Boo Radley and Tom Robinson Analysis

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  • Created by: natalyamc
  • Created on: 06-04-16 16:50

Boo Radley and Tom Robinson Analysis

Similarities

  • Both victims of social injustice - both mockingbirds
  • Both are handicapped
  • Both lives are ended prematurely (despite it not being death for Boo, his life has come to an end for all intents and purposes)
  • Both are kind-hearted and well-intentioned
  • Both try to be good but are stopped due to the society they live in
  • Both have previous convictions that were blown out of proportion

Differences

  • Obvious Racial differences
  • Tom Robinson is shot for his allegations, Boo is caged
  • Tom is killed, Boo is forced to kill
  • Tom is physically disabled, Boo suffers from mental disabilities
  • Boo was given a choice upon conviction (or his father was), Tom wasn't
  • Both are made spectacles of - the children's productions and Tom's court case being made into daytime entertainment

Overall comparison

Despite 'To Kill a Mockingbird' being a novel outlining racial differences and white privilege, Lee uses Boo Radley to show that prejudice is not entirely racial in Maycomb County. The children, in particular, treat Boo with a prejudice (unknowingly) similar to the way that the town treats Tom, but it takes Tom being convicted for Scout and Jem to notice it.

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