To Kill a Mockingbird is a 1960 novel by Harper Lee. It is one of the most commonly read books in American high schools. Along with works by other iconic writers, including Shakespeare, Twain, and Steinbeck, English teachers from coast to coast consider Lee's first novel worthy of homework assignments.
The acclaimed narrative tackles racial injustice in the South during the 1930s and may educate if not inspire high school students. However, some may relegate To Kill a Mockingbird to the same lowly status as algebra. Unfortunately, classic novels may be remembered as childhood trauma, equated to staying up late and writing essays. Fortunately, there is another way to appreciate great works of literature.
Original 1960 book cover
Many of the most enduring novels have been adapted to film. But not all stories experienced a smooth transition from the pages to the silver screen. Nevertheless, there are two notable instances where a narrative is considered both essential reading and widely acclaimed as a movie. High school English class staples The Grapes of Wrath (by John Steinbeck) and To Kill a Mockingbird are included in the American Film Institute's list of 100 Greatest Films of All Time.
In 1962, just two years following the publication of Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, the director Robert Mulligan completed the film version starring the highly popular actor Gregory Peck as the protagonist, Atticus Finch. Mulligan successfully dramatized many of the novel's themes, including gender roles, class struggles, and loss of innocence. But racial injustice is at the heart of both the book and the film. And the fictional drama inspired by Lee's experiences as a child in Monroeville, Alabama, rings true today, justifying the enduring legacy of the narrative in the classroom and cinema.
Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird
Interestingly, the 2019 film Just Mercy takes place in Monroeville about 60 years after the fictional events from To Kill a Mockingbird. And the two narratives are strikingly similar, but not because Just Mercy borrows ideas from Lee's novel. Remarkably, Just Mercy is based on a non-fiction memoir, supporting the thesis of "life imitating art."
In both films, the protagonist is a principled lawyer defending an innocent black man in Alabama accused by a racist judicial system of harming a white woman. The fate of the accused is the same, with the juries delivering convictions based on the testimony of unreliable white witnesses.
Although Lee's novel is fictional, one can't help but think that there were actual events in Alabama during the 1930s that mirrored the doomed man's life, showing how "art imitates life." What's disturbing is how the attitudes in Monroeville, and perhaps the rest of America, have not changed much in half a century. But there are distinctions in the two narratives.
The most apparent difference between the two stories is the race of the protagonist. Atticus Finch is white, while Bryan Stevenson, the defense lawyer in Just Mercy, is African American. Although some may criticize To Kill a Mockingbird for portraying blacks as helpless souls requiring a white man to save them, it is clear that no black lawyer would have been permitted to take Finch's place in 1930s Alabama. Meanwhile, Stevenson faced an unwelcoming Alabama court system in the 1990s but presented his case, showing some measure of progress. Nevertheless, Just Mercy shows that racism is still alive and well in Alabama, but perhaps standing behind the guise of civility.
In Just Mercy, the white Prosecutor Tommy Chapman (played by Rafe Spall) actively obstructs Stevenson's effort to overturn a wrongful murder conviction. But he tells Stevenson, "You oughta check out our Mockingbird Museum on your way out of town. One of the great civil rights landmarks of the South."
By touting Harper Lee, Chapman is suggesting he is not a racist. He may share KKK's views but does not wear a white hood. On the other hand, overtly racist activity was widely accepted in To Kill a Mockingbird, with the vocal bigots unafraid of repercussions. Today, racist Americans, especially politicians, have to be a bit more subtle, relying on dog whistles to communicate publicly with their allies. Therefore, it is more challenging to quantify racism in our current society because citizens may refrain from speaking up.
Harper Lee receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2007 (washingtonpost.com)
In 1969, U.S. President Richard Nixon popularized the term the "silent majority" to describe Americans who supported the Vietnam War but did not participate in public demonstrations. Donald Trump used the phrase on numerous occasions to describe Americans who oppose liberal causes, including the fight for racial equality. He believed that his followers, who do not protest publicly, support Confederate statues, oppose diversity, and reject the Black Lives Matter movement. But Trump is not Nixon.
Nixon was correct in his assessment of public opinion. In 1969, approximately 60% of Americans approved of his handling of the Vietnam War. In contrast, only about a third of Americans approved of Trump's handling of race relations in 2020, far from a majority. Therefore, it is not surprising that Nixon won reelection in a landslide in 1972, while Trump lost in 2020.
There is no litmus test for racists. And it would be unfair to characterize all Trump supporters as bigots. But Trump received only 47% of the votes in 2020. And the 74 million people that were comfortable with his divisive rhetoric comprised less than 25% of the U.S. population. So perhaps racists represent a vocal minority, a dramatic decrease from the 1930s Alabama portrayed by Harper Lee.
To Kill a Mockingbird is a great film, expertly transforming the iconic narrative from written words to spoken dialogue. It dramatizes racial injustice in the deep South almost 100 years ago by showing the bigots that support a corrupt system. Today, there may be fewer racists in our midst, but injustice persists. And the film shows why individuals who pursue equality are heroes.
Andrew’s Grade: A
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