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Loss Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

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In the 1940s, many that were innocent people would end up being hurt because of their difference from others. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Tom Robinson, an African American who gets accused of a crime he didn’t commit, gets hurt because of his difference from others. The central idea of the book is that people should not hurt those who are innocent, there are several examples throughout the book that help represent this main idea such as symbolism, similes, and characters. To Kill a Mockingbird shows many examples of symbolism that supports the main idea of the book. An example of this, is the character Tom Robinson. During a conversation, Miss Maudie is having with Scout she says, “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy.” Then, “That’s why it’s a sin to Kill a mockingbird” (119). Tom Robinson is a character that symbolizes this mockingbird. He is falsely accused of rape and gets attacked for a crime he did not commit. Atticus defends Tom Robinson from those who want to do harm to him because Atticus knows that he is the mockingbird and it would be a sin to do any harm to him as he has done nothing wrong, even though …show more content…

When the Finch children told Calpurnia of the mad dog she began making calls to people on the street saying “I know it’s February, Miss Eula May, but I know a mad dog when I see one” (124). Atticus is hesitant to kill the dog when he finally must “I haven’t shot a gun in 30 years” Mr. Tate then says “I’d feel mighty comfortable if you did now” (127). Both Atticus and Mr. Tate were hesitant to shoot the dog, in the quote and a little before the quote he and Mr. Tate are shown to be stalling as neither one of them want to hurt the dog who had previously been innocent. This ties back to the main idea of the book being that you should not cause harm to those that have done nothing

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The final reason why Tom Robinson can be symbolized as the mockingbird is because, he was in fact shot. He was shot 12 times by a jail guard. They killed Tom because he was climbing up the fence to try and get away. The reader can conclude that Tom didn’t deserve to be shot 12 times. That also ties in with the belief that you shouldn’t shoot a mockingbird because, that would be doing something the bird doesn't deserve.

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226 Words | 1 Pages

Throughout the book, Atticus tries very hard not to expose his children to Maycomb’s disease, but his attempt in sheltering them from the racism flowing throughout the town isn’t as successful as he had hoped; Jem and Scout are picture perfect examples of what the loss of innocence can do to children. On Scout’s first day of school, she is about as excited as a child can get; naturally, she would think her teacher would be amazed at her astounding reading capabilities, but upon reading the alphabet and quotes about the stock-market from The Mobile Register; and explaining that her father, Atticus, taught her what she knew Miss Caroline simply said that Atticus, “does not know how to teach” (23). Just by telling her this Scout felt as if it

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554 Words | 3 Pages

There are many ideas presented throughout the book To Kill a Mockingbird. The central idea behind the book is that people should not hurt those who are innocent, there are several examples throughout the book that help represent this main idea such as symbolism, similes, and some of characters from the book. To Kill a Mockingbird shows many examples of symbolism that supports the main idea of the book being people should not hurt those who are innocent. An example of this is the character Tom Robinson. In chapter 10 page 119 Scout repeats something Atticus had previously told Jem and her “Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ‘em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”

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488 Words | 2 Pages

The quote relates to a major theme in the novel because Atticus makes a statement about killing blue jays but never killing mocking birds . Scout feels the need to question her fathers edict because it is unusual. This quote explains how similar Atticus and Miss Maudie are. They both agree strongly that it is a sin to kill a mocking bird, an animal symbolic of Boo radley and Tom Robinson. Neither has causee harm, and prove only to have pure hearts.

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As we all well know, many people get blamed for others’ actions. Is it because of racism? Ignorance? Desperation? Tom Robinson from the Harper Lee novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, is convicted of a crime that he did not commit.

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698 Words | 3 Pages

In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the Mockingbird is the main symbol in the story representing how the loss of innocence influences Scout Finch and the society she sees. With the story, To Kill a Mockingbird is to destroy innocence. This shows how evil and the realization of the truth can truly show society the cruel nature of what they do. Without this realization society will become blind of their actions and negligent.

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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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The loss of innocence is a difficult experience for many, but it is a challenge we all go through. Jem, Tom, and Boo all relate to the loss of innocence. Boo was labeled as an evil person, Tom was judged by the color of his skin, and Jem was exposed to the adult world. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses a mockingbird to represent innocence in an attempt to portray the cruelty in the world.

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697 Words | 3 Pages

Harper Lee implements various literary elements to display how innocence is the ignorance of cruelty. When Atticus protects Tom Robinson from a lynching, Lee utilizes Scout’s dialog and characterization to show the irony of a little girl’s innocence. To begin with, the author uses Scout’s dialog to show her ignorance of the conflict. Scout greets the only familiar face by saying, “Hey Mr. Cunningham. How’s your entailment getting along?”

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Every child lives in a fantasy world, they believe that everyone will always do the right thing with no hesitation. No one can say when a child will begin to mature and lose focus with this world they have allowed to believe is the same one, that everyone else is living in. Everyone goes through that one life altering moment as a child, that makes them realize their innocence has been taken, and it is only then that they are forced to see the world for its true colors. In the novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, Jem Finch was once living in a fantasy world, he then was force to lose his innocence by hearing the verdict of Tom Robinson’s trial, and by losing his innocence he gained knowledge that allowed him to understand Society better

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830 Words | 4 Pages

In the Southern Gothic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows how each character can be innocent through different moments throughout the novel. The story tells of a little girl named Scout, who meets new people and learns how to be mature with all of the challenges she faces. Throughout the novel, she grows older and realizes that trusting other peoples’ words can hurt her in the long run. In To Kill a Mockingbird, characters’ actions illustrate how people mature as they grow. Harper Lee teaches Scout innocence throughout the novel.

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447 Words | 2 Pages

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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875 Words | 4 Pages

The judgement is determined not on the facts or Tom Robinson’s character, but solely because he is a black man accused of assaulting a white woman. Tom is the ultimate mockingbird because he is shot 17 times trying to escape prison for wrongful conviction. Of all the mockingbirds in the story, Tom Robinson best reveals the consuming extent of the prejudice of the town and the length that they are willing to go to preserve

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Innocence Lost: The Cost of Growing Up A person’s childhood is one of the most important stages of their life. Children come into this world innocently unaware of the struggles they will someday face. As they grow, this innocence begins to fade. They begin to see aspects of life and human nature that they may have been previously shielded from.

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1426 Words | 6 Pages

Loss of Innocence Atticus had to educate his children about racism because of the trial he was working on for Tom Robinson, “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 except sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee 119). The novels To Kill a Mockingbird and All American Boys, as well as the movies Just Mercy and A Time to Kill all show the injustice that black people face in America. Each trial caused some or many of the people involved to lose a sense of innocence that they had.

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