To Kill A Mockingbird Symbolism

Atticus explains to Jem that “in our courts, when it’s a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins” (Lee 295 ). Atticus explain the justice system’s flaws to Jem, shows readers how racist people were in the 30’s. Therefore the novel does show some of the oppression that people of color were being forced to go through. During the trial, Tom Robinson says he ran from the Ewell house because “[he] was scared [he’d] hafta face up to what [he] didn't do” (Lee 265). Tom’s confession of his worried feelings of court prove how terrible and bias the southern justice system is. Even though Tom’s life before the trial was never mentioned in the novel, readers can still get a glimpse of the racist views in the south through his trial. Also at Tom’s trial, readers can “see the town of Maycomb in its worst light, willing to execute an innocent man for a crime he did not commit rather than question their belief in black inferiority and their social taboos about interracial relationships” (Felty). The trial truly shows the racist beliefs and the horrible lives African Americans were forced to live through with no freedom and fear of each new day. The novel does show some of the daily difficulties that African Americans went through and for that reason it should be looked upon as an example of racism in the south. Overall, the

He implies if one does not follow their conscience will, they will live overwhelmed by guilt. Here, the moral of human beings is threatened by the recurring subject of racism, as well as discrimination issues. Jem is an epitome of a corrupted person as he justifies that Atticus is wrong because everyone else thinks so. Nevertheless, he finds himself after the testimony is given. When it comes time for the trial, Jem follows it closely. Having grown up in the home of a lawyer, Jem understands the workings of the courtroom, besides its racial bias. Once the judge goes over the evidence, Jem becomes increasingly confident that Atticus won but his belief that Tom is innocent contrasts with what actually occurs: Tom is found guilty. While looking at Jem, Scout sees how his “shoulders jerked as if each ‘guilty’ was a separate stab between them.” By comparing Jem’s reaction to a “stab,” Lee not only shows Jem receiving blows of devastation over the case and feeling physically attacked but also points to the broader attack on things that Jem thought were once true. This is something that causes him great emotional pain as he has a hard time coming to terms with general unfairness. Jem has counted on the strength of bigotry but in

Someone once said “No matter your social status or how powerful you think you are, we are all equal.” The quote has much to do with the racism and segregation that people went through while living in America, especially in the South. It still is a relevant quote today, seeing as how racism and segregation has not ended, but increased over the decades. In Harper Lee’s classic, To Kill A Mockingbird, the small town of Maycomb, Alabama consists of plenty of racism and segregation. When Atticus is obligated to defend the man accused of rape, the whole town is hoping for him to prove his client is guilty. They’re quick to make a judgement about him, solely because he’s a black man. In this novel, several craft moves/techniques are used which then

People always wondered what a mockingbird represents. In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the narrator Jean Louise Finch lives in Maycomb, Alabama, with her brother Jeremy Finch, her dad Atticus Finch, and her mother-figure Calpurnia. She learns many lessons in her life including “You never truly understand a person until you put yourself in their shoes ” and “It is a sin to kill mockingbirds.” This ties in that a mockingbird symbolizes innocence, which proves that one should not judge someone else until they truly get to know them because one must truly know another before deeming them as evil or innocent.

“‘Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit'em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird”’(Lee 90). Atticus Finch tells his children it would be a sin to kill a mockingbird because the act would be taking away the purity or life of something so innocent. In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee uses an extended metaphor to reveal the theme of not everyone is as they seem, by comparing Boo Radley, Tom Robinson and Atticus Finch to mockingbirds.

The Story to kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a book that took place during the Great Depression. The story talks about a town in Maycomb Alabama with Scout (Jean Louise Finch), Jem Finch, Atticus Finch, Calpurnia their housemaid , and later their Aunt Alexandra Finch Hancock along with the trials and tribulations that they encounter throughout the story in a racist town that is trying to change their beliefs of the people who suffer because of the community of the town.

