Why did Bob Ewell even TRY to make up a case?

[Sparrowlicious]

My best guess: Though he's a primitive man, he's not as primitive to dismiss the fact that the case would turn out to his liking. Which it did. After all, if he just tried to keep this a secret there would still be the chance that his daughter would simply try and run away with Tom.

[Lara]

Well, clearly, people would wonder where all of Mayella's bruises came from. Also, he had to find a way to get rid of Tom to keep such things from happening again. His pure hatred kept him from thinking clearly about his credibility. He didn't know Atticus would be Tom's attorney, let alone that Atticus would actually take Tom's defense seriously.

[Mary]

The reality of the situation is that Bob Ewell was having an incestuous relationship with his daughter. Read again the words that Mayella uses to determine why she got rid of her siblings in order to seduce Tom. She had already been involved sexually with her father and wanted a change.

[[deleted user]]

As well as the incestuous relationship, the fact that Tom was black as well would have made him take him to court and make an example of both him and his daughter as punishment, as he would have been well aware that Tom would have no chance in the case, even if he did prove his innocence.

[Jena]

He already knew the outcome of the case so instead of getting in trouble he pinned it all on Tom. But the jury in the book must have just been REALLY blindsided...

[Mary]

Lucy, you're absolutely right. In that era, no one would question the testimony of a white man over a black one and in Harper's Lee revelation, the entire world saw it which fueled the resistance to her book.

[Nancy]

Mary wrote: "Lucy, you're absolutely right. In that era, no one would question the testimony of a white man over a black one and in Harper's Lee revelation, the entire world saw it which fueled the resistance ..."

Yes--I had the impression from some of the comments here that some people are really underestimating the degree of blatant, and for the most part socially condoned, racism at that time and place (it's definitely still very much out there, but people tend to feel the need to keep it more to themselves these days...usually).

In addition to that, there's the very human tendency to scapegoat to consider--particularly when people feel threatened or humiliated or disrespected in some way. They look for those who are considered even lower "on the totem pole" so that they can feel better about themselves (one sees a lot of it when things go south in the economy--that's when people really start to go after immigrants, the poor, the homeless, and people of color). The Ewells were considered "white trash"--they were seen by the "respectable" white people of the town as being almost as "bad", or worthless, as the poor black people who lived and worked there. My impression (which could be wrong) was that Ewell was scapegoating Tom, thinking that he could gain a little respectability in the town by doing so.

[Vanessa]

Nirvana - when Mayella is trying to seduce Tom she clearly says something along the lines of "what Papa does" (to her, sexually) "don't count". Tom recounts her words when he is on the stand

[Subramanian]

I wonder whether Harper Lee told the story through the eyes of a little girl only to underplay the race issue that is the main plot itself. Calpurnia is my true hero, not Atticus, not anybody else. Calpurnia was crafted with lots of care by Harper Lee.

[Mary]

I think in this story, everyone can choose their hero. Mine is Boo Radley. The quiet ones, who just do what needs to be done, always get my attention.

[Nancy]

Boo Radley, Calpurnia, and Atticus were all heroes in this story. Mayella found Tom to be kind to her, which was something she hadn't experienced in her family. She tried to seduce Tom, and her father caught them. Bringing charges against Tom, would give the family some sense of being better than the poor blacks. Mayella had to testify against Tom, or face more brutality from her father.

[Vanessa]

I don't think using Scout as the storyteller underplays the race issue at all, rather it lays it out clearly without the gloss/spin/justification an adult might put on the state of things. Scout tells it like it is, and does see the injustice of it all ( as do Jem and Dill). Similarly, she spells out very clearly the state of class relations (Walter Cunningham, the Ewells), and the hypocrisy of middle class Christian whites in the town (Aunt Alexandra's coffee morning).

