What characters are prejudice in To Kill a Mockingbird?

The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a coming of age story of a young girl growing up in rural Alabama in the 1930s. The novel discusses the contradictions in life. Scout, the main character, learns that things are not always as they should be and is confronted with the ugly reality of prejudice and stereotyping. Scout is struggles with understanding the prejudice she witnesses, the prejudice she endures, and her own prejudice against others. Atticus Finch, Scout's father, "with his strongly held convictions, wisdom, and empathy, Atticus functions as the novel's moral backbone." He strives to raise his children to be fair and nonjudgmental. It is through the guidance of Atticus and Scout's experiences with discrimination that the reader gains insight and enlightenment on the evils of prejudice.

Prejudice is portrayed in many forms in the novel. Characters in the book suffer discrimination due to race, age, social status, and sex. This racism appears to be as natural to the people of Maycomb as breathing. Early in the novel, Scout along with her brother Jem and their neighbor Dill decide to peek into the window of the home of Boo Radley, the neighborhood "boogey-man". Their antics alert Nathan Radley, Boo's older brother, who fires a rifle to scare off the unknown intruder. When the neighbors gather to find the source of the commotion, they automatically assume the prowler is black. When asked if the prowler had been shot, Miss Stephanie gives the following reply. "Shot in the air. Scared him pale, though. Says if anybody sees a white around, that's the one." (Lee 54). The racial slur is spoken as casually as if she were speaking about the weather. Contemporary readers may be shocked by this blatant racism, but Lee's use of the language illustrates how socially acceptable this behavior was in the 1930s.

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