Mr. Gilmer repeatedly calls Tom Robinson ""boy."" What are the connotations of this word and what does his use of this word reveal about Mr. Gilmer? Explain. (TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD) PLEASE HELP

Mr. Gilmer used the term in a derogatory and demeaning manner to show his superior authority over the black man. He also used the word to imply that Tom means little in the community, and thus led him to believe his inferiority among the people.

Explanation:

Mr Gilmer is the lead prosecutor in the Tom Robinson ra pe case in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird. He is a white man, who also uses his language to demean and lower Tom's face in front of the whole jury and the people witnessing the court scene.

By calling Tom and constantly addressing him as "boy", Mr. Gilmer is using his position as lead prosecutor and also sees himself as the voice of the Southern white folk in the packed room. Tom, being a black man, is seen inferior to the whites, and taken as guilty even before any proof of evidence can be presented.

Chapter 19 of the book shows the court scene where Mr.Gilmer repeatedly called him "boy".

"Had your eye on her a long time, hadn’t you, boy?"

“Then you were mighty polite to do all that chopping and hauling for her, weren’t you, boy?”

“With Mr. Ewell and seven children on the place, boy?”

“You did all this chopping and work from sheer goodness, boy?”

This constant referring to the use of the word "boy" is meant to demean his status and power over the grown man. Despite being an adult, his blackness seems to signal his inferiority, his lower status in the community. The word is also used as a means to prove their power and authority over him, leading him to fear them and thus, be submissive to whatever they ruled.  

It was a cold, foggy morning, and Julie was in no mood to take her dog, Snoopy, out for a walk in the bitter cold. Snoopy himself seemed reluctant to leave his bed near the fireplace. Julie got up and sat with Snoopy near the window of their house, soaking in the warm sunlight. Suddenly, she heard some commotion outside her front door, and hurriedly went to see what it was. As she opened the door, a young, scruffy looking man started running, with the milk bottles he had stolen from her front porch. Snoopy took after the man, ignoring the bitter cold, while Julie ran after them, still in her night robe and slippers. Snoopy tripped two newspaper boys and overturned a garbage can as he pursued the fleeing thief. As Julie turned a corner, she saw the thief slip on the hard ice, milk bottles flying, as Snoopy leaped and caught one of them in his mouth. The thief got away, but Snoopy came back happily, his tail wagging, to return the bottle to an exhausted Julie, expecting his breakfast.