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To Kill A Mockingbird Theme Essay

Decent Essays

Harper Lee's 'To Kill a Mockingbird' is recounted by Scout, who at the time was six years old. This book follows her journey in growing up and eventually losing her innocence through realising the evil in the world, mostly portrayed by the racism and prejudice surrounding her. A mockingbird is a metaphor for the destruction of innocence. There are three mockingbirds in the text: Boo Radley, Scout Finch and Tom Robinson. Boo has done nothing wrong except sit in his house and 'mind his own business', and has done nothing to hurt anyone else. All that has happened is he has been accused once again of crimes he did not commit. Scout is a mockingbird because she is thrust in the middle of all of the adults and their prejudices. Tom has done …show more content…

Even though he kept to himself he was still accused of doing terrible things like driving 'scissors into his parent's leg' and dining 'on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch'. Apart from these completely unfair and unproven accusations he also was subjected to solitary confinement in his 'home'. All this was because he had a mental illness, and all he ever did was do the best that he could with the mind that he had. Boo Radley is a mockingbird because he is kind, gentle and always tries his best. Like Tom, he was thrown into a bad situation by the townsfolk and their biased and inaccurate views. That forced him to to react as best he could which was 'killing' Bob Ewell. He saved Jem and Scout, who where kids who had previously suspected him to be a monster, and that he had even previously left 'perfect miniatures' of them, for them. Although by some peoples standards, killing is never the 'right' option, Boo did what he thought was right, and he saved the kids lives. Boo is a mockingbird because he is innocent, and was put under the burden of the towns out of date views of society. Scout is a mockingbird because she is a child, and all children are at least born 'innocent'. Scout is innocent because she has done no crimes, but only when she faces Tom Robinson's trial that she loses her innocence, however, through the vast majority of the book she was a mockingbird. Proof of Scout being innocent and unknowing is that she 'don't understand'

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