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Essay On Symbolism In To Kill A Mocking Bird

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Symbolism Through Birds Throughout Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, the reader is faced with many themes, motifs, and symbols. The most iconic symbol used in the novel would have to the idea of birds. There are three major birds that are used to illustrate different characteristics of the people in the story. Mockingbirds and blue jays are the easiest to spot, as Lee creates dialog to introduce them. Atticus says, “Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee 103). Miss Maudie even explains to Scout how her father’s claim is legitimate. The use of finches is more in the details of the narrative. The symbol of finches is used in Scout, Jem, and Atticus’ last name. Without much thought, it could be easily missed, but arguably finches are the most important of the three. Lee uses the symbols of mockingbirds, blue jays, and finches to …show more content…

First, blue jays symbolize the antagonistic characters who do not rank high in class, and are the most prone to sin. Bob Ewell exemplifies this by creating false charges, living of the government, and not caring about morals. Then, there are mockingbirds. They embody positivity, looking for the best in everyone, and being pure. Boo Radley shows this idea by caring for others, allowing the kids to see him, and showing how people misjudge him. Lastly, there is the significant finches. They are harder to spot, but they show the idea of being more vulnerable to stigma on roles, classes, and pureness. Scout illustrates how someone so young is affected by the world around her and grow up to see the world around them differently because of it. The number of symbols in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is abundant, but ultimately the use of birds is the forefront of character

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Mockingbirds: Emblems of innocence in To Kill A Mockingbird There are many mockingbirds in the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. The image of mockingbirds represent many people in the story and how many people take advantage of them for their own benefits. Scout, a young girl who lives in Maycomb is the story’s protagonist. She lives with her brother and father and occasionally meets Calpurnia their cook. For instance, Tom Robinson and Calpurnia are treated differently because of their skin color, however they are very close to the Finch family.

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This passage encapsulates the novel's central theme of empathy, compassion, and the importance of preserving innocence. Through the symbol of the mockingbird, Lee conveys a powerful message that resonates with readers, urging them to recognize and protect the vulnerable and innocent members of society. The passage's beauty lies in its simplicity and poetic imagery. By comparing mockingbirds to innocent beings that bring joy through their songs and do no harm, Lee emphasizes their purity and their inherent goodness.

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Throughout life, society creates stereotypes and misinterpret people. This often has severe impacts on the person’s life and their interactions with outside world. Similarly, Harper Lee connects people in her novel to an innocent songbird: the mockingbird, a symbol that she uses a numerous amount of times to connect between the title and the main theme. Throughout the novel, the mockingbird represents two things: an innocent creature that perishes by acts of evil and a symbol of innocence and purity that does no harm while spreading joy and happiness. Mayella Ewell, Tom Robinson, and Arthur Boo Radley identify as mockingbirds - pure, innocent characters that face injuries through contact with evil.

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“Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ‘em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a Mockingbird.” This quote explains how Mockingbirds are the most important symbol in this novel because without them there would be no good in the world. Harper Lee describes Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson, and Boo Radley as Mockingbirds in To Kill a Mockingbird. There are many occurrences in the novel where these three characters portray this symbol. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson, and Boo Radley are all metaphorically portrayed as mockingbirds because, Atticus is always the bigger person, Tom provides pleasure to people he encounters, and Boo looks out for the people of Maycomb.

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Symbolism is used by many authors to convey a specific message that carries a deep meaning. In Harper lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the primary symbol is the Mockingbird. There are numerous references to the mockingbird in the novel, which can be seen through some of the characters. The allusion of the mockingbird is used to represent the idea of innocence.

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The three mockingbirds in this novel were nothing like what people said they were and they did not deserve all the negativity. We, as readers, must love one another and come together like these “mockingbirds” did in this

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The poet, Lascelles Abercrombie once said, “There is only one thing which can master the perplexed stuff of epic material into unity; and that is, an ability to see in particular human experience some significant symbolism of man 's general destiny.”. He talked about how powerful of a tool symbolism is and how it is the only thing that can truly define a highly complex ‘destiny’ or series of events. Symbolism is something that is found throughout Harper Lee’s book, To Kill a Mockingbird. Lee shows the reader that racism is a product of society,she portrays the matter through her symbolism of the mad dog, the birds and the bugs.

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Blue Jays and Mockingbirds Who are the blue jays and mockingbirds of To Kill A Mockingbird? Set in the early 1930’s of America, Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is a coming-of-age book that tells the story of an innocent, naive child becoming an adult through the experience and intake of racism, discrimination, and social injustice throughout the book. Harper Lee’s development, usage and characterization of her characters throughout To Kill A Mockingbird help establish two of her most important themes of the book, which are the presence of social injustice and the coexistence of good and evil. Social injustice is consistently seen throughout To Kill A Mockingbird.

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but I know you’ll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ‘em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird’” (Lee 119). Atticus says that killing a mockingbird is a sin. It is a sin because a mockingbird is innocent.

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To Kill a Mockingbird is a book mainly about the coexistence of good and evil. The book stresses and emphasizes on the exploration of moral nature in humans. There are many themes in this novel including courage, innocence, racism, femininity, etc. However the most prevalent theme in the book is innocence. Not just innocence in itself but the danger and harm evil poses to the innocent.

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Cancer is a very common in modern day society. Almost everyone has lost or met someone who's lost a person close to them by it. You may have heard of cancer “running in the family” but what does that actually mean? Cancer occurs in three different ways: Sporadic Cancer- These are cancers that appear in individuals that have no relation to cancerous risks and show no genetic factors.

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The mockingbird in the title of Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird," symbolizes a number of characters throughout the novel. In order to fully understand why these characters symbolize killed mockingbirds, one must first understand what the title represents and why it's wrong to kill a mockingbird. The idea that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird was first mentioned by Atticus Finch (the protagonist's, Scout, father) when he saw the children shooting things with BB guns. As he knows that soon they will go after birds, he tells them: "Shoot all the Blue jays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird”. As Miss Maudie (the Finch's next-door neighbour) explains to Scout, it's a sin to kill a mockingbird because

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Throughout the novel Harper Lee uses symbolism of many things to strengthen the theme of social inequality. The title of the book is the most obvious use of symbolism. The mockingbird is an animal meant for pleasure. It sings a beautiful song and hurts nothing and no one. When she receives an air gun as a gift, Scout is instructed to leave the mockingbirds alone for “its a sin to kill a mockingbird” and they pose no threat.

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Scout and Jem have just received air guns from Atticus for Christmas, and they are learning what they’re not allowed to shoot at. Atticus tells them, “‘Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird’. That was the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something” (119). This is the first time Scout hears Atticus say it is a sin to do something, which means that Atticus is being serious. We know that he hates shooting, because he has kept his skill as a marksman a secret, so when he tells the children they can try to shoot bluejays but not mockingbirds, he gives the idea that mockingbirds are special.

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