Importance Of Calpurnia In To Kill A Mockingbird

In the 1930s, it was typical for whites and blacks to not interact. Many people in Maycomb consider those who intermingle with blacks and whites as outcasts. Calpurnia lives something similar to a “double life.” Even though society expects the two races to be separate, Calpurnia spends time with the Finch family, who are white, and her own family, which is black. When Calpurnia spends time with both groups of people, Scout referrers to her as “having command of two languages” (167).

So once Scout and Jem go to the black church, they are met by a black woman named Lula. “‘I wants to know why you bringin’ white chillun to n-word church. ’”(Lee, 135) She tells Calpurnia and the kids to leave since the kids are white. But Calpurnia argues with Lula that they can come in.

At the beginning of the book, Scout is completely unfamiliar with racism. She describes Calpurnia to be “something else” (8) and that “she was all angles and bones …” (8) and “her hand was wide as a bed slat and twice as hard” (8). Not once was Calpurnia mentioned to be black or of a different race. To Scout, she is just another human being.

Calpurnia is one of the lucky ones that doesn't deal with all of the hate, but Atticus a white man gets a lot of hate for doing the right thing. The case has caused Atticus and his children

The movie did not fully develop Calpurnia's character as shown in the book as it should have. Calpurnia played an important role in the novel. She taught many valuable lessons to Jem and Scout

Calpurnia serves as an amazing role model and mother figure to the children, and yet Aunt Alexandra wants to fire her. She had raised Jem and Scout, and plays an indispensable part of their lives, showering them with discipline, structure, and love. Aunt Alexandra, however, barely existed in the children 's lives up until she moved into the Finch’s home, yet she inflicts great injustice on Calpurnia by failing to recognize the necessitous part of the family that Calpurnia fills. Scout even overhears Aunt Alexandra saying, "...you 've got to do something about her. You 've let things go on too long Atticus, too long.

Racism and discrimination were very real things that Calpurnia had to deal with daily. Calpurnia has been treated like she is “lesser” than others for a long time. For example, she is forced to go to a segregated church. Calpurnia is mentoring Scout by teaching her to treat all people equal and never act like she is better than anyone. This goes for any reason, not just the color of her skin.

At the beginning of the book, when Aunt Alexandra was first introduced, she was seen and told to be very racist and malevolent against colored people. And it didn't help that the Finches maid, Calpurnia, was colored. Immediately when she arrived at the Finches, she would tell Calpurnia to, “put my bags in the front bedroom,”

Calpurnia is seen both by Atticus and the reader as more than just a housekeeper and a cook; she is a part of the family and fills in the role of a mother to Jem and Scout by helping raise them alongside Atticus. Atticus deeply cherishes Calpurnia’s efforts of taking care of the children. With her doting attitude, yet, strict disciplinary, Calpurnia treats both Scout and Jem as she would her own children. Furthermore, this following quote proves that fatherhood is indeed an arduous and burdensome role as Atticus says these following words. Without Calpurnia by his side, Atticus would have found fatherhood even more of a demanding role without a wife by his side to help support and take care of the family, as well as raise his children to grow

Correspondingly to figurative language, Lee also uses diction is to imply a message about racism and justice in Maycomb County. The "inflexible and time regarded code" of society was that, while, white individuals could utilize and even endeavor African-Americans, there could be no individual relationship between African-Americans and whites and no acknowledgment that African-Americans had the same responses and emotions as white individuals. Furthermore, there was an obnoxious assumption "that all Blacks lie, that all Blacks are essentially indecent creatures". “Despite the fact that Calpurnia is a female, Aunt Alexandra neglects her great work as a result of her race” (Lee p.129). The Court trial is described by Lee with strong diction in

Discrimination is shown throughout To Kill A Mockingbird in numerous ways. Racism and prejudice are shown when the jury makes the ruling to convict Tom Robinson as guilty, despite all of the evidence to prove his innocence; Scout is known for being a tomboy. The lessons about discrimination that Scout learns throughout the novel are applicable to all types of prejudice, Atticus Finch, the father of Scout and Jem Finch, is judged for defending Tom Robinson, an innocent man accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a low class teenage girl. Since most of the community is racist, Tom Robinson’s case is very hard for Atticus to defend. They do not believe a white man should be defending a black man.

Atticus could easily disregard this case, but he aims to defend Tom to the best of his ability. The fact that Atticus spent his time working and defending a black person to the best he can shows that Atticus does not judge people on what race they are. Calpurnia is the the house cook and a black person, but he still respects her. There is no way Atticus can be discriminating against different races with him defending Tom in court and having Calpurnia as a cook for the house.

She teaches these kids that it’s not always the right thing to do what everybody else is doing. Calpurnia looks after these children and takes them in as her own when she is told to. Atticus shows the most examples of courage in this story. He teaches his people many lessons, especially his children.

Thus, whilst slightly unconventional, Calpurnia has a distinct role in teaching the Finch children respect and responsibility. In conclusion, Atticus Finch and Calpurnia are contrasting characters with the same purpose in To Kill a Mockingbird. Atticus maintains a fair, wise character throughout the novel, in comparison to Calpurnia's cogent, blunt personality. What brings them together is how they set the correct example for and give life lessons to Jem and Scout.

Calprina is another mother figure in scout life, she cook’s for the family, and try to show Scout the right from wrong: “It was then that Calpurnia requested my presence in the kitchen. She was furious, and when she was furious Calpurnia’s grammar became erratic. When in tranquility, her grammar was as good as anybody’s in Maycomb. Atticus said Calpurnia had more education than most colored folks. When she squinted down at me the tiny lines around her eyes deepened.