Compare Tom Robinson Symbolize A Mockingbird

Tom Robinson is wrongfully convicted of rape and eventually killed in prison, whereas Boo Radley is killed emotionally because he is not accepted by society. Since it is a sin to kill a mockingbird, it is also a sin to kill innocent souls like Tom and Boo. When Scout tries to understand why it is a sin to kill a mockingbird, Miss Maudie elucidates Atticus’s opinion more clearly by stating, “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” (103). Mockingbirds sing and make beautiful music; however they mimic the songs of other birds, so they are seen through others. Tom and Boo are like mockingbirds because they are subject to the perceptions of the people of Maycomb. The townspeople knew these characters based on what others said about them. Consequently, Tom and Boo do not have their own “song” and are portrayed by others’ views of them. The mockingbird emerges as a metaphor for the wrong in harming innocent and defenseless people.

In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, in a town called Maycomb, live two completely different people, totally unaware of each other, until they aren’t. Atticus Finch is a lawyer with two kids, Scout and Jem Finch. The Finches are the family that originally founded Maycomb, so Atticus is very well known. Tom Robinson is a African-American man who gets accused of raping Bob Ewell’s daughter, Mayella Ewell. Atticus is Tom’s Robinson’s lawyer for the case, sparking lots of controversy between the two races, African Americans and Whites. It’s hard for Atticus to accept the case because Tom Robinson is an African-American man, so if Atticus were to accept the case,

References to the title in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird suggest that both Tom Robinson and Boo Radley are “mockingbirds.” The reader is lead to understand that the term suggests an innocent, harmless creature who should not be made to suffer. To Kill a Mockingbird is a sin. This book shows Tom Robinson and Boo Radley as mockingbirds. Boo Radley was the victim of harsh parenting and prejudgement. Tom Robinson was the victim of racism.

Wrongly judging people was an element not only in the Tom Robinson trial, but all throughout the book. “Miss stephanie Crawford

Not only through the use of Tom Robinson as a character and his unjust trial, but also through the use of the Finches coloured housekeeper, Cal, and the prejudice against Boo Radley because of his past crimes. Tom Robinson has done nothing wrong yet is still accused and even Atticus Finch, Tom’s lawyer, knows nothing can be done to defend a black man against two dishonest whites. The children’s naivety plays an important role in presenting the theme of prejudice in the book, especially the narration and how Scout, Jem, and Dill did not truly understand what was happening at the time, which creates an almost dramatic irony in the fact that the reader is able to comprehend more than the characters created by Lee.

The innocence of Boo Radley, along with the misunderstanding from the kids, alludes to Tom Robinson’s innocence. Although, the “kids”, with reference to the townspeople and jury members, misunderstand the truth about Tom Robinson and persecute him anyway: “‘Son,’ he said to Jem, ‘I’m going to tell you something and tell you this one time: stop tormenting that man’” (65). In this scene, Jem, Dill, and Scout act out what they know about Boo Radley’s life, and Atticus catches and scolds them.Though what makes this scene important is that the only things they really know about Boo’s life have been rumors, rather than proven stories.This is the same for the jury deliberating over Tom Robinson’s case. They have only heard information through Mr. Ewell, an unreliable source.Ass Tom Robinson tries explaining his side, the court does not believe him because he is black. Their years of segregation between the white and black community result

“But remember, it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." (119) The mockingbird represents the symbol of pure innocence and beauty in the book, while the bluejay represents the vicious and the ruthless of society. "People generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for..."(232) This quote represents how people view mockingbirds and blue jays. Although there are many shameless ‘mockingbirds’ the two that stand out the most are, of course, Tom Robinson and Boo Radley. Unlike the several ‘mockingbird’ characters, there is one clear blue jay, which is Bob Ewell. Representing the symbol of the mockingbird, Tom Robinson and Boo Radley are significantly impacted by Bob Ewell, the symbolic bluejay.

Firstly, Tom Robinson is just one character that is prejudged in the novel. He is accused of raping a white girl named Mayella and it is a problem to the jury that a black man is trying to defend himself in court. Atticus realizes how Tom is being treated unfairly and that it is uncommon for African Americans and white people to associate with each other. During Atticus’s speech, Mayella is accused of lying in her testimony when “she kissed a black man [which is] something that in our society is unspeakable” (Lee 272). The black man who Atticus refers to is Tom. He is ridiculed and judged by several people in the book and he gets all this

When Harper Lee expresses her message of courage, she demonstrated courage through the selflessness of two characters by emphasizing their morality. Tom Robinson and Boo Radley symbolize mockingbirds in the sense that they are innocent but still courageous. Once Atticus the father and main character said “ I’d rather you shoot at tin cans in the back yard, but I know you’ll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want but remember It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”(Lee 119.) Mockingbirds symbolize Innocence, Lee is displaying that Tom and Boo are the mockingbirds in this novel. When Boo puts the gifts in the tree for the kids, that showed his Innocence, then when he left his house and saved the kids that showed his courage. Tom Robinson and Boo Radley, two Innocent men that no one trusts, portrays

However, Tom Robinson is not the only mockingbird in the story. Boo Radley is another harmless creature who falls victim of cruelty. He is unjustly regarded as an evil person and used as the scapegoat for all the bad happenings around town. Women are afraid of him and so are children. When the sheriff decided that he would not arrest Boo Radley for killing Bob Ewell and that would present his death as an accident, Atticus asked Scout if she understood the meaning of this decision. Scout replied that she did. Her exact words were: "Well, it'd be sort of like shootin' a mockingbird, wouldn't it?" (282). Boo here is also compared to the gentle bird and again it would be a 'sin' to punish him. The symbol of the mockingbird can be applied to Boo Radley from another point of view as well. The mockingbird has no song of its own. It just imitates other birds. Therefore it makes itself present and is seen through other birds. In the same way, Boo Radley is seen through the eyes of other people. He does not have a character of his own. What the reader knows about him is what other people say. He is believed to " dine on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, his hands were

Tom Robinson becomes a mockingbird by only helping everyone and dying for his actions. Boo Radley is a recluse with an abusive father that earned mockingbird status through giving gifts, a blanket, and 2 kids lives. “when they finally saw him, why he hadn’t done any of those things. Atticus, he was real nice.” “Most people are when you finally see them” These two quotes refer to the misunderstood nature of these two hardcore mockingbirds. The emotion added by this connection adds a lasting impact on the

Harper Lee uses Tom Robinson and Boo Radley as figures to represent the mockingbird. When Atticus tells Jem and Scout that it is a sin to kill the mockingbird, this refers to the actions directed toward Tom and Boo. It was a sin to dislike Tom

The title To Kill a Mockingbird is very significant to the novel as it portrays many forms of mockingbirds throughout it. As the novel progresses, it becomes clear that Boo Radley and Tom Robinson are the true Mockingbirds of the story. They both are innocent from the accusations claimed upon them.

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.

The idea of mockingbirds in this text carries great symbolic weight, mockingbirds are considered the innocents in the novel. It is considered a sin to kill a mockingbird, which symbolizes the destruction innocence. Tom Robinson, Arthur “Boo” Radley, Jem and Mr. Raymond can all be identified as mockingbirds - innocents who have been injured or destroyed through contact with evil.