A composer uses their text to explore themes that are pertinent to the human condition to highlight their purpose and message. This concept of exploring themes becomes ignited in To Kill A Mockingbird (1960). In her text, Lee maintains the essence of society during the civil rights movement and the Great Depression. She embarks on a journey to present the consequences of a society built on bigotry, prejudice and racism through the theme of the coexistence of good and evil. Lee’s purpose is to raise awareness and make society recognize its mistreatment of others through critiquing the Southern States of America through the microcosm of Maycomb.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee presents how the mockingbird represents Tom Robinson and Boo Radley. The mockingbird represents Tom Robinson throughout the novel by showing his innocence and how the racist people of the town harm him. Despite the many people that take joy in hurting the innocent, there are some people who protect the innocent such as Atticus. For example, 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). Harper Lee uses this line to introduce us to the symbolization of the mockingbird and how it represents innocence. This line gives readers the first interpretation of the mockingbird which is that it sinful to cause mental or physical harm to someone whom has been generous to others and has not caused harm to anyone. Children such as Dill, Jem, and Scout do not understand the trial and how unfair it is towards Tom Robinson The children do not understand the grown-up world and visibly lose their innocence through questions that no child should have to ask or understand. While the

In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, the fire in chapter 8 symbolizes a form of prejudice as it burns down the snowman. A lot of the symbolism in this book stems from the prejudice taking place against the black population in Indiana. Some of this is issued when it snows for the first time since 1885. The children make a snowman out of leftover snow and some dirt. This represents the teamwork between the Finch family and the black community. The snow brings out the innocence of children.

Harper Lee use of symbolism is extent and throughout the major events in To Kill a Mockingbird to show the details behind the events. A seven-year old girl, Scout, tells the story and symbols may not be as obvious to her as it would the reader. Lee uses the camellias, courage, and the mockingbird as important symbols in the book. Lee uses symbolism throughout the book making it overt and obvious.

The novella 'To Kill a Mockingbird' by Harper Lee, is a very well known book which uses symbolism to further push the issue of racism. The way the ideas of racism and further issues are shown through smaller parts of the book such as the Mad Dog Atticus is forced to shoot and other things are represented by the Mockingbird itself, this essay will explain how some of these important symbols may be interpreted. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the mad dog to represent Prejudice and the Mockingbird to represent racism.

The light and dark represent the good and bad. The light that Atticus is holding when he is present at the jail is sort of a beacon of hope for Tom Robinson. The group that goes to the jail with the intent to hurt Tom and possibly Atticus if need be are surrounded by the nighttime darkness which can symbolize that they only had bad intentions. The jail originally does not have a light present on the outside, but Atticus brings one. For example, “A long extension cord ran between the bars of a second floor window and down the side of the building. In the light from its bare bulb. Atticus was sitting propped against the front door.” Toe explain the darkness, “In ones and twos, men got out of the cars. Shadows became substance as lights revealed

Whether it is in literature or even shown in pictures, people use things to represent something with a deeper meaning and that’s called symbolism. In the book “To Kill a Mockingbird” by author Harper Lee, various different themes or symbols are active throughout the book either directly, or more often, obscurely being tied to the ultimate theme of the book, which is not being able to understand someone until you experience life from their point of view. The most apparent reoccurring theme though is equality because of the fact it’s symbolized through people, birds, and even inanimate objects that Scout and Jem encounter over the course of the book in the tree that turns out to play a bigger part of the story as the story progresses. Sometimes, these symbols are obvious to the reader and other times, they’re not, but that doesn’t mean that there’s not an infinite number of ways to analyze or interpret those same symbols and the meanings behind them. By doing this, the reader is able to get a better and deeper sense of what Lee was truly trying to say and their connections to the story and the way they help make the reader experience being physically at the time of the 1930’s. Equality was and still is a problem as reflected in the book, but it’s the way Lee brings those symbols to our attention that makes us realize how close to the exact same spot we were over 80 years ago that is able to make the reader that much more intrigued.

In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, it says that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird. Killing a mockingbird is destroying innocence. There were quite a few characters that I saw as “mockingbirds” in this story. They were Boo Radley, Tom Robinson, and Dill.

Jem’s mental and “moral transformation” into a young adult that is mentioned periodically throughout the novel is critical to his character development and him finding his identity (Murray). Jem struggled with learning how “to reconcile his childhood belief” that the people who told the truth would get justice (Murray). His childhood beliefs were proven wrong when the reality of the deeply-rooted racism is exhibited in Tom Robinson’s trial. After witnessing the harsh truth, Jem decided that he wanted to be like his father Atticus and become a lawyer so that the innocent got the justice they deserved. Jem witnessing the brutality of the trial leads him to self-discovery.