The Robinsons
The Robinsons are a black family consisting of Tom, his wife, Helen, and their two children. Because of his skin tone, most people do not realize how polite and well-mannered Tom is. Scout compares is kindness to Atticus. He is falsely accused by Mayella Ewell of statuatory rape, although he could not have inflicted the injuries to her face due to the fact his left arm is shorter than his right arm.
In his testimony, Tom spoke calmly and politely to the jury. His account of what took place greatly differed from Mayella's recollection. According to him, she was the one who asked him to come inside and she jumped on him. She told him to kiss her and he tried to stop her advances, then when Bob showed up Tom ran out the back door. His testimony was much more believable, due to the fact Mayella's testimony was shaky and often changed. |
"Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." (Lee 119). One of the characters Harper Lee was referring to as a mockingbird is Tom Robinson. All he did was try to help Mayella, who claimed he comitted a crime, and because of the racial prejudice directed towards him, he was imprsisoned. It was a sin to eventually cause his death due to this.
|
When Tom stands up and tells the jury what happens, he has courage. It's his word against a whitewoman's and he knows he has almost no chance of winning. This song is about having the courage to stand up and do what you need to do.
|