Hypocrisy A Prominent Theme in To Kill a

Hypocrisy: A Prominent Theme in To Kill a Mockingbird as well as an American Reality during the Depression Sample Presentation Mountain Pointe English Department

Hypocrisy in the Novel � � In Chapter 24, Mrs. Merriweather laments “The Poverty…the darkness” and the “…immorality” of the Mrunas and lobbies for support from the Methodist Group but fails to show any kindness for the Blacks in her own Community (233). She condemns the Black community of Maycomb for their demeanor the day after the trial and says, “…there’s nothing more distracting than a sulky darky” (234). Mrs. Merriweather then goes on to describe how she criticized her servant for “not being a Christian” when she sulks the day after Tom Robinson’s verdict is announced (234). Mrs. Merriweather considers herself a Christian and tries “never…to let an opportunity go by to witness for the Lord” (235). However, she behaves hypocritically when she fails to live up to the teachings of Christ and allows her own prejudices to prevent her from acting with compassion towards the Black community in Maycomb.

Theme Statement � Example: In her novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee portrays societal hypocrisy in Mrs. Merriweather’s failure to extend her compassion for the misfortunes of others to Maycomb’s Black community. � Includes each of the following: +In her novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee +shows/portrays/depicts/establishes [thematic concept] +through/in/by [element of the novel].

Real-Life Examples of Hypocrisy During the Great Depression, the US Government and President Roosevelt initiated many programs to help put people to work and ease the pain of poverty. This was known as the New Deal. � In order to pass these new laws/programs, FDR needed the support of Southern Democrats who refused to back the programs if they applied to Black people. � As a result, much of the benefits of the New Deal programs were only for white people. 1. The National Recovery Act offered the best jobs to white men and was allowed to pay lower wages to blacks. 2. The Federal Housing Authority would not guarantee mortgages to Blacks who tried to buy homes in white neighborhoods. 3. The Civilian Conservation Corps maintained segregated camps. �

Evidence “THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON Fechner— In the CCC Camps, where the boys are colored, in the Park Service work, please try to put in colored foremen, not of course in technical work but in the ordinary manual work. FDR” http: //newdeal. feri. org/aaccc/f dr. jpg This is a hand written memo from President Roosevelt stating that the CCC should try to put black people in charge of projects unless they are too complicated. This shows that the President of the United States, a man who claimed to be against injustice, was inherently racist and hypocritical.

Works Cited "FDR to Robert Fechner, 27 September 1935. " Photograph. New Deal Network. Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute, n. d. Web. 17 Oct. 2013. Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. New York: First Warner Printing, 1982. Print. Mintz, S. , and S. Mc. Neil. “African Americans and the New Deal. ” Digital History. National Endowment for the Arts, 2013. Web. 17 Oct. 2013.