In order to arrive at an accurate judgement of Mayella Ewell and determine whether she is worthy of compassion, it is essential to take an objective look at all the factors which had an impact on her and whether she could control them. Aspects which could be considered are whether she was a product of nature or nurture, her actual circumstances and her character.
Mayella's living conditions were, to say the least, far from ideal: they were dirt poor and lived on the fringes of society. The Ewells were generally seen as the scum of the earth and received no respect. Being white, they were treated with the utmost contempt by others of their race and were looked down upon by them as it was believed that their poverty and chosen lifestyle brought dishonour to whites, especially since they had been living the same lives for generations and had made no attempt to improve.
... the Ewells were members of an exclusive society made up of Ewells. In certain circumstances the common folk judiciously allowed them certain privileges by the simple method of becoming blind to some of the Ewells’ activities. They didn’t have to go to school, for one thing. Another thing, Mr. Bob Ewell, Burris’s father, was permitted to hunt and trap out of season.
The tribe of which Burris Ewell and his brethren consisted had lived on the same plot of earth behind the Maycomb dump, and had thrived on county welfare money for three generations.
Every town the size of Maycomb had families like the Ewells. No economic fluctuations changed their status—people like the Ewells lived as guests of the county in prosperity as well as in the depths of a depression. No truant officers could keep their numerous offspring in school; no public health officer could free them from congenital defects, various worms, and the diseases indigenous to filthy surroundings.
The descriptions above make it clear that the Ewells were living vicarious lives and survived by getting whatever useful they could from the town rubbish dump. Obviously, the family must have suffered under the yoke of criticism and disdain levelled at them, but it seems as if they could not care less. The text indicates that Mayella attempted to create some beauty in the squalor within which they lived. She planted geraniums in their yard which she carefully tended. The reference indicates that she had a quality in her that made her different from the rest of the family.
Against the fence, in a line, were six chipped-enamel slop jars holding brilliant red geraniums, cared for as tenderly as if they belonged to Miss Maudie Atkinson, had Miss Maudie deigned to permit a geranium on her premises. People said they were Mayella Ewell’s.
Since they had no mother, Mayella had to fulfill that role since she was also the eldest daughter. She clearly suffered continuous abuse at the hands of her father, who, it is suggested, also sexually molested her, when Tom Robinson testified that she had told him what her 'papa did to her don't count.'
Being part of a family of outcasts meant that Mayella had no friends and was, therefore, lonely. She obviously could not have had a boyfriend either, and that possibly explains why she sought attention from Tom Robinson. She had planned her meeting with him carefully and for a long time because she had saved up enough money for her younger siblings to go and buy themselves ice creams so that they would be out of the way when she lured Tom inside the house.
Clearly, circumstances for the young girl were definitely horrendous - she had been raised with prejudice and, in this sense, adopted those values. Furthermore, it does not seem as if she had much of a choice. Her father's violent nature and his constant abuse obviously made her fear him. She could, we might say, have left home, but where could she go? Her circumstances meant that she was trapped.
In this sense then, we can feel sorry for Mayella. Her prejudice, though, did not prevent her from seeking the company of a man she knew was prohibited. She knew her actions would be condemned and that she would be punished for them, but she went ahead anyway. She deserves our pity in this regard as well since she blinded herself to the irrational fear that her society persisted in. All she needed was to feel wanted and loved since it was lacking everywhere else.
Mayella lied in court to save herself from further ridicule and disdain. It was either him or me, as far as she was concerned. Her choice in the end to not save an innocent man deserves our condemnation, for if she had told the truth, what negative outcome would she have faced? She and her family had already been condemned by their society. Would further condemnation have made much difference? Her father's punishment would probably have been harsh - he might have even killed her for shaming her family but, whichever way one looks at it, her conscience would have been clean.
So, yes, we can have compassion for Mayella because she was, in the final analysis, a victim of her unfortunate circumstances. We cannot, however, have any compassion for her implicating Tom Robinson in an act for which she alone was entirely responsible.
