Question

Scout has heard Miss Gates speak hatefully of black people. She tells Jem that she overheard Miss Gates speaking to Stephanie Crawford on the night of Tom Robinson's trial: 'I heard her say it's time somebody taught 'em a lesson, they were gettin' way above themselves, an' the next thing they think they can do is marry us.' Scout then asks, 'Jem how can you hate Hitler so bad an' then turn around and be ugly about folks right at home–.' Like Mrs. Merriweather and the other ladies in the missionary circle, Miss Gates is a hypocrite. She is outraged at the persecution of the Jews in Germany, yet she refuses to acknowledge the persecution of blacks in her own country. Moreover, she protests against prejudice to her students, yet her remarks to Stephanie Crawford demonstrate that she herself is a racist. What does Scout overhear Miss Gates saying to Stephanie Crawford on the night of Tom Robinson's trial?

1) It's time somebody taught 'em a lesson, they were gettin' way above themselves
2) The next thing they think they can do is marry us
3) Jem how can you hate Hitler so bad an' then turn around and be ugly about folks right at home–
4) Miss Gates is a hypocrite

Answer 1

Scout overhears Miss Gates expressing racist sentiments, saying that black people were 'gettin' way above themselves' and suggesting it's time they were taught a lesson.

Step-by-step explanation:

Scout overhears Miss Gates speaking to Stephanie Crawford on the night of Tom Robinson's trial. Scout recounts hearing Miss Gates's words which reflect a racist attitude and hypocrisy. Scout is puzzled by the contradiction between Miss Gates's condemnation of Hitler's actions against the Jews and her racist comments towards the black community in her own town. The specific phrases Scout hears Miss Gates say are: 'It's time somebody taught 'em a lesson, they were gettin' way above themselves' and 'The next thing they think they can do is marry us'. These remarks highlight the ingrained racial prejudices of the time, and they disturb Scout, who reports this instance to her brother, Jem.