Violence In To Kill A Mockingbird

Violence plays a large role in our world. Wars, rebellions, and other acts of violence frequently come up on newspapers or television. In order to justify some acts of violence and discredit others, people often try to draw a fine line between necessary and unnecessary violence. The dictionary defines violence as “behavior involving physical force intended to hurt, damage, or kill someone or something” (“Violence, N.1.”). But for violence to be unnecessary, the person enacting the violence must not act in self-defense of either themselves or other people. Instead, they must act for their own benefit in a situation that does not require violence. On the other hand, necessary violence protects someone or something. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird

When Atticus calls Aunt Alexandra and Miss Maudie away from the Missionary Circle, he explains, “They fired a few shots in the air, then to kill. They got him [Tom Robinson] just as he went over the fence… Seventeen bullet holes in him” (Lee 268). The phrase “then to kill” implies that the police intended to kill Tom Robinson and succeeded. Since killing implies violence, this event included a violent act. The phrase “17 bullet holes in him” shows that the police had too much intention and establishes the excessiveness of their violence. Therefore, the phrase establishes the unnecessary nature of the police’s actions. However, the novel does not advocate this unnecessary violent act. Once Maycomb hears the story of Tom Robinson’s death, BB Underwood, the newspaper author “simply figured it was a sin to kill cripples, be they standing, sitting, or escaping. He likened Tom’s death to the senseless slaughter of songbirds by hunters and children” (Lee 275). The word “sin” followed by the word “escaping” denotes the unnecessary nature of Tom Robinson’s death, even though he tried to escape. Readers conclude Atticus supports this point of view because of the sentence “He likened Tom’s death to the senseless slaughter of songbirds.” The word “senseless” establishes the unnecessary nature of the killing of Tom Robinson. This sentence mirrors the sentence Atticus said earlier in the story. When Atticus buys Jem a rifle, he says, “Remember, it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee 103). Since a mockingbird is an example of a songbird, readers can conclude Atticus condemns the “senseless slaughter of songbirds”. Since BB Underwood establishes Tom Robinson’s similarity to a songbird, Atticus, by extension, also condemns the slaughter of Tom Robinson. The novel supports Atticus’ position because Atticus provides a voice of reason throughout the novel. Therefore the novel condemns unnecessary