Mayella is Tom's accuser, his alleged victim. Mayella is childlike, lonely, and ignorant, and yet can still rely on a racist society in ways Tom Robinson cannot.Mayella's testimony shows that her life is filled with childcare and poverty. She lies about Tom Robinson attacking her and even changes her testimony on the stand, but the sad life she leads makes her somewhat a sympathetic character.And part of it develops the theme that Bob Ewell was the one who inflicted the facial injuries she was found with that the prosecution attributes to Tom Robinson. Atticus here emphasizes that it was Mayella's right eye that was blackened and that Bob is left-handed and that would fit. When Mayella Ewell is asked to say who she is afraid of in the courtroom, she indicates attorney Atticus Finch. The likely reason she is afraid of Atticus is that she knows he may make her look foolish and may expose the truth in the case. At 19 years old, she serves as a surrogate mother for her seven younger brothers and sisters while her father, a drunkard, beats her. Mayella has very little formal education and no relationships with people her own age.