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To Kill A Mockingbird Title Analysis

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Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, explores concepts such as social inequality, racism, morals and values, coming of age, and perspective. The story follows two children, Jem and Scout, as they experience being raised in Maycomb County, Alabama. So why did Lee choose the title: To Kill a Mockingbird?
Atticus Finch, Jem and Scout’s father, raises his children with integrity and turns every scenario into a teaching moment. As a man of wisdom, he strives to instill his knowledge into them. The first reference to the book’s title comes from Atticus in chapter ten, when Jem and Scout receive air-rifles. Atticus says: “‘Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird,’” (Lee 119). Through Miss Maudie, Lee writes that mockingbirds “‘don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up peoples …show more content…

Tom was charged with the rape of a local young girl, Mayella Ewell. Although he did not commit the crime, the town’s racist mindset led them to side with the guilty party, Bob Ewell. Tom Robinson was shot and killed, so in a sense, Maycomb County killed a mockingbird. The second is Boo Radley, a mysterious man that never shows his face, causing him to fall victim to the imaginations of Maycomb residents, especially those of children like Jem and Scout. Although Jem and Scout have their theories and alleged stories about Boo, he ends up saving their lives in a plot twist. However, in the act, he killed Bob Ewell. Due to the fact that he was only trying to protect Jem and Scout, Sheriff Heck Tate decides not to report Boo in the incident, saying Ewell fell on his own knife. Scout understands exactly why he does this. When discussing why he wouldn’t be put on trial, Scout says: “‘Well, it’d be sort of like shootin’ a mockingbird, wouldn’t it?’” (Lee

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Meanwhile, Scout and her brother Jem are interested in seeing Boo Radley, a man who has been rumored to had murdered his own father. On the other hand, the children’s father Atticus, a lawyer, takes on the case of Tom Robinson- a black man accused of raping Mayella Ewell. After Tom was declared guilty,a humiliated Bob Ewell tries to murders the Finch children for revenge, only for Boo Radley to save the children. Scout then looks at Boo, realizing to look from another person’s perspective.

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782 Words | 4 Pages

“Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird.”(Lee 119 ) To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel by Harper Lee about two young kids named Scout and Jem who live in the town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930’s. Maycomb is a town infected with racism like much of the south in that time, but it is also a quiet town where nothing really happens. That is until Tom Robinson, a black man, is accused by the Ewell’s, a white family, of raping their daughter. As Tom’s trial occurs, a chain of events is set into place that teaches Scout and Jem about the harsh reality of innocent people who fall victim to circumstance. That is why it is a sin to kill a mockingbird because mockingbirds symbolize innocent people who are hurt by evil, and it is a sin to hurt innocent people.

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735 Words | 3 Pages

I believe that this quote refers back to the time when Scout and Jem get new rifles for Christmas and Atticus tells Jem that it would be considered a sin if they shot a mockingbird. Mockingbirds are not predators and they will not harm anything or anyone; the only thing they do is make music with their mouths. Scout is remembering that time and comparing it to what had recently happened in her life. I think that she sees Tom Robinson and Boo Radley as the mockingbirds. Tom Robinson didn’t harm anyone, and the only thing that he did was help those who needed assistance.

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630 Words | 3 Pages

Miss Maudie gives an explanation of how the mockingbird is innocent, because it does nothing but benefit others. By listing the ways the mockingbird benefits others and saying it does nothing wrong, Lee, through the character of Miss Maudie, explains the symbol of the mockingbird: someone or something that does not harm others,

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695 Words | 3 Pages

That's a sin.” Mr. Tate agree’s that coming forth about who really killed Mr. Ewell would do a great disjustice to Boo who just wants to stay out the limelight. Boo risked being in the center of attention to help Jem and Scout, which in my opinion, is one of the greatest acts of courage seen in the

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879 Words | 4 Pages

According to Atticus, it is considered a sin to harm a mockingbird because “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.” By drawing a parallel between mockingbirds and vulnerable members of society, Atticus teaches his children the importance of embracing kindness and refraining from causing harm to those who pose no threat. Towards the conclusion of the novel, Scout demonstrates her understanding of the mockingbird metaphor when she reflects on the necessity of keeping Boo Radley's actions secret by comparing exposing Boo's deeds to “shooting a mockingbird”, thereby highlighting her ability to apply the metaphor to individuals in her own life. Scout's observation serves as evidence of her personal growth throughout the narrative, as she embraces the principles of empathy and ethical behaviour that Atticus

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As a child, have you ever wondered how it would feel to be able to fly like a bird? Many people do not know what a typical bird does during their day to day life. But a Mockingbird is not any typical type of bird. “Kill all the bluejays you want, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (117). The previous quote is a world widely known quote; stated by Atticus; a character from the book To Kill a Mockingbird; authored by Harper Lee.

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In the novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’, Atticus Finch is Jem and Scout’s father. He is stern but fair with his children. He is a great father to the children and we can tell this from the life lessons he teaches them. These life lessons include the teachings of compromise to teach his children how to empathize with others around them. Atticus is the least affected by the deep seated racist prejudice throughout the novel, he speaks and acts for what he believes in.

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1174 Words | 5 Pages

This idea first appears when Atticus Finch is talking to his children, Jeremy (Jem) and Jean Louise (Scout) Finch. He says that they should not shoot at mockingbirds, and the children go to Miss Maudie for clarification. “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing

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To Kill A Mockingbird Literary Analysis Throughout To Kill A MockingBird, by Harper Lee there are many acts of courage. This is shown in Atticus Finch, Jem Finch, and Boo Radley. Atticus shows the most courage in the book but all three of these characters show true courage in some way, shape, or form. Boo Radley showed a lot of courage, but he was not in the storyline as much as Atticus. Throughout To Kill A Mockingbird, courage is defined as standing up for people and doing what’s right.

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905 Words | 4 Pages

Tom is clearly innocent, but because of racial prejudice during the Great Depression, he is proven guilty. Also, Boo Radley, the neighbor of Jem and Scout, kills Bob Ewell, the man who tried to attack Jem and Scout. Even though he killed someone, he is never taken to court. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the mockingbird to symbolize innocence and all that is good in the small southern town of Maycomb. Harper Lee was born in Monroeville, Alabama on April 26, 1926.

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418 Words | 2 Pages

In the passage Jem and Scout walk home during the dark hours,giving Bob Ewell an opportunity to stage an attack. As Bob Ewell attacks them Boo Radley rushes in to rescue Jem and Scout. After this Scout now understands what Atticus meant it is a sin to kill a mockingbird. The killing of a mockingbird is much like killing the innocent. It is beyond a crime and worse than the most heinous atrocities.

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855 Words | 4 Pages

Miss Maudie says, “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to

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875 Words | 4 Pages

Essay 1 Date Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird “To kill a Mockingbird” is a novel in which Harper Lee, the author, presents forth various themes among them the unheard theme of social molarity. Harper dramatically uses a distinctive language through Scout, who is the narrator of the story to bring out the difficulties faced by children living in the southern Alabama town of Maycomb. Harper has dramatically displayed use of bildungsroman throughout the story; this helped to give the story a unique touch of a child’s view to bring out a different type of humor and wit. It has also used to develop and thrive the theme of morality in the society.

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549 Words | 3 Pages

Atticus states that “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” How is this idea explored in Chapters 2 and 3? Atticus makes a statement which resonates through a vast majority of the novel. It can be clearly represented in chapters 2 and 3, when Scout first goes to school and Walter Cunningham comes to dinner with the Finches. Scout shows a lack of understanding for some characters, as does her teacher, Miss Caroline.

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