Topic 5: How does Harper Lee highlight 1930s Maycomb Prejudices in To Kill a Mockingbird? Harper Lee's acclaimed novel To Kill a Mockingbird demonstrates, through young narrator Scout Finch, the many prejudices of Maycomb in 1930. It is through Lee's creative approach to interpreting these prejudices that we as readers are able to experience the animosity of this particular period in time. Social prejudice in 1930s Maycomb is evidenced by the community's rigid class structure. We also see the gender biases and stereotypes employed against women in Maycomb, through the narrative of the female protagonist. However, the most dominant issue explored in this novel is racism, which is brought to light through Tom Robinson's trial. It is through Lee's unique analysis of social, gender and racial discrimination that he manages to accentuate these prejudices of 1930s Maycomb in To Kill A Mockingbird. Social prejudice in 1930s Maycomb is highlighted through the community's rigid class structure. At one point in the novel, Jem describes, quite accurately, the social hierarchy of Maycomb, a custom to which the community meticulously adheres. He tells Scout that “There [are] four kinds of people in the world. There's the common type like us and the neighbors, there's the type like the Cunninghams in the woods, the type like the Ewells down at the dump, and the niggers," where the "common type" is the upper class. One's Position in Maycomb's social structure it becomes the basis of people's views of themselves and their family and it is impossible for one to move up in the inflexible class structure, so families like the Ewells will always be at the bottom of the social strata When Scout asks to spend more... middle of paper... changes the white community's opinion of him, and in fact only further reinforces their stereotypes of blacks, saying that "Tom's death was typical...typical of a nigga cut and run...have no plan, no thought for the future...they say [Tom] kept himself clean, went to church but when it comes down to it...the nigga it always comes out in them” This chauvinistic generalization further highlights how racism in the community will always be renewed, even after a sad incident like Tom Robinson. Harper Lee reminds us through Tom's trial that racial prejudice is a major norm in Maycomb and can only be defeated with time. The prejudices of 1930s Maycomb in To Kill A Mockingbird are accentuated through Harper Lee's in-depth analyzes and descriptions of social conditions, gender, and racial discrimination, allowing the reader to experience the acrimony of this time.