Tom Robinson Is A Sin To Kill A Mockingbird

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is best known as a literary classic, telling the tale of a young girl named Jean Louise “Scout” Finch’s childhood in a southern Alabama town during the great depression. While the fate of a black male convicted of rape still looms in the synopsis. To Kill a Mockingbird the title of the novel, refers to a quote on page 119. Both said by Atticus Finch the town of Maycomb's lawyer and Miss Maudie his neighbor, “it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird”. As said by Miss Maudie “ Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. 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 119). The title of this novel isn’t only referencing this quote,

¨ ‘Your father’s right,’ she said. ‘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 is a sin to kill a mockingbird.’ ” (Lee 119)

Tom Robinson’s character exemplifies the mockingbird because he is a black man who is denied justice based on racial prejudice. After Mayella Ewell accuses Tom of rape, there is no way for him to be judged fairly because the narrow-minded, white townspeople are unable to get past their prejudices towards blacks. At his trial, Tom’s lawyer, Atticus, argues,

The book, To Kill a Mockingbird, is an American classic and has been a staple in high schools for many years. The main storyline that this novel follows is of Scout, a young girl, living in the sleepy town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s. It follows the case of Tom Robinson, an African American man, and how he was accused and convicted of rape. In prison, Tom was shot and killed because he was said to have tried to escape. While Mayella is the one who is saying that Tom raped her, the real person who should be to blame is her abusive father. As is quite apparent, Bob Ewell is the person who is most responsible for the death of Tom Robinson.

Mr. Underwood, editor of The Maycomb Tribune, likened Tom’s death to the senseless slaughter of songbirds by hunters and children. Tom Robinson does not harm anyone like mockingbirds. In Chapter 19, Link Deas, Tom’s employer, rises from the audience and announces that Tom has been worked for him for eight years, and Tom never causes him any trouble. Tom is always glad to help if someone is needed like mockingbirds are always singing their heart out for everyone. During the trial, Tom states that “Seemed like every time I passed by yonder she’d have some little somethin’ for me to do----choppin’kindlin’, totin’ water for her.” (Lee 218) When Atticus asks Tom if he is paid for his services, Tom says “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 non, and neither did the chillum.” (Lee 218) Ironically, Mayella is the person who receives Tom’s services, but she is also the one who “kills” him. Accroding to Mr. Underwood, “Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed.” (Lee 276) Prison guards shoot Tom down with seventeen bullets on his body, and it is a sin to do

Tom Robinson is another mockingbird figure. He was a genuinely caring person who is destroyed by his willingness to help Mayella Ewell. Just like a mockingbird, Robinson never hurt anyone. Yet, he was also persecuted by society for his kindness and his race. Tom Robinson was killed because of his kindness and the color of his skin; “ a harmless songbird that was shot down by a senseless hunter.” Lee uses the character of Tom as a mockingbird figure to express the innocence of the mockingbird and exhibit the narrow-mindedness and biased opinions of the towns folk.

It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird “shoot all the bluejays you want, but it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird”. This quote is said by Atticus who is a lawyer that defends an innocent black man for being accused of raping a white women. To kill a mockingbird is set in the 1930s in Maycomb alabama where there was prejudices. This story is not just about racism but implies a deeper meaning, the mockingbird has a strong message and holds an important metaphorical meaning. The mockingbird is portrayed as a innocent fragile songbird that symbolizes innocence but is killed by men. Tom Robinson symbolizes an innocent fragile songbird because he does no harm to society, his voice is ignored by almost everyone, and he gets shot and killed just like an innocent fragile songbird.

On the other hand, Tom Robinson could also be the symbolic “mockingbird”. For instance, while examining Toms behavior, Scout realizes that, “Tom Robinson 's manners were as good as Atticus 's.” and say’s, “Until my father explained it to me later, I did not understand the subtlety of Tom 's predicament: he would not have dared strike a white woman under any circumstances and expect to live long, so he took the first opportunity to run” (Lee 197) This belief indicates that Tom is a very polite gentleman who is innocent. Being a man of color, he ran that night as self defence, not because he did something wrong. He did not want to hurt Mayella, as the gentleman he is, but in such circumstances he was forced to do so. Therefore, during the trial, he does not claim that mayella is a liar, instead he says, “I say she’s mistaken in her mind”. (Lee 167) He is a gentleman and an innocent man who doesn 't mean any harm. Also, while explaining about Tom’s death, ‘They shot him,’ said Atticus. ‘He was running. It was during their exercise period. They said he just broke into a blind raving charge at the fence and started climbing over. Right in front of them...”(Lee

