People will do almost anything to get rid of fear. In some cases fear can even blind people's sense of morality. Fear can also drive people to act in a manner foreign to the way they usually would. In Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, the townspeople attempt to overcome their various fears by turning against each other. In Maycomb, fear enforces racism and causes the townspeople to persecute a perceived black inferiority. The fear of change pushes the townspeople toward racism. The individual level of taking action affects a person's trepidation of change.In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee portrays Mr. Raymond as a drunkard in order to show that society's code of separation can be broken. His drunkenness also justifies his "unacceptable" actions, because he keeps company with blacks. When he explains to Jem and Scout that the whisky in his satchel is nothing but Coca Cola, they finally understand that he only pretends to be drunk to avoid society's fear of change. He tells them that there are times when even the "bible in the hand of one man is worse than a whiskey bottle in the hand of [another]. There are some kind of men who-who're so busy worrying about the next world they've never learned to live in this one" (Lee 46).While those who fear the "next world" have an innate sense of the difference between right and wrong, the fear of change causes their actions to be inconsistent with their thoughts. Despite having individual consciences, the spectators and jurors cannot seem to clearly sort their conflicting senses of right and wrong. While making a decision for the Tom Robinson case "the one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience" (Lee 109)Just like the effect of an individual involvement, society also has a great impact on fear.
Mob mentality or going along with the group allows the townspeople to assemble their fear of change together and deal with it. Many in Maycomb join into a large mob group in order to feel more confident about their fear. In creating such a group, those not in such groups are labeled as "nigger lovers" and the "nigger-haters" begin to strike at the others. The court has joined the majority to persecute blacks. Those nigger lovers claim that the court has convicted black people "before and they [will] did [do] it tonight and they'll do it again and when they do it -- seems that only children weep" (Lee 225).Similarly to the courts conduct, there follows the society created rule of conduct. Mayella has lust for Tom. However, when Mayella makes her first move on Tom, Mr. Ewell sees her through the window. Understanding it was obviously his own daughter who started flirting with Tom, Mr. Ewell angrily thrusts a few punches at his daughter giving her multiple bruises. The reason Mr. Ewell took this case to court, as Atticus fully announces at his final speech in court, was "guilt, gentlemen, because it was guilt that motivated her. She has committed no crime, she has merely broken a rigid and time-honored code of our society" (Lee 203).Because of this fear of change, people fear the truth, for if Maycomb changes and ceases to be racist, then they would have to come to terms with the falsehoods of their mistakes and feel shameful for their misdoings.The fear of truth in Maycomb causes the citizens to persecute black people.On an individual basis, the fear of the truth of reality fuels each townsperson to discriminate against blacks.Jem and Scout ask Atticus why only certain people can be on a jury. He answers their question by using their neighbors as examples and showing why they could not serve to be a jury. All in all, he says not many would to be a juror because "serving on a jury forces a man to make up his mind and declare himself about something. Men don't like to do that. Sometimes it's unpleasant" (Lee 222).Declaring what one really thinks aside from a majority puts one in a minority position. People do not like to be part of the minority because they are then distanced from the white majority and are perceived to be inferior like the blacks. To their chagrin, people fear the truth because they may be shamed and badly marked in society.Because almost everyone in Maycomb is so prejudice, they have all made up their minds on Tom and others who were involved. Because they are all so racist, they therefore think Tom should be guilty solely based on his skin color. Judge Taylor says that "people generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for" (Lee 174).Since people fear the truth, they have set their minds to discriminate blacks. This way if the discrimination continues then there will never be a change and thus their fear of the truth being revealed is a bit less likely. Also if they see and hear only what they want to then it helps them be more comfortable with their fears.Although each individual's racism causes blacks to be persecuted, the entire society, at large, made the lasting difference.Society at whole, collectively contributes to each step taken in order to hide the truth of their unacceptable actions toward blacks.Aunt Alexandra strictly tries to grow Jem and scout properly. Alexandra also raises Dill, who feels he lacks attention from his parents. He begins telling Jem about his mother who drinks glasses of alcohol for breakfast and Aunt Alexandra overhears and calls Dill cynical. However, Dill believes that he "ain't cynical, Miss Alexandra. Tellin' the truth's not cynical, is it?" "The way you tell it, it is" (Lee 214).Aunt Alexandra just like most of Maycomb thinks the truth is cynical. However because they fear change they also fear that the truth is cynical. Dill just does not understand this because he is too young, but all of Maycomb does, they refuse to admit the truth because they harbor prejudice.Just as this simple lifestyle case shows, similar cases happen in the black part of town but toward whites.Calpurnia is well educated and unlike most black people, is literate. One distinction of blacks and whites in this novel is that blacks talk slang and incorrectly while whites speak properly and orderly. Scout asks why in the black town she speaks differently then when with whites and Calpurnia responds that "You're not gonna change any of them by talkin' right, they've got to want to learn themselves, and when they don't want to learn there's nothing you can do but keep your mouth shut or talk their language" (Lee 126).Calpurnia not only relates this lesson to speech but also to how people act in Maycomb disregarding their race and color. It also relates to townspeople not expressing the truth of their opinions and the truth of Maycombs' poor decisions for fear that it will not match the majority opinion and cause shame.