Tom Robinson is the accused man in the novel To Kill a
Mockingbird. He is poor and black, making his rape of a white woman an outrage in this
1930s southern Alabama town. His lone defender is Atticus
Finch.
Beyond this literal characterization, Tom Robinson
is a common figure for racism. By nature, Tom was kind, caring, and mild-mannered. He
helped Mayella Ewell frequently when she was left to do chores alone because he felt
sorry for her. The fact that a black man felt sorry for a white woman was offensive to
the white people of the time who could not understand how any black person could feel
"better" than a white person.
Tom is also a symbol of
injustice, especially racial injustice. He was clearly innocent. His useless hand and
arm and other indisputable facts proved him so, but that did not matter to the jury of
white men who convicted him.
Finally, Tom can be seen as a
martyr. He was innocent, but doomed to die for the crime. Not willing to do so, he
escapes jail and is shot dead.
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