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Examples Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

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In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Jem, Scout, and Dill’s innocence is destroyed causing them to lose their carefree and happy self after witnessing the ignorance and racism against the African-American citizens in their hometown of Maycomb. Prior to the traumatic events, the children believe everyone in Maycomb is friendly. They did not realize the racism occurring in their town until Tom Robinson’s trial. After spectating the Tom Robinson trial, the children’s view of some of the people in their town change because of their hatred against black and the injustice in the courtroom. Tom is a black man convicted of raping a white girl and despite the evidences that are on Robinson’s side, he is found guilty and is sentenced to …show more content…

The Finch family has an African-American cook, named Calpurnia, who is fond of Scout and Jem. When Atticus leaves and the children are alone on Sunday, Calpurnia brings Jem and Scout to church. When comparing similarities and differences, Jem and Scout are amazed how the black church sings hymns in “linin,” (pg 165) instead of just reading from the hymn books. ‘Linin’ is where one person speaks the line of the song for the choir to know what to sing and is done because not everyone in the church could read. Since Scout has a great time accompanying Calpurnia and thought nothing wrong of a white person to associate with a black person, she asks Calpurnia, “Can I see you sometimes...Out to your house,” (167-168). Calpurnia does not mind replies kindly, “Anytime you want to. We’d be glad to have you,” 168), but Aunt Alexandra, who believes it is improper for a white lady to visit a black woman's home, put a stop to the visit (181). Aunt Alexandria’s beliefs and discrimination against black people upset Scout because the child thought nothing wrong of her staying with a black women like Calpurnia. Atticus, Scout and Jem’s father, teach the children to treat the black citizens of Maycomb with respect and accept the differences they both

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In Maycomb County, the Negroes are viewed as inferior, and in addition, the Jim Crow laws are enforced to ensure segregation. As a result, they do not have equal rights as the other citizens. When Atticus is asked to defend Tom Robinson, a Negro man accused of raping a white girl, he accepts. To the community this was improper. The community’s disgust at Atticus’ decision is expressed when Scout is irked by Cecil Jacobs, a boy in her class, when he announces that, “Scout Finch’s daddy defended niggers.”

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1056 Words | 5 Pages

Scout was sure that it was Boo Radley, Jem tells Atticus about the pants and the gifts. Maycomb is a racist white community, Atticus agreed to defend a black man named Tom Robinson, who has been accused of raping a white woman. Jem and Scout are subjected to abuse from the other children, even when they celebrate Christmas at the family compound on Finch Landing. Calpurnia, the finches cook, takes them to a local black church, where the warm and closed-knit community largely embraces the children. Atticu's sister, Alexandria, comes to live with the finches the next summer.

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In the novel "To Kill A Mocking Bird" written by Harper Lee in 1960, innocence is displayed and shown through some of the characters including Tom Robinson, Atticus Finch, and Boo Radley. Although these characters were innocent, they are all accused of doing something erroneous and are caused great shame because of it. The novel relates to a mockingbird because just like the bird, they had caused no harm and being punished was preposterous. One of the main characters in the novel, Tom Robinson, was charged with false accusations of raping the daughter of Bob Ewell, Mayella Ewell. Tom hires Atticus to defend him in court, even though Atticus knew he had a strong chance of being defeated, he still took the case for not only Tom, but his family too.

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ELA 10C–4 Mockingbird Essay 702196501 An Innocent Society Have you ever walked down the street with a toddler? The things they say, and bring up seem absurd to anyone that’s older than they are. You might think, “What a funny thing to say.” And maybe shush them, but in their mind, they’re doing nothing wrong.

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Being a lawyer is not the easiest thing to be, trying to prove one’s innocence or even guiltiness in the court of law. In Harper Lees To Kill A Mockingbird, A man by the name of Atticus Finch is a lawyer for the town of Maycomb County trying to prove the innocence of Tom Robinson for the rape of Mayella Ewell. Atticus’s arguments throughout the case make valid strong points to persuade the jurors to see his innocence by trying to prove that Tom never laid a hand on her and that Tom never raped her. During the first part of the trial in chapter 17, Atticus calls up Mr. Bob Ewell, Mayella father, to testify.

