“Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ‘em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee 103). This is not only the most well-known quote from To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, it is also one of the most meaningful phrases that come from this book, along with “… 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. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee 103). Every part of these two quotes connects to a lesson taught during the story of To Kill a Mockingbird. Mockingbirds are considered to be very innocent and delightful birds during this story. Miss Maudie goes about to say that …show more content…
Yes, it is true that mockingbirds make beautiful music, but this quote is much more than just that. The meaning of this quote goes further than just surface. This part of the quote is referencing to Tom Robinson helping others without expecting anything in return. Lee makes this clear on page 219 when she wrote, “No suh, not after she offered me a nickel the first time. I was glad to do it, Mr. Ewell didn’t seem to help her none, and neither did the chillun, and I knowed she didn’t have no nickels to spare,”. Tom Robinson is a selfless man that does things to make other people smile, alongside mockingbirds and their desire to make people …show more content…
When Atticus says, “I’d rather you shot at tin cans in the backyard, but I know you’ll go after the birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit em…” he uses the bluejays as a reference to the bad people in Maycomb County (Lee 103). Atticus isn’t saying that it is okay to go around shooting bad people for no reason, he uses shooting as a symbol for blaming. During the trial in the book, Lee makes it obvious that Tom Robinson was not actually the person who beat Mayella, he is just being blamed because he was there (206). The point that Atticus is trying to make by saying that Jem can shoot blue jays is that it is okay to shoot, or to blame, bluejays, or bad people, if you can hit them, or you have a legitimate