Loss of Innocence Have you ever had something happen to you that made you lose a part of your innocence? This happens a lot in the book To Kill a Mockingbird, and is shown through many different characters. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is set in the 1930’s in a small county in Alabama named Maycomb. The Finch family lives in this town and is in the main characters in the novel, and the narrator of the novel is the youngest daughter, Scout Finch. The book follows the family and town through many different events such as a court trial and the town changing, and the Radley family that is an outcast of Mycomb.
In To kill a mockingbird, the mockingbird is a symbol of innocence. Characters like Jem, Tom Robinson, Dill, Boo Radley and Mr. Raymond all can be identified as mockingbirds in which the title refers to, innocents who have been injured or destroyed by contact with evil. An example of this is when Jem and Atticus are conversing about concerns of his first gun experience and why he should not shoot mockingbirds. Atticus then ends the conversation stating why his actions were unnecessary, “Well, I reckon because mockingbirds don't do anything but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat people's gardens, don't nest in the corncrib, they don't do one thing but just sing their hearts out for us.”
In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, coming of age or for lack of words, loss of innocence is the central theme affecting Jem’s feelings and understanding of the world. He experiences a life-or-death situation by almost being shot at the Radley's house, and he becomes a little closer and more protective of Scout. According to the text, “I tripped the roar of a shotgun that shattered the neighborhood.” Jem says “Fence by the schoolyard!—hurry, Scout!”
The loss of innocence In the book “To Kill a Mockingbird” written by Harper Lee, the children scout and Jem lose a lot of their innocence and truly mature after exposure to the harsh realities of their world. Many substantial moments in their life’s greatly attributed to this growing maturity and understanding of the world. The children have very basic views of the world at the beginning of the novel, thinking only in a way that their innocence permits them to, but by the end of the story they start to realize the injustices that consistently show in the world around them. The trial of Tom Robinson was a big part of the children’s loss of innocence. In the beginning, Scout sees the world in a simple way.
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.
In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, imagery and diction helped me develop the theme of innocence and how there is always purity in the darkest of things and how the darkest things are humans. One of the many themes Harper Lee wrote about is racism. On page 223 was the start of Tom Robinson’s trial which was one of the scenes from the book about racism. During the trial Bob Ewell yelled at the court when he said “I seen that black n***** yonder ruttin’ on my Mayella” (231) Also when Mayella refers to Tom in the N word.
The mockingbird in To Kill A Mockingbird is symbolic of innocence. Early in the novel, Atticus, the father tells the children Scout and Jem that it is a "sin to kill a mockingbird". Later Scout asks Miss Maudie what he meant by that because she has never heard her father say anything was a sin. Miss Maudie explains his reasoning by saying that all mockingbirds do is provide beautiful music. They do not harm anyone, they don't bother anyone, and they "sing their hearts out for us."
Narrative Perspective Sebold writes her novel The Lovely Bones in first person perspective to portray the story of the protagonist, Susie. The protagonist tells the story of how she was murdered and what happened in her point of view: “My murderer was a man from my neighbourhood.” (page 2) Being written in first person perspective, it impacts the text because all the ideas are explored in one person’s point of view, Susie’s. This creates a lot of bias instantly as obviously Susie is angry about being killed and only her side of the story is told, as well as because we are made to feel sympathy for her as shes the victim. She is speaking from heaven, she sees her happy family devastated by her death, “After a few days in heaven…” This is significant
One theme in To Kill a Mockingbird and Through the Tunnel by Doris Lessing is coming of age/loss of innocence. In to Kill a mockingbird, Scout Finch is seen going from a little girl who’s only fear was Boo Radley to someone who not only sees Boo Radley as human, but understands that others deserve empathy. “I ran by the Radley place as fast as I could, not stopping until I reached the safety of our front porch.” (Lee, 37) In the beginning, Scout sprints home everyday, without looking back.
In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the author Harper Lee shows how it's a sin to kill a mockingbird throughout the story by proving to the reader that Tom Robison and Boo Radley were the “mockingbirds” of the story so the reader can see the role of innocence. It's a sin to kill a mockingbird. “Shoot all the bluejays you want if you can hit em but, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird” (108) Atticus tells Scout this when she and Jem get air rifles for Christmas from Uncle Jack as gifts.
In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee tells a poignant coming-of-age story about the loss of innocence in the character of Scout. Three significant events illustrate this fact. The first example portrayed in the novel occurred when Scout went to the jail to find out what Atticus was up to, only to find that a mob had arrived to lynch Tom Robinson. This event left Scout with the notion of a mob mentality. Another event was the turning point of the story, the trial of Tom Robinson; this defining moment taught Scout of prejudice and injustice.
In the book there are certain characters that are considered mockingbirds because they are innocent and their innocence is destroyed by evil. These characters are Scout, Boo Radley, Jem, and Tom Robinson. Scout’s innocence was destroyed throughout the story as she was exposed to more and more stuff a child her age should not be exposed to. Such as racism. Scout did not really understand racism but because she was exposed she eventually found out about.
There is bliss in being a young and unaware child. Scout Finch certainly fits this joyful and oblivious nature at the beginning of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Even towards the middle of the story Scout is still unaware of the current happenings in her community. Scout didn’t notice the evil and hate in the world around her as a 6 year old. All she had going around in her mind was playing with her brother and dill, going to school, and her Aunt Alexandra staying with her to help sculpt her into a well mannered young lady.
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.
Mockingbirds are an important symbol because they represent goodness and innocence. In this book, Tom Robinson and Boo Radley are two innocent men, similar to mockingbirds, who get taken advantage of due to their innocence. Atticus and Miss Maudie teach Scout and Jem that it’s a sin to harm anything innocent by using the example of mockingbirds. Mockingbirds are innocent because they only positively affect people through their singing.
