are considered the agricultural working poor since they worked on a farm during the Great Depression. Walter Cunningham, who is a lackadaisical and taciturn boy, is in Scout’s class but shows up in unpleasant attire. When Scout initially sees Walter on the first day of school, she states, “Walter Cunningham’s face told everybody in the first grade he had hookworms. 

His absence of shoes told us how he got them. People caught hookworms going barefooted in barnyards and hog wallows. If Walter had owned any shoes he would have worn them the first day of school and then discarded them until mid-winter. He did have on a clean shirt and neatly mended overalls” (Lee 25). This shows that the way Walter shows up to school on the first day gives his classmates an idea of what socioeconomic class he and his family fits in with. It also gives his classmates an idea that Walter does not live a healthy lifestyle as he has a foot disease, has to work on the farm when he is not at school, and does not have lunch to bring with him. One could assume that the Great Depression negatively impacted Cunningham's financial status and overall way of life since they are forced to be wary of how they use the money they have. 

Additionally, The Ewells family is also a considerably poor family. Unlike the Cunninghams, the Ewells are in generational poverty which means the entire Ewell bloodline has been in poverty for many years. On the first day of school, Scout encounters Burris Ewell who only comes to school one day a year. Similar to Walter Cunningham, Burris Ewell shows up dirty but he is spiteful with his words. Scout states that “He was the filthiest human I had ever seen. His neck was dark gray, the backs of his hands were rusty, and his fingernails were black deep into the quick. He peered at Miss Caroline from a fist-sized clean space on his face” (Lee 35). This proves that Burris Ewell showing up to school affected how he was seen by his classmates since it was made clear that the Ewells are in a lot of poverty. Since the Ewell family has been poor for generations, they do not follow many of the rules but can get away with it. For example, Burris doesn’t go to school for the whole year and Burris’s dad illicitly hunts out of season without facing consequences.  One could assume that the socioeconomic class that the Ewell family fits under, actually benefits them since they get perks other members of Maycomb do not get. 

All in all, the socioeconomic class that members of the Maycomb community fit into becomes a great part of their identity and will influence how other people will view them.