Throughout the entire trial, Jem repeatedly says comments like, “…but don’t fret, we’ve won it” (279) and “…we’re gonna win, Scout. I don’t see how we can’t.” (270) Jem is naïve in believing that the verdict would be based solely on the facts and evidence. Living in a small racist town like Maycomb for thirteen years, he should have known that the results would most likely be based on skin color. The fact that he doesn’t realize this just goes to show that he’s not as old and mature as he thinks he is, and he’s not really an adult quite yet. The situation is ironic because Jem continuously tells Scout that she is too young and can’t understand life, when actually he is the one who doesn’t fully understand. In fact, Scout seems to understand the feelings of the people and the jurors in the courtroom better than Jem. She notices the looks on the jurors’ faces, and she is not surprised by the outcome of the trial.
The fact is that the Ewells won the case even though the majority of their town disliked and looked down on them. Each Ewell child went to school for only the first day. Their house was dirty and their father was constantly drunk and unemployed. Mayella couldn’t get her story straight and even forgot some facts, such as whether or not “Tom Robinson had attacked her in her face.” However, she was white and he was black, and the jury couldn’t see past the color of his skin.
Do you think Jem actually believed Atticus would win, and why? Do you think that Scout handled the trial scene more realistically than Jem? Also, do you think that it is a possibility that Jem had so much respect for his father that maybe he knew they were going to lose the case, but didn’t want to come to terms with it?
As Lydia says, Jem seems naive in his disregard for the segregation at the trial. Even when Reverend Sykes comments, "Now don't you be so confident, Mr. Jem, I ain't never seen a jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man" (279), Jem still believes that the facts will prevail. He isn't ignorant of the separation, but underestimates how deeply the jury feels about it. I think Jem believed in Atticus so much that he convinced himself that against all odds, Atticus would still win the case. Throughout the story, Atticus has remained undefeated, an invincible figure to his children. As shown by Mrs. Dubose, Jem reacts strongly whenever anyone criticizes Atticus. How do you think Atticus would explain the trial's outcome to Jem and Scout?
ReplyDeleteI do not think that he was meant to be naive, I feel that he was meant to be a character who knew the rights and wrongs in life. I feel that Harper Lee had put him in the stages of growing up to show how he wants to be in solitude and how he thinks he knows more than Scout (etc.) but also to point out that anyone racist or non-racist could see that Tom Robinson was innocent and he was left guilty because of the color of his skin. She wanted to put it very clearly to the reader that the verdict of the case had already been decided before the trials began. Harper Lee wanted to show that Tom Robinson would be sentenced to death because of the color of his skin. She wanted to show that even children knew that what the verdict was wrong. Which leads to a deeper symbol of child education on the matter of racism.
ReplyDeleteAs mentioned above by Nic, Atticus is shown as this very undefeated, and amazing father. As Jem grows up, Atticus' morals were hammered into his brain, and perhaps resulted in him becoming blinded from the opinions of Maycomb County. He only looked at the facts as Atticus had taught him, but forgot about the influence of racism. Scout however has had experience with seeing multiple sides to a conflict, and became unsure of the case. She learned that you need to step into another person's shoes and understand what they believe in. Atticus had even said earlier to Scout that they were not going to win the case, merely because of racism. This is a lesson Atticus will most likely have to teach the children, if they have not already learned it.
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