Maycomb Alabama vs. Great Depression
By Jeremy Garling- November 3, 2011
Maycomb, Alabama was one of those small towns where everyone knew each other but most people didn't have a lot of money. This was because of the Great Depression, which started in 1929. The Great Depression was a very important event in history and affected the whole country tremendously, straining families both economically and emotionally. The novel To Kill A Mockingbird gives a lot of information about the past of Maycomb and the history of the people that lived there. This book will be a reference point to help you understand how Maycomb was affected by the Great Depression. Maycomb was changed the most by the Great Depression in its people; more happened to them than to the city.
The Great Depression had many effects on Maycomb. There are numerous examples in the book of where the Great Depression affected someone in a negative way. One example in the book it was when a main character said, "The Cunninghams are country folk, farmers, and the crash hit them hardest." (Lee 21) The crash they are referring was the start of the Great Depression; it began when the stock market crashed, and the crash drove the economy to the lowest point ever in U.S history. Also the book said, "Professional people were poor since the farmers were poor because Maycomb is a farming town." (Lee 21) These are just some of the reasons why the Great Depression affected Maycomb so much.
Another way Maycomb was affected by the Great Depression was that it was hard to pay people for services because almost everyone was poor. An example of this in the book was when it said, "As the Cunninghams had no money to pay for a lawyer, they simply paid us with what they had." (Lee 21) The Cunninghams paid people with food since they were farmers and could not make money. This was more common in the south than in the north because it was easier to farm in the warmer southern weather. In regards to the south Maycomb was a very normal town where there was little money to go around because of the Great Depression.
Everyone knows that the KKK group was one of the most violent racial groups in U.S history. But not everyone knows that the KKK was also one of the biggest too. They had over thirty different groups and thousands of members at one point. The KKK stands for the Ku Klux Klan and they were on and off during certain times in the U.S's history. The novel To Kill A Mockingbird will be referred to, to describe how Maycomb, Alabama was similar to the KKK.
In the novel there was a lot of parts where people discriminated against African Americans but I'm only going to talk about one incident that was very important and obvious. In the novel one of the characters said, " Mr. Radley shot at a Negro in his collard patch." (Lee 54) What actually happened was that a white kid was in the collard patch but the character assumed it was an African American person. The KKK and most of the people in Maycomb aren't around African American people a lot but most of the people think that African Americans are bad people. That's why Maycomb and the KKK people were similar.
Not all of the people in the town however were this way. Some facts about the KKK that relate to Maycomb and the novel are that almost two African Americans were lynched every week in the U.S. Lynching is the illegal death of a person by a mob of people. The KKK attacked mostly African Americans because they were easier to attack or accuse of things. Like how the character in the novel accused an African American person of doing something that they didn't do. These reasons combined are why Maycomb, Alabama and the KKK are similar.
By Jeremy Garling- November 3, 2011
Maycomb, Alabama was one of those small towns where everyone knew each other but most people didn't have a lot of money. This was because of the Great Depression, which started in 1929. The Great Depression was a very important event in history and affected the whole country tremendously, straining families both economically and emotionally. The novel To Kill A Mockingbird gives a lot of information about the past of Maycomb and the history of the people that lived there. This book will be a reference point to help you understand how Maycomb was affected by the Great Depression. Maycomb was changed the most by the Great Depression in its people; more happened to them than to the city.
The Great Depression had many effects on Maycomb. There are numerous examples in the book of where the Great Depression affected someone in a negative way. One example in the book it was when a main character said, "The Cunninghams are country folk, farmers, and the crash hit them hardest." (Lee 21) The crash they are referring was the start of the Great Depression; it began when the stock market crashed, and the crash drove the economy to the lowest point ever in U.S history. Also the book said, "Professional people were poor since the farmers were poor because Maycomb is a farming town." (Lee 21) These are just some of the reasons why the Great Depression affected Maycomb so much.
Another way Maycomb was affected by the Great Depression was that it was hard to pay people for services because almost everyone was poor. An example of this in the book was when it said, "As the Cunninghams had no money to pay for a lawyer, they simply paid us with what they had." (Lee 21) The Cunninghams paid people with food since they were farmers and could not make money. This was more common in the south than in the north because it was easier to farm in the warmer southern weather. In regards to the south Maycomb was a very normal town where there was little money to go around because of the Great Depression.
Rosenberg, Jennifer. "Great Depression - A Short History of the Great Depression." 20th Century History. About.com. Web. 01 Nov. 2011. http://history1900s.about.com/od/1930s/p/greatdepression.htm.
Maycomb Alabama and the KKK were Similar?
By Jeremy Garling- November 3, 2011
Everyone knows that the KKK group was one of the most violent racial groups in U.S history. But not everyone knows that the KKK was also one of the biggest too. They had over thirty different groups and thousands of members at one point. The KKK stands for the Ku Klux Klan and they were on and off during certain times in the U.S's history. The novel To Kill A Mockingbird will be referred to, to describe how Maycomb, Alabama was similar to the KKK.
In the novel there was a lot of parts where people discriminated against African Americans but I'm only going to talk about one incident that was very important and obvious. In the novel one of the characters said, " Mr. Radley shot at a Negro in his collard patch." (Lee 54) What actually happened was that a white kid was in the collard patch but the character assumed it was an African American person. The KKK and most of the people in Maycomb aren't around African American people a lot but most of the people think that African Americans are bad people. That's why Maycomb and the KKK people were similar.
Not all of the people in the town however were this way. Some facts about the KKK that relate to Maycomb and the novel are that almost two African Americans were lynched every week in the U.S. Lynching is the illegal death of a person by a mob of people. The KKK attacked mostly African Americans because they were easier to attack or accuse of things. Like how the character in the novel accused an African American person of doing something that they didn't do. These reasons combined are why Maycomb, Alabama and the KKK are similar.
Simkin, John. "Ku Klux Klan." Spartacus Educational. Spartacus Educational. Web. 17 Oct. 2011. <http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAkkk.htm>.