Sin To Kill A Mockingbird Quote Analysis

“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” (Lee 119). In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the quote “It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” is reflected numerous times throughout the novel. This well known moral in Maycomb is directly presented with birds, but also represents a deeper meaning. In this case, the moral also represents the people of Maycomb, and how they should treat others. Many people take the saying to heart, such as Heck Tate and Atticus Finch, but in this town of racism and discrimination, many people do not acknowledge the idea. The quote “It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” is reflected in Atticus’ defense of Tom Robinson, the prosecution of Tom Robinson, and the killing of Bob Ewell.

Atticus was the only parent of Scout and Jem, and made all of the income to cover all of the expenses in their lives with his job as a lawyer. As a result of being the only parent, he would take any job necessary to support him and his children’s lives, and is appointed to be the defending lawyer of Tom Robinson, who is black. Atticus does not discriminate Tom for his race, but he wanted to do good by proving Tom innocent. This goal for Atticus caused him to receive backlash from the white community, such as when a Maycomb resident explained, “...Atticus aim[ed] to defend him. That’s what I [didn’t] like about it” (Lee 218). The resident’s comment contributed to the quote “It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” because in this case, Atticus was the mockingbird that only wanted to do good for Tom Robinson, but the people of Maycomb try to hurt Atticus through harsh words and physical