Chapter 18 of Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird is mostly about Mayella Ewell's testimony on the witness stand and how the two attorneys question her. Mr. Gilmer barely asks her two questions when she bursts out in tears. Judge Taylor waits for a minute and then tells her to calm down and that she has nothing to be afraid of if she tells the truth. Then the judge asks her what she is scared of and she says, "Him," and points to Atticus. Shocked, Judge Taylor asks, "Mr. Finch?" Scout describes Mayella's response as follows:
"She nodded vigorously, saying, "Don't want him doin' me like he done Papa, tryin' to make him out lefthanded. . ." Judge Taylor scratched his thick white hair. It was plain that he had never been confronted with a problem of this kind" (179).
Mayella is afraid of Atticus because he made Bob Ewell, her father, look like a the sniveling liar that he is. In retaliation, Mayella does the only things she knows how to do--lie and cry. She must figure that she can draw a sympathy card if she makes Atticus look bad or feel awkward. It doesn't work.
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