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RMockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird"( Lee, 93). The mockingbird in To Kill a Mockingbird represents many forms of innocence. Tom Robinson has been discriminated by the color of his skin and has not hurt anyone.

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The Downfall of a Mockingbird Mockingbirds are said to be one of the most innocent animals in the world. Although Harper Lee used many instances throughout the novel of mockingbirds being stripped of their innocence. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird the theme of innocence is taken away from certain characters just like a mockingbird being killed. Firstly, Boo Radley was accused of being a crazy man who is never seen. Secondly, Mrs. Maudie had her house get burned down to the ground.

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When one grows up, it is inevitable they will lose their innocence. Seeing the world through rose colored glasses can only take one so far, and eventually they will have to open their eyes to real issues in their lives. While this happens at different ages for everyone, Atticus in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee believes that his kids should not be sheltered from the real world. As Scout and Jem, Atticus’ children, grow up, especially in a time where Maycomb is so segregated, Atticus teaches his kids real life lessons and to not become like the rest of their town; racist and judgemental. This comes with a cost, however, as the kids “grow up” at an expedited rate.

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According to the dictionary, innocence is the quality in a person or thing that lacks impurity which makes a person innocent of a crime or offense. Innocence itself in a person should not be tested or forgotten because it is what makes a person free of wrong doings and hatred. In her novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the symbol of the mockingbird to portray how innocence should be preserved and protected from the discrimination and prejudice of the world. Harper Lee uses Boo Radley in her novel to portray her own understanding of innocence by showing how innocence can be the victim of prejudice which can be saved. The beginning of the book talks about how Boo lived in an eerie house and stayed in his house all day which led kids to believe there was a phantom inside (10).

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458 Words | 2 Pages

One’s innocence is continually put at risk. Risk of being impacted. Risk of being criticised. And as anyone raising a kid, they want the innocence of their child to remain for as long as possible. That could be impacted by family, the environment around them, and even the very school they go to for education.

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608 Words | 3 Pages

Innocence Is Bliss Growing up as children, people did not see the world as it really is. But as they got older they realized it was not as good a place as we took it to be. In Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”, this is the case for little Scout and Jem Finch. As they grow up in small town Maycomb, Alabama, they experience many things children should not experience, like Tom Robinson, a black man who is on trial for a crime he did not commit simply because of the color of his skin.

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189 Words | 1 Pages

Atticus is called to an session of the state legislature in Montgomery and leaves the children with Calpurnia. She decides to take them to her black church one Sunday, and this marks the first in-depth interaction with black people in the town that Scout has been only describing up to this point. She and Jem are greatly surprised at how Maycomb’s black community differs from the rest of the town. The church is very poor, with no hymnbooks and virtually no decoration. Jem asks about the lack of hymn-books, and Calpurnia reveals that few people in the black church can read.

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921 Words | 4 Pages

Innocence is a rare thing in a world full of guilty consciences. Set in the late 1930’s, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird accurately portrays the idea of small town life where racism ruled all, opinions spread like wildfire, and the innocent were suffering while the guilty were saved. It can be difficult to find people with honest intentions and a pure heart, which is why Tom Robinson, Mr. Raymond and Boo Radley are such significant characters in the understanding of purity within the novel. Tom Robinson was a black man convicted for a crime that he had been proven innocent for as a consequence of his ethnicity.

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747 Words | 3 Pages

Innocence is a word used to describe someone 's purity. Children are prime examples of innocence, as they don’t have judgments and don’t understand mature topics. In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the reader can interpret innocence as the growing up of the children. Specifically, Jem Finch showed a loss of innocence as he grew up. He showed his loss of innocence by not playing games, his more mature use of words and body language, and his different view of the world around him.

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1730 Words | 7 Pages

The Mockingbird Spirit of Innocence How do you define innocence? Is there someone out in the world who is purely innocent? To understand innocence you should look at what a mockingbird does, because all they do is sing. In Harper Lee’s classic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus and Miss Maudie teach Scout and Jem that it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.

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