Social Class Quotes (chapters 1-14)
Kevin Thomas
1. “’You, Miss Scout Finch, are of the common folk. You must obey the law.’ He said that the Ewells were members of an exclusive society made up of Ewells. In certain circumstances the common folk judiciously allowed them certain privileges by the simple method of becoming blind to some of the Ewells’ activities. They didn’t have to go to school, for one thing. Another thing, Mr. Bob Ewell, Burris’s father, was permitted to hunt and trap out of season.”
The Ewells, who belong to a low social class are allowed by law special permissions to hunt and skip school. The Ewells belong to the lowest of the classes as they not only are ignorant and poor, but skip school and remain ignorant and poor.
2. “Miss Caroline, he’s a Cunningham.”
I sat back down.
“What, Jean Louise?”
I thought I had made things sufficiently clear. It was clear enough to the rest of us:
Walter Cunningham was sitting there lying his head off. He didn’t forget his lunch, he
didn’t have any. He had none today nor would he have any tomorrow or the next day.
He had probably never seen three quarters together at the same time in his life.
I tried again: “Walter’s one of the Cunninghams, Miss Caroline.”
“I beg your pardon, Jean Louise?”
“That’s okay, ma’am, you’ll get to know all the county folks after a while. The Cunninghams never took anything they can’t pay back—no church baskets and no scrip stamps. They never took anything off of anybody, they get along on what they have. They don’t have much, but they get along on it.”
The Cunninghams are the other low class family in Maycomb, but unlike the Ewells the Cunninghams are honest and work as farmers and try their best to live with what they have. They are so poor that they don’t eat lunch.
3. “Why does he pay you like that?” I asked. “Because that’s the only way he can pay me. He has no money.” “Are we poor, Atticus?” Atticus nodded. “We are indeed.” Jem’s nose wrinkled. “Are we as poor as the Cunninghams?” “Not exactly. The Cunninghams are country folks, farmers, and the crash hit them hardest.”
Again the Cunninghams are the low class, poor family and cannot pay Atticus for his work but they still find a way to repay him through other goods, showing that not all poor people are dishonest
4. “Whole school’s full of ‘em. They come first day every year and then leave. The truant lady gets ’em here ‘cause she threatens ’em with the sheriff, but she’s give up tryin‘ to hold ’em. She reckons she’s carried out the law just gettin‘ their names on the roll and runnin’ ‘em here the first day. You’re supposed to mark ’em absent the rest of the year”
The Low class Ewells again, causing trouble and getting away with it because of their low social class and lack of police authority
5. “First Purchase was unceiled and unpainted within. Along its walls unlighted kerosene
lamps hung on brass brackets; pine benches served as pews. Behind the rough oak
pulpit a faded pink silk banner proclaimed God Is Love, the church’s only decoration
except a rotogravure print of Hunt’s The Light of the World. There was no sign of piano,
organ, hymn-books, church programs—the familiar ecclesiastical impedimenta we saw every Sunday”
Black people are the lowest social class in Macomb, they all live on “their side of town” and have low paying labor jobs on farms or as trash collects and maids. Even the educated black people like Calpurnia are destined to a low class life. Their church is badly maintained and they cannot afford a piano, and don’t own book because most of them can’t even read.
1. “’You, Miss Scout Finch, are of the common folk. You must obey the law.’ He said that the Ewells were members of an exclusive society made up of Ewells. In certain circumstances the common folk judiciously allowed them certain privileges by the simple method of becoming blind to some of the Ewells’ activities. They didn’t have to go to school, for one thing. Another thing, Mr. Bob Ewell, Burris’s father, was permitted to hunt and trap out of season.”
The Ewells, who belong to a low social class are allowed by law special permissions to hunt and skip school. The Ewells belong to the lowest of the classes as they not only are ignorant and poor, but skip school and remain ignorant and poor.
2. “Miss Caroline, he’s a Cunningham.”
I sat back down.
“What, Jean Louise?”
I thought I had made things sufficiently clear. It was clear enough to the rest of us:
Walter Cunningham was sitting there lying his head off. He didn’t forget his lunch, he
didn’t have any. He had none today nor would he have any tomorrow or the next day.
He had probably never seen three quarters together at the same time in his life.
I tried again: “Walter’s one of the Cunninghams, Miss Caroline.”
“I beg your pardon, Jean Louise?”
“That’s okay, ma’am, you’ll get to know all the county folks after a while. The Cunninghams never took anything they can’t pay back—no church baskets and no scrip stamps. They never took anything off of anybody, they get along on what they have. They don’t have much, but they get along on it.”
The Cunninghams are the other low class family in Maycomb, but unlike the Ewells the Cunninghams are honest and work as farmers and try their best to live with what they have. They are so poor that they don’t eat lunch.
3. “Why does he pay you like that?” I asked. “Because that’s the only way he can pay me. He has no money.” “Are we poor, Atticus?” Atticus nodded. “We are indeed.” Jem’s nose wrinkled. “Are we as poor as the Cunninghams?” “Not exactly. The Cunninghams are country folks, farmers, and the crash hit them hardest.”
Again the Cunninghams are the low class, poor family and cannot pay Atticus for his work but they still find a way to repay him through other goods, showing that not all poor people are dishonest
4. “Whole school’s full of ‘em. They come first day every year and then leave. The truant lady gets ’em here ‘cause she threatens ’em with the sheriff, but she’s give up tryin‘ to hold ’em. She reckons she’s carried out the law just gettin‘ their names on the roll and runnin’ ‘em here the first day. You’re supposed to mark ’em absent the rest of the year”
The Low class Ewells again, causing trouble and getting away with it because of their low social class and lack of police authority
5. “First Purchase was unceiled and unpainted within. Along its walls unlighted kerosene
lamps hung on brass brackets; pine benches served as pews. Behind the rough oak
pulpit a faded pink silk banner proclaimed God Is Love, the church’s only decoration
except a rotogravure print of Hunt’s The Light of the World. There was no sign of piano,
organ, hymn-books, church programs—the familiar ecclesiastical impedimenta we saw every Sunday”
Black people are the lowest social class in Macomb, they all live on “their side of town” and have low paying labor jobs on farms or as trash collects and maids. Even the educated black people like Calpurnia are destined to a low class life. Their church is badly maintained and they cannot afford a piano, and don’t own book because most of them can’t even read.