[Mary]

Vanessa, I could probably continue this discussion for awhile. I've taught the book from a number of perspectives to high school students. Every time I read it or watch the movie, I add a layer of understanding. Racial bias is not easily understood by any who have not experienced it first-hand. I have and know that not everyone in a community that traditionally segregates by skin-color is blinded by injustice. I also understand the difficulties for people who are "different" and stand out in the midst of ridicule and indifference to the needs of others.

[Gary]

N1rvana wrote: "**SPOILERS**
When Bob Ewell found Mayella and Tom, well...kissing. Why didn't he just beat her and let it go?"

In the context of that period, Ewell thought he'd become something of a public hero. Oppression of African-Americans was the standard; injustice was the rule. By engaging in that process, Ewell thought he'd gain the social approval that he'd lacked his entire life. Furthermore, he didn't expect anyone to reveal his own character flaws and family depravity because he didn't think anyone would stand up for Tom. This is a period when lynchings could occur without a trial at all, so a public "show trial" was what Ewell probably anticipated, and he'd be the star of that show.

[Mary]

I think a lesson in the cultural behavior during this era is needed for a number of people to get a handle on the incest, classicism, and racism. Our society at least pretends that it no longer condones the behaviors that existed back then, but the behavior still exists.

[Vanessa]

Mary,
So interesting to hear your perspective. For me, Mockingbird is almost a perfect novel - not just exquisitely well written, but a rare example of a novel that throws so many issues to light that were relevant in the time it depicts and just as relevant today.

[Gary]

N1rvana wrote: "OOOHH thanks, that makes sense."

You're welcome.

As Mary points out, one has to take a look at the culture of the era to understand how Ewell would have thought things would go. It's a time and place in which the KKK was very active, Jim Crow in force, and a black man could literally be publicly killed for just smiling or whistling at a white woman. So, a little research into those kinds of things will give you some context for what Ewell was thinking.

[Nancy]

N1rvana wrote: "Nancy wrote: "Boo Radley, Calpurnia, and Atticus were all heroes in this story. Mayella found Tom to be kind to her, which was something she hadn't experienced in her family. She tried to seduc..."

I spent some time living in the South in the late 1950s and 1960s. I observed the things that were going on during that time. To Kill a Mockingbird has been one of my favorite books for so many years. A mockingbird does no harm, and we shouldn't kill them, and so it is also a shame to hurt those who do no harm.

I would think that Bob Ewell would keep on beating, and using Mayella in a sexual way, unless someone stopped him.

[[deleted user]]

N1rvana wrote: "**SPOILERS**
When Bob Ewell found Mayella and Tom, well...kissing. Why didn't he just beat her and let it go? Because only he, Mayella, and Tom would know, if he was that concerned the word would g..."

Bob Ewell did not find Mayella and Tom together. He found Mayella making a move on Tom and accused Tom, knowing full well it was his daughter's fault.

[Nancy]

Scarlett Ebony wrote: "N1rvana wrote: "**SPOILERS**
When Bob Ewell found Mayella and Tom, well...kissing. Why didn't he just beat her and let it go? Because only he, Mayella, and Tom would know, if he was that concerned ..." So true!

[Mary]

Vanessa wrote: "Mary,
So interesting to hear your perspective. For me, Mockingbird is almost a perfect novel - not just exquisitely well written, but a rare example of a novel that throws so many issues to light ..."

Vanessa, most of the literature written in any specific era usually ended up being a commentary on the state of society at that moment. If we look at more contemporary literature, it is still a commentary on our society and how we treat people. Not much has changed other than the use of "fantasy" or creature additions. Even with that, the themes generally resonant something going on in our society that is public knowledge and debatable.

[Laceyann]

N1rvana wrote: "**SPOILERS**
When Bob Ewell found Mayella and Tom, well...kissing. Why didn't he just beat her and let it go? Because only he, Mayella, and Tom would know, if he was that concerned the word would g..."
But if he had done that, there is a chance of someone seeing her all beat up and he would hush it up and then it would look just plain suspicious. And he knew he could easily have won because it was a white girl against an african american man. Back then Tom was dead the minute Mayella opened her mouth