Sunday, August 25, 2013

Have attitudes to racism remained the same or have there been any changes (for better or worse) since the novel's publication in 1960?

The year 1960 was squarely in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement in the South. This movement challenged the institution of segregation and the racial attitudes that underpinned it. To Kill a Mockingbird, written by a Southern writer, directly addressed many of these attitudes. Scout's observation that "there is just one kind of folks. Folks." is pretty weighty in this context.


As for whether attitudes toward racism have changed, that is a question...

The year 1960 was squarely in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement in the South. This movement challenged the institution of segregation and the racial attitudes that underpinned it. To Kill a Mockingbird, written by a Southern writer, directly addressed many of these attitudes. Scout's observation that "there is just one kind of folks. Folks." is pretty weighty in this context.


As for whether attitudes toward racism have changed, that is a question that you will have to answer on your own. We have progressed since the days when a man like Tom Robinson could be found guilty of a crime because of the color of his skin. The legal segregation that existed in 1960 is a thing of the past as well. Despite these indications of progress, many might point to a number of issues, including income disparities between whites and minorities, the prevalence of de facto segregated schools, and, of course, issues relating to law enforcement and African-American communities as evidence that racial attitudes may not have changed as much as we may like to believe. But this question seems to be asking for your opinion, so you should give the issue some serious thought.

No comments:

Post a Comment