Kara Sears
In Harper Lee's novel *To Kill a Mockingbird*, the Ewells are a poor and disreputable family in Maycomb who are allowed to break the law. Bob Ewell, the father of the family, hunts out of season, which is illegal because it disrupts the natural balance of wildlife and can lead to the extinction of certain species. The Ewell children also do not attend school regularly, which is against the law as children are required to receive an education. Despite these illegal activities, the Ewells are not actively punished by law enforcement due to their low social status, the community's indifference, and the perception that they are of some importance to the community.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Social status | Low |
| Reputation | Poor and disreputable |
| Perceived importance in the community | High |
| Alcoholism | Mr Ewell is an alcoholic |
| Hunting out of season | Mr Ewell hunts out of season to provide food for his children |
| Truancy | The Ewell children only attend school on the first day of the year |
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What You'll Learn
- The Ewells are poor and disreputable, and their illegal activities are not punished
- Bob Ewell hunts out of season, which is illegal
- The Ewell children don't attend school regularly, which is against the law
- Bob Ewell is an alcoholic who spends his money on whiskey
- The Ewells are given preferential treatment by the court due to their perceived importance in the community
The Ewells are poor and disreputable, and their illegal activities are not punished
In *To Kill a Mockingbird*, the Ewells are a poor and disreputable family in Maycomb who engage in several illegal activities that are not actively punished by law enforcement. Bob Ewell, the father of the family, breaks the law by hunting out of season. Hunting out of season is illegal because it disrupts the natural balance of wildlife and can lead to the extinction of certain species. However, the town authorities allow him to do this because he is known to be an alcoholic who spends his relief money on whiskey, and if he can't hunt, his children may not eat. Bob Ewell also provides some food for his children by hunting, so the authorities allow him to break the law and stay out of jail.
The Ewells also violate the law by not regularly attending school. Burris Ewell, one of Bob Ewell's sons, only attends school on the first day of each year and then never returns. This truancy is against the law, as children are required to receive an education. However, the town overlooks the Ewell children's absence because they are so poor and ignorant, belonging to the lowest circle of white Maycomb society.
The Ewells are given preferential treatment by the court due to their perceived importance in the community and their low social status and reputation. Despite their dishonesty and lack of credibility, the authorities are sometimes tolerant of Bob Ewell because little can be done with such a man.
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Bob Ewell hunts out of season, which is illegal
Bob Ewell's illegal hunting is mentioned in Chapter 17 of *To Kill a Mockingbird* when Atticus cross-examines him during the trial of Tom Robinson. Hunting out of season is illegal because it disrupts the natural balance of wildlife and can lead to the extinction of certain species. However, due to Bob Ewell's social status and the community's indifference, law enforcement does not actively punish him for this crime.
The Ewells are a poor and disreputable family in Maycomb, and they engage in several illegal activities. Despite their lack of credibility and dishonesty, they are given preferential treatment by the court due to their perceived importance in the community. This preferential treatment allows them to break the law without facing the consequences.
Placing Bob Ewell in jail would also accomplish little, as he does not work, and he would lose nothing by being incarcerated and fed by the county. His incorrigible nature is exemplified by the fact that he is fired from the WPA for laziness. While some authorities are disgruntled by his behaviour, they often tolerate it due to their limited options for dealing with him.
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The Ewell children don't attend school regularly, which is against the law
In the novel *To Kill a Mockingbird*, the Ewell children don't attend school regularly, which is against the law. However, the Ewells are a poor and disreputable family in Maycomb, and their law-breaking is not actively punished by law enforcement due to their social status and the community's indifference. The Ewell children only need to come to school for the first day of the year, and then the town will overlook the fact that they are absent, even though schooling is mandatory for all children. This is because the Ewells are so poor and ignorant, belonging to the lowest circle of white Maycomb society. The town authorities allow the Ewells to break the law because Bob Ewell, the father, hunts and provides some food for the children. If he couldn't hunt, his children may not eat.
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Bob Ewell is an alcoholic who spends his money on whiskey
The Ewells are a poor and disreputable family in Maycomb, belonging to the lowest circle of white society. They are allowed to live outside the law because of their low social status and the community's indifference. Bob Ewell breaks the law by hunting out of season, which is illegal because it disrupts the natural balance of wildlife and can lead to the extinction of certain species. However, the authorities allow him to do this because they know he is an alcoholic and spends his relief money on whiskey.
The Ewell children are also allowed to break the law by not attending school regularly. In the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird", Scout mentions how Burris Ewell, one of Bob Ewell's sons, only attends school on the first day of each year and then never returns. This truancy is against the law, as children are required to receive an education. However, the town overlooks this because the Ewells are so poor and ignorant.
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The Ewells are given preferential treatment by the court due to their perceived importance in the community
The town authorities allow Bob Ewell to hunt out of season because he is known to be an alcoholic who spends his relief money on whiskey, and it is thought that if he can't hunt, his children may not eat. Additionally, placing Bob Ewell in jail would accomplish little since he does not work, and he would lose nothing by being incarcerated and fed by the county. The Ewell children are only required to attend school for the first day of the year, and then the town overlooks their absence. This preferential treatment is due to the Ewells' perceived importance in the community, despite their low social status and reputation.
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Frequently asked questions
The Ewells are allowed to break the law because they are poor and disreputable.
Bob Ewell hunts out of season, which is illegal because it disrupts the natural balance of wildlife.
The Ewell children do not attend school regularly, which is against the law as children are required to receive an education.
The authorities allow Bob Ewell to hunt out of season because he is an alcoholic and spends his relief money on whiskey. If he can't hunt, his children may not eat.
No, the Ewells are given preferential treatment by the court due to their perceived importance in the community and their low social status.
