Tuesday, May 5, 2015

How is Mayella Ewell a victim of her society, and how is she a victim of her family in To Kill a Mockingbird?

As Scout mentions early in the novel, "Atticus said
the Ewells had been the disgrace of Maycomb for three generations." Sadly, Mayella had
little to do with this assessment, but she was forced to live with the shame of her
family name. Few people in Maycomb would have anything to do with the family, and the
Ewells live in near isolation--between the city dump and the African-American
neighborhood. Because of her mother's absence, Mayella was forced to look after the
younger Ewell children, since Bob was usually out drinking up his government check.
Mayella apparently had no friends, and her loneliness so overwhelmed her that she sought
out the company of a married black man to comfort her. After her appearance on the
witness stand, and after Tom's conviction, the townspeople probably scorned the family
more than ever. No doubt Mayella received some sympathy from a few of the townspeople,
but she probably had no more visitors than before. She is a victim of both society and
her own family.

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