To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee Introduction: Context and Background Objectives Know where and when the novel is set Be able to make links between context and themes Key Words Prejudice Segregation Inequality
Where is it set The Novel is set in the Deep South of the USA in the state Alabama.
So when is it set? The novel is set in the 1930s. At this time the USA were in what is now known as the ‘Great Depression’, a time of economic hardships. In 1929 the ‘Wall Street Crash’ happened. Thousands of people lost money, businesses were bankrupted and ordinary people were left unemployed.
The people hardest hit were the poor people. They lost their jobs and their homes. They were left penniless and hungry.
Racial Segregation In the 1930s, the majority of the Southern states in the US had laws which prohibited the integration of black and white people. Apartheid in South Africa White supremacy- BNP, National Front
The Black Community Slavery was practised in the Deep South of America until the end of the American Civil War in The Yankee North beat the Confederate South, they destroyed the southern economy and forced them to free the slaves. This did not mean an improvement for black people living in this area.
Jim Crow Laws After the American Civil War most states in the South passed anti-African American legislation. These became known as Jim Crow laws.American Civil War
These laws were instituted in 1896 and were not abolished till the late 1950’s (even then still not completely).
The Black Community Although they were free, the Black Community were not allowed to live in the same areas, attend the same schools, eat in the same restaurants or travel on the same trains or buses as white people. Local laws made sure they remained second class citizens. Many black people were forced to take poorly paid jobs which left them as badly off as when they were slaves.
The effect of the depression on the Black Community When the depression hit the USA, the farming community in the Deep South was hit very hard particularly the black agricultural workers. Racism was ingrained in the culture of the Deep South. This was seen by the rise of organisations such as the Ku Klux Klan. The majority of crimes against black people were ignored by the police whilst it only took an accusation of a crime for a black person to be presumed guilty.
Map indicating the segregated South. (Red Areas) Alabama
Segregation was present in transportation…
In business and trade…
In eating and drinking facilities…
In employment and education…
Eventually civil rights protests broke out in the demand for equality…
Martin Luther King echoed many of the concerns anticipated in this novel in1963. Can anyone name the speech? Atrocious acts of violence and injustice were enacted against black people in the American South Ku Klux Klan Emmet Till- beaten to death by a mob for wolf whistling a white woman. He was 14 years old
Harper Lee Born in Monroeville, Alabama in 1926 Father a lawyer Studied law herself but never graduated Childhood friends with Truman Capote, the behaviour of Jem, Scout and Dill is said to reflect their own escapades.
Harper Lee’s Influences Victoria Price and Ruby Bates (prostitutes) claimed they were raped by a group of 9 black youths. 10,000 people gathered to insist they hang This is known as The Scottsboro Trial
This is what actually happened… Several white men boarded the train & picked a fight with the black men Whites were forced off train by the 12 black men. The white men reported that the black men had raped two white girls on the train to authorities. They lied. Guilty because of their ethnicity.
JUSTICE? It was an all white jury (jury of peers?) 8 out of the 12 youths were sentenced to death. One youth could not be tried because he was only 12 years old. Ruby Bates changed her story but the charges were not dropped. Trials went on for nearly 15 years before all the men were dismissed. They all lost 15 years of their lives because of the lies of white men.
Themes of the novel Racism Prejudice Courage Innocence and Experience Growing up We will be exploring these areas in coming lessons, so be mindful of these areas when reading
Main Characters in the novel
Key Characters in Part 1 Scout (Jean Louise) – Narrator Jem (Jeremy) – her brother Atticus –her father, a lawyer Dill – Jem and Scout’s friend Miss Maudie – A neighbour Calpurnia – The Finches’ black cook Boo Radley – a reclusive neighbour
Atticus Jem Scout Miss Maudie Dill
So...Let’s look at the text... On the basis of what you have read so far, what issues of conflict can you identify? What language is used to place the novel in it’s time? (1930’s USA). Clue-Race? Discuss in small groups. You have5- 10 minutes before we feedback. Extension activity- Identify stereotypes. Is Harper Lee reinforcing or challenging them?
Satire Satire = ridiculing to show up the weakness of people or an institution. Look at the example at the top of page 19. How is the writer satirising teaching and education?
Miss Caroline: Victim or Villain? What impression do we get? Why? Do our opinions change? What do we understand about class from this extract? Your task is now to write a diary entry as Miss Caroline after the Ewell incident. How do you feel about your pupils? Use empathy. Ext: Link in contextual points Homework: To finish diary entry. Conclude with a paragraph placing Miss Caroline as victim or villain. Justify your reasoning Next time: ‘Scissorgate’