The Title of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird Essay

What it Means to Kill a Mocking Bird: an in depth analysis of the morals in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird

Boo would leave small gifts in a tree near his residence for the Finch kids to find, he mended Jem’s pants when he was caught wandering in the Radley yard, and he did Maycomb County a huge honor by executing Bob Ewell, a man who caused much to the town. On page 321, Scout says, “Boo is our neighbor. He gave us 2 soap dolls, a broken watch and chain, a pair of good luck pennies, and our lives. we had given him nothing, and it made me sad.” Boo’s character was very honorable as he took care of his community without wanting something in return.

Others thought differently, which is why Boo was feared by so many. Lee selects words that poke out a sense of empathy, despite his isolated and invisible nature. When she introduces Boo to the kids, it offsets the initial misconceptions. After Scout was saved from the fire, Atticus told her, “.thank. Boo Radley.you were so busy looking at the fire, you didn’t know it when he put the blanket around you” (Lee 82).

Harper Lee’s most iconic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, is a story of prejudice and racism. The novel takes place in the depression stricken town of Maycomb County and follows a girl named Scout as she learns and experiences the good and evil taking place in her community. As suggested by the title, the mockingbird plays an important role in the book as it represents innocence and the slaying of one represent the loss of innocence. The symbolic mockingbirds in To Kill a Mockingbird are Boo Radley, Jem and Tom Robinson.

Contradicting what Scout and Jem had initially thought, Boo was not a monster. In fact, he was just a shy, timid man who was never exposed to the social aspects of life. “Boo was our neighbor. He gave us two soap dolls, a broken watch and chain, a pair of good-luck pennies, and our lives. But neighbors give in return. We never put back into the tree what we took out of it: we had given him nothing, and it made me sad,” (373). From this quote, it is made clear that Scout now feels pity in the fact that she never gave back to Boo Radley. She feels bad for all of the times Boo was made fun of.

knew that was the right thing to do and he also knew it would be on

In “To Kill a Mockingbird”, Atticus relates to the main quote by showing his children how they could never understand Mrs. Dubose until they experience her struggles. Atticus explains to Jem and Scout Mrs. Dubose’s situation. To Jem and Scout, Mrs. Dubose is a mean, old cranky lady who doesn’t respect anyone. To Atticus, Mrs. Dubose is a fighter. When Mrs. Dubose insulted Atticus, Jem finally snapped and cut her camellia bushes.

Mr Radley was ashamed of his son’s behaviour when he got into the wrong crowd as a youngster and punished him by locking him up. There is a lot of gossip around Maycomb about Boo and people blame him for any bad things that happen in the neighbourhood, ‘Any stealthy crimes committed in Maycomb were his work.’ Jem turns him into a monster, ‘his hands were blood-stained’, and ‘his eyes popped’. At the end of the novel however, we find that Boo is misunderstood, and gossip of the town’s folk has made him up to be a ‘malevolent phantom’. Scout tells us he is timid, he had, ‘the voice of a child afraid of the dark’.

Mockingbirds are a powerful means used by Lee to convey the deep-rooted prejudice entrenched in the fictional town of Maycomb. The title of the novel is symbolic of Tom Robinson and Boo Radley. Lee writes that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird. However, one

As Scout and Jem walk home from the pageant they got attacked by Mr. Ewell. They screamed for help and the only person that heard them was Arthur (Boo) Radley. So he ran out to rescue their lives. This is the first time Mr.Radley left his house and the first time Scout saw him. To most people it was a mystery how Mr. Radley looked. When he was at Scout’s house he went to the farthest corner and the people there acted as if Mr. Radley was invisible.

Courage is the quality of mind that enables one to face danger with confidence, resolution, and gain a firm control of oneself. Many of the characters in To Kill a Mockingbird showed courage in their own way. Courage can come in many different forms: physical, mental, emotional and moral. Courage is not the only main theme displayed in To Kill a Mockingbird; prejudice and education are also very important themes exhibited throughout the progression of the novel. Through the eyes of Scout Finch, a bright, sensitive and intelligent little girl, these themes of the novel are explored in great depth.

To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel written by Harper Lee and published in 1960. It was a very successful book, winning the Pulitzer Prize and becoming a modern American classic. Ostensibly, the title of To Kill a Mockingbird has scant literary connection to the plot of the story, but the recurring mockingbird motif symbolizes the innocent and good characters in this novel. Miss Maudie explains to Scout why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird: “Your father’s right. 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.” To Kill a Mockingbird likens three characters, Tom Robinson, Arthur “Boo” Radley, and Atticus Finch, to mockingbirds.

The book "To Kill a Mockingbird" is a story of life in an Alabama town in the 30's. The narrator, Jean Louise Finch, or Scout, is writing of a time when she was young, and the book is in part the record of a childhood, believed to be Harper Lee’s, the author of the book..

To Kill a Mockingbird is a book written by Nelle Harper Lee. It’s set in a fictional town in Alabama called Maycomb during the Great Depression. This story follows The Finch family (Scout, Jem and Atticus) during a case that Atticus takes on. Mayella Ewell and her father accuse a man of rape. Since this man, Tom Robinson, is african-american all the occupants of maycomb assume he is guilty. Eventually,

During the 1930's prejudice and racism was spread through the U.S. For example in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird, the small town of Maycomb struggles with these aspects. Each character of the novel has a strong personality. Scout Finch is tough, always has an opinion, and is a tomboy. On the other hand Boo Radley stays hidden most of the time, but we all know he is actually a friend to Jem and Scout. Then there is Tom Robinson, a hardworking, strong, and innocent man. But what do all these characters have in common? They can all be analyzed as "mockingbirds". Throughout the novel each of their innocence is destroyed in some way. In Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird several of these characters become a symbolic mockingbird including