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How To Kill A Mockingbird Symbolize Innocence

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In literature, it is common for a mockingbird to symbolize innocence. It is a well known fact that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird. The reason for this is because they do nothing of harm to anyone, and they provide an euphoric feeling in their songs. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, this characteristic is embodied through certain characters in the book during a time of prejudice and poverty. Due to this notion, it is clear that there are many symbols of Mockingbirds throughout Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, including Boo Radley, Jem Finch, and Tom Robinson. One of the many key figures that is considered a mockingbird symbolically is Boo Radley. His reclusive actions may invite slang, but he is a generally innocent man. This can be noted …show more content…

Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. “You’re a mighty good fellow, it seems—did all this for not one penny?” “Yes, suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more’n the rest of ‘em—” Based on the information gathered from this portion of the cross-examination, we can deduce that Tom Robinson is a generally kind person as can be observed when he talks about how he helped Mayella Ewell with a chiffarobe that needed to be attended to. Even Mr. Gilmer points out in the quote that he is a good fellow, even though for the rest of the trial, he will be on Robinson’s nose with all sorts of ridiculous questions. Since he is also giving these details in the middle of a trial, we can see the vulnerability in him as he is a black man in a white man’s trial about to suffer from a crime he never did. Another example of Tom being honest in a bigoted situation is when during the trial, Tom Robinson and Mr Gilmer state: “No suh, scared I’d hafta face up to what I didn’t do.” “Are you being impudent to me, boy?” “No suh, I didn’t go to be.” During the trial of Tom Robinson, Mr Gilmer starts making his cross-examination confrontational, and Tom replies in the most honest way

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Gilmer starts his cross-examination of Tom Robinson by asking him about a previous case he had when he got in a fight with another guy. Mr. Gilmer asked, “what did the guy look like when you got through with him” (Lee 223). Mr. Gilmer starts with this by putting a bad picture in the jury’s mind of Tom by making a false statement that Tom beat the guy up and hurt him when in reality Tom was the one that got beat up. Then Mr. Gilmer goes on to tell the jury “anyone who was convicted of disorderly conduct could easily have had it in his heart to take advantage of Mayella” (Lee 223). Mr. Gilmer says this claiming Tom is a bad guy and he did it, just because Tom has had a questionable history does not mean he is a bad guy anymore.

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“There’s something in our world that make men lose their heads – they couldn’t be fair if they tried the white men always win” (pg. 220) in the 1930s racism at the time was powerful and strong the connection it had with people made a hatred emotion towards Tom, the white men will always win. Despite all the evidence that prove Tom is innocent, people still view him as guilty. Tom Robinson never committed a crime he is as innocent as a mockingbird, if racism was not a big deal as it was Tom would be a free man. Secondly, even when Tom is on trial at a chance he might die, he still shows kindness and compassion like a mockingbird. During the trial, Tom was called up by Atticus to give his side of the story.

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“The problem is that one way this is done is by looking down on other members of other groups” (Routledge). Because their vision is clouded by racial judgement, the jury in the Tom Robinson case displays the verdict as guilty, even though all of the evidence denies the crime has been committed and is in favor of Tom Robinson. The evidence even points more at Mr. Ewell who is becoming more of a suspect. Tom claims that Mr. Ewell shouted through the window at Mayella in a disgusting manner. “He says you goddamn whore, I’ll kill ya” (Lee

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He is found guilty because he apparently killed a white man’s daughter. Tom is convicted because he was black and for unluckily being alive in the 1930’s when stereotypes against black people would not help them in court. The people who lack integrity are eager and ready to place the blame on anyone but themselves, and they are usually doing so because they themselves are the real guilty party and doesn’t want to be caught. During the trial, Tom Robinson’s side of the story never changes once, and he never has to think about his answers. Whereas, both Bob and Mayella change their stories constantly making them think carefully before answering any questions.

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Stories of Innocence “Nice guys finish last,” an unfortunate truth where the innocent are sometimes persecuted, harassed or even killed even though they have done nothing to harm anyone else. In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird, A mockingbird symbolizes innocence and is shown through few characters .Tom Robinson and Arthur Radley are the two main mockingbirds. Real life mockingbirds could be found as civil rights activists who fought for the rights of African Americans during the 1960’s. According to Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird, the meaning of the mockingbird as a symbol of innocence is shown through Tom Robinson, Arthur Radley and real life civil rights activist Rev. Bruce Klunder.

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In Harper Lee’s novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” there are metaphors that create the theme of the story. One of them is the answer itself, To Kill a Mockingbird. This is a metaphor that describes how you should never do anything bad to something or someone that causes no harm to you because the mockingbird symbolizes peace and innocence. The reason why this book is called such a thing is because there are a few characters that portray a “mockingbird.”

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“Harper Lee wants to tell us that it takes courage NOT to kill a mockingbird.” “Mockingbirds 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.” (p.119) Mockingbirds are presented as a symbol of innocence and bliss in this book.

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Multiple characters are symbolized as mockingbirds because it would be a sin to kill them as they only try and want to be a kind, civil person. Boo Radley is a misunderstood, and kind-hearted man who is represented as a mockingbird in the novel. Boo, due to the county's curiosity and fast pace spreading of rumours, is often perceived as monster “Inside the house lived a malevolent phantom” (Lee 8).

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In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the symbol of the mockingbird to show that prejudice can affect even the most selfless people. The mockingbird symbol is seen through three specific characters which include: Boo Radley, Tom Robinson and, Atticus Finch. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Boo Radley is one of the first characters to be seen as a mockingbird. He is an outcast and he is judged by all the gossip that speaks differently of him, he is a mockingbird in the midst of evil.

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Harper Lee wrote To Kill a Mockingbird in 1960. The book presents the theme of growth by highlighting the growth and development of two characters, Scout and Jem Finch. At the start of the book, Scout and Jem are innocent children with an uncomplicated sense of good and evil. As the story develops, the children lose their innocence and acquire a more complex understanding of the world. Lee uses their naivety and innocence to examine the vices and flaws of the Maycomb community.

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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 90). Not only is killing a mockingbird a terrible sin, but it symbolizes both a metaphor and what really happens when kill

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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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In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee the term mockingbird symbolizes innocence in a person. In the novel it focuses on the fact that innocence, represented by the mockingbird, can be wrongfully harmed. There are two characters: Tom Robinson and Arthur “Boo” Radley that are supposed to represent the mockingbird. In the novel, Tom Robinson is the best example of a mockingbird because he is prosecuted for a crime he did not commit. Also, he was judged unfairly based on the color of his skin in his trial.

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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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