“Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future and renders the present inaccessible”, Maya Angelou once said. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a historical non-fiction novel that deals with racial inequality. Tom Robinson, an African American man, was one of the characters in the story who was accused of raping a white girl named Mayella Ewell, who lived behind the Maycomb dump. After losing the case, he was shot severely after trying to escape from the prison. Obviously, Mayella won the case against Tom. But, is a white poor woman powerful?
Class refers to a person’s level of ncome and education and often boils down to how much money one is able to earn. Gender goes beyond physical differences between males and females. It refers to the roles and behaviors that society experts from men and women. Race refers to the categorization of people based on physical differences. Mayella Ewell is powerful because of her race but not powerful because of her class and gender. Mayella’s race makes her powerful. Race is what positions Mayella to triumph against Tom Robinson. Back in the 1300s, poor white women did not possess any characteristics of a powerful individual.
However, they had a higher status compared to the black people, who were considered inferior to them. Blacks, on the other hand, were not gladly appreciated and received more insults and discrimination from the white community. Mayella Ewell, a poor white girl, had a little amount of control over Tom Robinson’s life as it seen in the novel. Tom did chores for Mayella without getting paid and Mayella can order him any chores that she demand for him. When Tom was questioned why he did all of the chores that Mayella told her to do so without a single penny, he responded, “Yes, suh. I felt right sorry for her.. (Document E).
This statement from Tom caused displeasure among the white people who were witnessing the trial. It appeared that Tom exhibited sympathy and sorrow for Mayella, implying that Mayella’s life is worse than him. But for a racially segregated county, a black man should never ever feel sorry and superior to a white being. Through Tom’s remark, people recognized that Mayella is still above Tom in terms of race. Class ultimately makes Mayella not powerful. A nice built residence, high source of income, and a high level of education re what often measure the class of one person or family.
Scout described, “Maycomb’s Ewells lived behind the town garbage dump in what was once a Negro cabin… Its windows were merely open spaces in the walls.. What passed for a fence was bits of tree-limbs, broomsticks and too shafts… Enclosed by this barricade was a dirty yard.. ” (Document A). It indicated that the Ewells do not own a nice, big house that can sustain their one big family. Their house and yard were made of scraps and junks from the dump. Also mentioned that it was once a Negro cabin before and now occupied by the white people.
Bob Ewell spends his relief check on whiskey instead of buying food for his children. Due to that, Mayella and her younger siblings did not have anything to eat. He also was fired because of his laziness and blames Atticus for it. It’s seldom for anyone to get fired since its Great Depression. In like manner, Mayella can’t have a proper education owing to the fact that she has to take care of her younger siblings since her mother died. Worse, she became a substitute wife for his father instead of being at school. Bob Ewell is not willing to work hard for his family which makes
Mayella to double her efforts in carrying the role of both parents. She was lonely and unwanted in the society of Maycomb. People of Maycomb refer to them as the “disgrace of Maycomb”. Their reputation was already low to the eyes of the people. Clearly, it did not make her powerful at all. Furthermore, Mayella’s gender also makes her not powerful. In that period of time, women were not given the same opportunity as men. An example of this is can be seen from the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird when Scout asked Atticus why women cannot serve in a judicial court system.
Most of the eople view women as a weak, fragile and incapable of doing anything compared to men. Men and women were not treated equally in the society during that time. Men had better career while women worked and stay at home, raising large families. To conclude, women were ruled by their husbands or another greater men. An example for this is when Mayella confessed to Atticus, “He does tollable, ‘cept when-.. he’s drinking” (Document B). It convey that Mayella was controlled by his father. There is a high chance that Mayella received repetitive hit from Bob Ewell.
After Bob caught sight of Mayella issing Tom, Bob brutally beat Mayella and tried covering it up from the whole town of Maycomb by accusing Tom that she raped him. There is not much evidence to prove since there is no medical evidence but Mayella’s right side of the face was blackened. Atticus concluded, “We don’t know, but there is a circumstantial evidence to indicate that Mayella Ewell was beaten savagely by someone who led almost exclusively with his left.. ” (Document B). This evidence helps explain why gender makes Mayella not powerful because it proves that Mayella does not have any control on her own life.
She was locked up in a home full of misery with her lazy father beating and knocking her up. Moreover, a girl like Mayella who was not well-educated, most likely will not be as prosperous like men do if she attempted to leave home and live her life on her own. As can be seen, it is true that Mayella is powerful to a certain degree. The white community looked at blacks as if they were nothing but a slave. White people, either poor or wealthy, were still considered superior and given more privileges than black people. They cannot accept the fact that they were equal as laves.
Since that, she is only powerful over a race that she has been taught are inferior to her. That power that she hold over Tom, had no limit. The prejudice among blacks is what made her won the trial. The hatred and inequity in the society and among the blacks are what makes Mayella powerful than Tom. In spite of that, Mayella’s lack of power stands out in the end because of her class and gender. There is a tendency among people to feel that they are better than other person. Poor whites like Mayella and her family were looked down upon the other class nd they, in turn, looked down upon the blacks who were originally came from a slave family.
But she had no power dealing with her father. She was raised in the family where they removed all the power to her. She became the surrogate wife for her father who demonstrate no concern for his children. Like how Scout described her, she was the loneliest person in the world. No companion that she can’t count on to, neither family who she can rely on, including her father who abuse and control her own life. Mayella did not possess any great power or strength, only loneliness and despair.