It's a sin to kill a mockingbird because they don't do anything to hurt people; they only help farmers out and sing beautiful songs. To Kill a Mockingbird is about a little girl named Scout who sees her town as a beautiful place where nothing unpleasant happens until accusations of rape occur. Then she realizes how racist and negative her town people can be. This occurs when her dad defends an innocent African American man. She realizes that Macomb has deplorable individuals living there, and this reality hit her hard. Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson, and Boo Radley are metaphorically portrayed as mockingbirds.

Tom was shot when he was trying to escape during the exercise period, he made a run for the fence and started to climb over it. The guards shot him 17 times. Mr. Underwood is a man who shows hatred towards the black community, however, in this article, Mr. Underwood describes the murder of Tom Robinson as the "senseless slaughter of a songbird". This is symbolic because it is like the message that Atticus tells Scout. “You can shoot all the blue jays you want if you can hit ‘em, but remember it is a sin to kill a mockingbird”, in this metaphor Tom Robinson is the Mockingbird/songbird.

He shows this by going out of his way to help Mayella. Tom testifies, “Mr. Ewell didn’t seem to help her none (256)…” This shows his generosity as he helped her for no reward, just out of the kindness of his heart. Tom is an honest man who is prejudiced because of his skin colour. Scout realises, “It occurred to me that in their own way, Tom Robinson’s manners were as good as Atticus’s (260).” Since the community has the utmost respect for Atticus it shows that racism is the only reason they will not believe him. Lastly, Tom was killed for a crime he didn’t commit. “He likened Tom’s death to the senseless slaughter of songbirds (323)…” As an innocent man, Tom did not deserve to be killed for this crime. Even though Tom is not guilty, because of the Maycomb’s racism his innocent life was

Tom Robinson is a mockingbird because he was innocent of the crime that Mayella said he committed. During Tom Robinson's testimony he said, “ …. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more than the rest of em- …” (page 197) This showed us Tom's character , he simply wanted to help her out of the own kindness of his heart. The local journalist reflected on Tom’s death written in his editorial by referring to it as the, “Senseless slaughter of songbirds...Atticus had used every tool available to free men to save Tom Robinson ,but in the secret courts of men's hearts Atticus had no case. Tom

It is a Sin to Kill Tom Robinson"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 make music for us to enjoy. That's why it is a sin to kill a mockingbird." (90) This quote is stated by Miss Maudie, underscoring the point of view of Atticus, who is a lawyer given an uphill job of substantiating a black man's innocence who is accused of raping a white woman, Mayella Ewells. To Kill a Mockingbird is an inspirational and thought provoking story that is the first and the only novel written by Harper Lee. The basic time setting of the novel is in the 1930s during the Great Depression, in the fictional town of Maycomb Alabama, where prejudice

Another mockingbird in the story was Tom Robinson. Tom Robinson was just like Boo Radley nice and loving to others especially Mayella Ewell. Tom Robinson was very kind to Mayella he always did we she wanted him to do and he always did it with pride. When Bob Ewell accused Tom Robinson of raping Mayella it was like a mockingbird that just stops singing or died because Tom Robinson would never rape Mayella. Bob Ewell said that Tom Robinson was kissing and touching Mayella. Mr. Ewell thinks now that Tom Robinson is an animal who was taking advantage of his daughter. Tom Robinson is a man who helped Mayella Ewell everyday when he would walk by her house, she

Tom Robinson is the most easily identifiable mockingbird in this story. Although he is a peaceful, respectful man who helps Mayella Ewell without asking for anything in return, he is falsely accused and dies tragically as a result. Mr. Underwood, Maycomb’s newspaper editor, likens Tom’s death to the “senseless slaughter of innocent songbirds by hunters and children” in the editorial he writes immediately after the Negro’s death. As shooting a mockingbird results in the loss of a sweet song-maker, the death of Tom brings no good fruit—it only satisfies the destructive racial prejudice of the South. Tom is also targeted for the same reasons that mockingbirds are targeted