To Kill a MockingbirdIn the town of Maycomb, people are racist. Even today, people still have a side of prejudice. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, there are two races, people of European descent and people of African American descent. The black characters in To Kill a Mockingbird contribute to the development of the white characters rather than appearing as individuals in their own right. Black characters are present in the novel but the author does not really develop their personalities. Harper Lee shows us in the book that at the time, in the South, communities viewed all African Americans as the same; but they contribute to the development of white people. Overall, Maycomb's black community helps shape the white community; because whites are very rounded characters and blacks are two-dimensional (flat) characters. We have many different examples from the novel that help us understand how black people deploy white characters. There is one in particular that stands out, and that is the scene where Tom Robinson is in court and is being questioned by Gilmer. “You’re a very good guy, it seems – you did all this for not a cent…” Yes, uh. I felt really sorry for her; she seemed to be trying harder than the others” (lee 197). This quote stands out from the entire book because it represents a black person feeling sorry for a white person. In the 1920s, pitying a person of European descent was an unwritten rule. You might wonder how this shows how a black person develops a white person, but eventually it does. When Tom says he felt sorry for her, everyone is shocked, because a black person can never feel sorry for a white person. So Tom says it shapes the white community because it shows that ... middle of paper ... defending a black person is a huge deal. Atticus doesn't care that Tom is black, he knows he's not guilty and wants to help him. This brings out the caring and compassionate side of Atticus. Therefore, Tom Robinson, a black character, helps make Atticus Finch a white character; rather than appearing as a complete individual. To summarize, we have three very good points about how the black characters in To Kill a Mockingbird contribute to the development of the white characters rather than appearing as individuals in their own right. . The black community shapes the white community as a whole. Then there's the Scouts character who extends Calpurnia. Last but not least, Tom Robinson develops the character of Atticus Finch. The residents of Maycomb are very diverse; we have African-American descendants who contribute to developing European decent.