Chapter 21 Show Mr. Dolphus Raymond offers a sip from his brown bag to Dill. Dill sips warily, and then grins, realizing that it contained, not whisky, but Coca-Cola. Mr. Raymond explains that it is sometimes better to make people believe that you are something which, in reality, you are not. The children return to the courtroom. Atticus rises and begins to loosen his clothes slowly. The children are horrified. He then begins to speak. He insists that there is no proof that Tom has raped Mayella; no verdict of any doctor. He also insists that Mayella, too, has committed no crime. She is just a "victim of cruel poverty and ignorance". At the end of his speech, Dill suddenly espies Calpurnia entering the courtroom and heading towards Atticus. Notes: Atticus’ final speech is a powerful one, which penetrates the hearts of every black and white man present in the courtroom. He doesn’t condemn anyone, not even Bob Ewell nor Mayella, since it is their circumstances that have led them to behave in such a manner. He presents the typical attitude of all whites -- "that all Negroes lie, all Negroes are basically immoral beings, that all Negro men are not to be trusted around our women." He reiterates the fact that all men are created equal. At the end of the speech, Atticus even mutters "In the name of God, believe him", probably perceiving that nothing (not even proof) is going to change the orthodox view of the jury. Chapter 21Calpurnia has a note for Atticus, sent by his sister, saying that the children are missing. Mr. Underwood announces the presence of the children. Atticus relents in allowing the children to return to hear the verdict. The people have to wait for a considerably long time before the jury return with their verdict. The verdict is that Tom Robinson is guilty. Notes: Jem is certain that his father will win the case, since a jury is expected to be fair. However, these are just childish delusions, and Atticus has to admit that no jury had till date favored a colored man over a white man. The final verdict declaring Tom guilty, certainly seems unfair, yet one must take into consideration the period. Though slavery had been legally abolished, one cannot expect views of the whites to be mitigated easily. Undoubtedly, the verdict comes as no surprise for Atticus. Chapter 22Jem begins to cry on hearing this unjust verdict. On reaching home, even Aunt Alexandra seems to have softened her stance slightly. Being after all the Atticus’ sister and the only aunt of the children, she cannot help sympathizing with them. She expresses her concern for not only Atticus but also Jem, who is yet too small to be exposed to the hard facts of life. The next morning, Atticus says that the case is not closed and that there would be a further appeal. Seeing chicken for a breakfast, a dazed Atticus is led into the kitchen which is loaded with all sorts of food items. These had been sent by the blacks in their appreciation for Atticus for having taken up the case of a black. As the children walk outside, Stephanie Crawford is full of questions as to how they had possibly been allowed to go to the court, but Miss Maudie icily stops her and calls them in for cakes. She then tells them that their father is one among those who are born to take the charge of doing the unpleasant jobs for the sake of others. She makes them realizes that there had been some people in Maycomb who had tried, in their ways, to support Tom. As they walk towards home, they meet a group of people, and they are informed them that Bob Ewell had met Atticus and vowed to teach him a lesson. Notes: Stephanie Crawford’s curiosity is that of an idle mind working overtime. Miss Maudie is mercifully able to put a stern stop to her impudent questions. Giving Jem a larger piece of cake also says a lot about Miss Maudie’s acute perception of human nature; that she can realize Jem to have matured. Again Stephanie displays her wretched nature in taking pleasure to inform the children that their father had been jeered by Bob Ewell. Cite this page: TheBestNotes Staff. "TheBestNotes on To_Kill_A_Mockingbird_Study_Guide". TheBestNotes.com. . <% varLocale = SetLocale(2057) file = Request.ServerVariables("PATH_TRANSLATED") Set fs = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject") Set f = fs.GetFile(file) LastModified = f.datelastmodified response.write FormatDateTime(LastModified, 1) Set f = Nothing Set fs = Nothing %&amp;gt; &lt;br /&gt; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &amp;lt;&lt;script type="text/javascript"&gt; { document.write(location.href) }&gt;.&lt;/font&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;div class="contentsNav"&gt; &lt;a href="To_Kill_A_Mockingbird_Study_Guide13.html"&gt;Previous Page&lt;/a&gt; | &lt;a href="To_Kill_A_Mockingbird_Study_Guide01.html"&gt;Table of Contents&lt;/a&gt; | &lt;a href="To_Kill_A_Mockingbird_Study_Guide15.html"&gt;Next Page&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://monkeynote.stores.yahoo.net/tokilmocbyha.html"&gt;Downloadable / Printable Version&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;div id="rightColAd" class="large-2 medium-2 columns"&gt;&lt;/div&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;footer id="footer"&gt;&lt;/footer&gt; &lt;script&gt; <script> <script> $(document).foundation(); What is the main theme of Chapter 21 To Kill a Mockingbird?Racism and Prejudice
Tom's unfortunate verdict goes to show that no matter how much evidence Atticus stands for, Maycomb's racial prejudice will triumph. Harper Lee plays around by segregating Miss Maudie, Jem, Scout, Dill and Dolphus from the white community because of their ability to accept any kind of people.
What is the verdict in Chapter 21?Tom returns, along with the jury, and Scout notices that the jury doesn't look at Tom—a sure sign they convicted him. She half expects to see Atticus raise an unloaded rifle. Judge Taylor reads the verdicts: they're all guilty. Atticus packs his things, whispers something to Tom, and then leaves.
What is the climax of Chapter 21 To Kill a Mockingbird?The fact that Atticus allows his children to return to the courtroom after sending them back home shows that their relationship has matured and he now understands his children better, just the way they understand him better. The tension makes the reading of the verdict a perfect climax.
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