Does the news about Tom surprise you? Why or why not? - Minsky

The news about Tom Robinson was very surprising. The way that the characters had been talking made it seem like Mr. Robinson had a very good chance of getting an appeal. At the same time, it is not surprising to me that Harper Lee would include this in the story. Mr. Robinson had been through a biased court case, and as Atticus says he was “tired of white men’s chances and preferred to take his own”(269). Atticus says that the prison guards viewed Mr. Robinson as an escaping prisoner, not as a person at that moment. However, they weren’t only viewing him as an escaping prisoner, they were viewing him as a black escaping prisoner. If it were Mr. Ewell who had been arrested and trying to escape, the prison guards would not have felt that it was necessary to shoot him as many times, and as extensively as they did. It was not surprising to find out that Mr. Robinson had tried to escape. It was initially surprising to find out that he had died, but when Atticus explains how he died it is clear that Harper Lee is trying to once again show the racism in Maycomb.

Do you think that the prison guards went too far?
Do you think that if Mr. Robinson had gotten the chance to have an appeal he would have won?
If you were in Mr. Robinson’s shoes, would you have waited for an appeal, or would you have tried to escape?

Comments

  1. AnonymousOctober 1, 2019 at 5:06 PM

    It was surprising, but it was not shocking. I agree that Harper Lee is trying to show racism in Maycomb, but it is also to show racism in the world. It shows us outside of Maycomb and racist things that happen there. I think the prison guards did go too far. Sadly, in a maximum-security prison, the same thing could happen today. Tom Robinson was not dangerous. It was clear to them from his arm that he could have been caught. I think Tom Robinson also knew this. He knew that he was going to be shot. Tom Robinson did not want to live in the world, even if he was freed. If he was freed, he would never be able to go out in Maycomb again and the Ewells would likely threaten him. If I was Tom Robinson, I would not want to escape or be free or even live in prison for the rest of my life. I think that was Tom Robinson's way of dying with some dignity. He was not being killed for what he did(or didn't do). Do you think Tom Robinson got killed on purpose why or why not?

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  2. AnonymousOctober 1, 2019 at 6:55 PM

    Tom Robinson stood little to no chance in a realistic Alabama court at that time. The case would be very different in a perfect world and perfect country. We know that, in this time period in the South, Tom Robinson would be judged from the get-go. This can be seen from the ladies at Aunt Alexandra’s tea party. Each one of the guests obviously sided with Mayella and the Ewell Family, and think that Tom’s case is unsubstantial. They see themselves as nearly saintly for offering forgiveness to the colored people of Maycomb. They complain that their farm hands and maids seem upset, completely naive to the repercussions and general atmosphere following the trial. Because of this, I believe that Tom was purely exhausted from walking on eggshells and being recognized as nothing more than the town’s gossip and from the trial. Many people only truly knew who he was because of the trial, which in many ways defined him. He must have known that as hard as anyone tried, he was never going to lead a normal life again. Even if he where to return to Maycomb he would have been shunned from society. He would spend the remainder of his life living below the lowest, and bringing his family down with him. I believe this was his way of dying with the upper hand for once, he was forcing the guards to react instead of being forced to do something. Tom Robinson might have acted in haste, but he died by his own terms. This is similar to Ms. Dubose who also choose to die in her own way. If one where to use the same logic that Atticus used at Ms. Dubose’s passing, you would see Tom as courageous for wanting to die with a life only he himself controlled.

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  3. AnonymousOctober 2, 2019 at 4:44 AM

    It was surprising that Tom Robinson was shot and killed but I think that it was evident that it would happen. I do believe that the prison guards went too far but the fact is is that he was in prison and he was trying to escape. Like Harper Lee said in the text; he was basically just another prisoner to them, he wasn't Tom Robinson. The guard didn't care who he was or what he looked like, he was trying to escape. He knew he would die. he just tried to escape even when he knew he would be killed. If I were in Tom Robinson's shoes I would probably waited for the appeal because I wouldn't want to die. The other side to it was that I probably didn't want to be free either. If I escaped people would be looking for me and I'd be stuck in hiding for the rest of my life. On the other hand, if by some miracle I got out of jail, I wouldn't want people watching my every move, not trusting me, or being scared of me. In the end it seemed like Tom just gave up, did he want to die? It was obvious to him that he would die and there was no escaping that so, did he just want to get it over with? Tom Robinson had a family so why did he try to escape when he knew what the consequences would be?

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