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What are some arguments that could be made about issues of justice based on Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird?

Based on Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, one argument one can make about an issue concerning justice is that, due to racial prejudices, justice doesn't truly equally exist for all mankind. The term justice has many meanings, including being able to act according to right conduct, being lawfully treated fairly, or being punished or rewarded fairly, and none of these things exist equally for all men. Atticus reveals his belief that justice doesn't truly exist for all mankind in his closing remarks to the jury during Tom Robinson's trial.

One interesting statement he makes in his closing remarks is that not all men are "created equal in the sense some people would have us believe" (Ch. 20). People are not created equal for the following reasons: some are smarter; some are born with more opportunities; some are wealthier; some are more talented; and some are "born gifted beyond the normal scope of most men" (Ch. 20). Since not all men are created equal, Atticus knows that not all men will receive equal portions of justice from a jury. As Atticus further explains, "[A] court is no better than each man" sitting on a jury. If a jury member does not think about the evidence of a case objectively due to racial prejudices, than a man such as Tom Robinson is unlikely to receive the same justice that would be doled out to a man who is white and in the same position as Robinson. Hence, Atticus show us that due to racial prejudices, one of the greatest issues of justice in this world is that justice is not equally distributed to all of mankind.

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