Tom Robinson Character Change
Tom was wrongly accused of raping Mayella Ewell, and had to stand before a jury of white men and tell them that he was not guilty. Before the jury's verdict, Tom had some hope that Atticus would be able to convince the jury that he was innocent. Even with Atticus's evidence and reasons, the jury found Tom guilty. After the jury's verdict, Tom had lost hope of being found not guilty. Atticus had told him that he still had a chance when the higher court reviewed his case, but this did nothing to raise Tom's hope. Not long after he was admitted to Enfield Prison Farm, he tried to escape by climbing over the fence, feeling like he had nothing to lose. His attempt failed and the guards killed him on the spot. The theme that relates to this event is racial prejudice because after the jury's verdict Tom had realized that a group of white men are not going to take the word of a black man over the word of a white woman and that he was going to be sent to the chair no matter what.
Tom's Testimony
Tom had always been kind to Mayella, doing little chores for her what she asked for nothing. He had agreed that Mayella had asked him to chop a chiffarobe, but not on the day he supposedly attacked her. That day she had asked him to look at the hinges on the door because the door is coming off of them. He looked at the door and said nothing was wrong with it. He had asked where the other children were, and Mayella said that she saved up money and sent them to get ice cream in town. Then Mayella asked Tom to get a box off of another chiffarobe. Tom said that she grabbed his legs and pulled him off the chair onto the floor, jumped on top of him and kissed him. Tom said that Mayella told him that she had never kissed a grown man before and wanted him to kiss her. Tom wanted her to let him go and allow him to leave. He tried to get her off of him but he did not want to hurt her. Then Tom said that Mr. Ewell saw them through the window and started yelling at Mayella, calling her a whore. Tom said that he ran after that because he was scared that he might get in trouble. Tom said that he did not rape Mayella and never harmed her. The theme that relates to this event is racial prejudice because it doesn't matter how many times Tom tells his side of the story, he doesn't stand a chance with the jury because a white woman accused him of rape.
I chose Tornado by Little Big Town because it is about how a woman wants to destroy a man's life. Which is what Mayella dose when she accuses Tom of rape even though he never hurt her.
What Happened to Tom?
Tom was accused of raping Mayella Ewell, even though he was only kind to her. The jury found him guilty and sentenced him to jail because they had taken the word of a white woman over the word of a black man. Even though Tom still had a chance when the higher court reviewed his case, he tried to escape and was killed by the guards in the process. The theme that relates to this is racial prejudice because no matter if Tom told the truth or lied, the jury was still going to find him guilty because he was accused of a capital crime against a white woman.
The Ewell Family
Tom was accused of raping Mayella Ewell, the eldest daughter of Bob Ewell. The Ewells live near the town's dump and are considered "white trash", are uneducated, and they are untrusted through out the town. Bob has eight children, including Mayella and Burris, he is a drunk, hunts illegally to feed his family because he spends the money of his relief checks on alcohol. Bobs wife had died leaving him to take care of the kids, although Mayella dose this job. Mayella has a very sad and lonely life. She takes care of her siblings and dose most of the chores around the house. She becomes attracted to Tom because he is the only man who was ever kind to her.
Mr. Underwood's Reaction to Tom's Death
Mr. Underwood compared Tom's death to killing mockingbirds. He believed that it was a sin to kill cripples no matter what they had done. He compared how Tom had done nothing wrong and was killed, so it was like killing a mockingbird. The theme that relates to this moral courage because Mr. Underwood didn't care that he would look like a fool in his paper for writing about the senseless death of a black man nobody cared about.
What Characters are "Mockingbirds"?
Tom is a mockingbird because he had never done anything to Mayella and yet he was found guilty for raping her. He always helped Mayella when she asked and never took anything in return. He was killed when had tried to escape, which in a sense is like killing a mockingbird. The theme that relates to this is racial prejudice because Tom was found guilty because the jury had taken a white woman's word over a black man's word.