In the right context, war can be justified. It consists of people voluntarily fighting for a cause they have deemed fit. They are willing to make the sacrifice. What crosses the line is when innocent people are hurt and have no way to escape. They will be thrown around until the conflict is over. Even if they have a positive effect on society, they will be harmed. These men and women are symbolic mockingbirds. This cycle of unfairness perfectly describes Mayella Ewell and others from the book “To Kill a Mockingbird”. People like Mayella do nothing but good, until the are trapped in a heavy conflict with no way out. One minute you are a good person, the next you are wormfood. Mayella Ewell represents a symbolic mockingbird because she is …show more content…
First, Atticus is almost beat up and killed by a lynch mob. A few cars pulled onto the street in front of the jail that was holding Tom. A few seconds after everyone leaves their cars a crowd of people come up to Atticus who is guarding the jail. They tell him to leave and he does not. Mr Cunningham says, “ You know what we want Atticus.”. The fact that Mr Cunningham tells Atticus they want to kill Tom shows that Atticus symbolizes a mockingbird because he is risking his life defending him when he could easily let him die. Although, Atticus’s kids ( Jem and Scout Finch ) were attacked by Bob Ewell because Atticus soiled his already lackluster reputation. Jem and Scout were traveling through the woods when they hear a rustle in the bushes, a few moments later Bob comes up behind both of them with a knife. As Jem is struggling with Bob he breaks his arm and gets knocked out. Before Bob has a chance to kill them both Radley comes to the rescue and kills Bob Ewell. During the fight, Jem yelled “run Scout, run”, in an attempt to save Scout. The unnecessary actions bob took to hurt Atticus reveals atticus's place as a mockingbird. In conclusion, when Mayella is treated unfairly or beaten, and when people hurt Atticus for no reason, their status as a mockingbird becomes