Tkam Opinion Essay

The Symbol of a Mockingbird
Supported Opinion Essay

Prejudice and racism are a part of living and people will always be confronted with it, but why are people hated or precluded? Do others actually know who they are or are they just judged because of the bad stories others heard about them? In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee writes about this theme and she uses the mockingbird is a symbol. A mockingbird is a harmless bird that makes the world more pleasant. Mockingbirds are the innocent victims in this novel.

Tom Robinson is one of the mockingbirds in the novel. Tom Robinson is a “Negro”, so when he is convicted of raping Mayella, all the whites want him to be convicted. Tom 's good character and total innocence make him resemble the harmless songbird. Not understanding that his best chance remains to bide his time and failing to grasp anything other than his crushing desire to escape; Tom seems like a frantic, caged songbird. Tom Robinson lost all hope because he was convicted, thinking there was no other way out. Tom Robinson got shot by the police while he was trying to escape from prison. In fact, Tom Robinson died because of an unfair trial. Underwood, the town 's newspaper editor, compares Tom to a mockingbird after Tom 's death.
"He likened Tom 's death to the senseless slaughter of songbirds by hunters and children."(Lee, 241)
The people of Maycomb are racists; they hate black people, because in their opinion they are less worthy than whites. They don’t respect other cultures or other opinions.

Tom is not the only mockingbird in the story. Boo Radley resembles a mockingbird as well. When Arthur Radley was younger he got into some trouble involving a rowdy group of kids. One night he resisted arrest and as punishment was locked up in the outhouse for the night. Later Arthur Radley 's father took him home instead of sending him to get an education. Boo was not seen for fifteen years. While Boo Radley 's father was clipping the newspaper Boo stabbed him in the leg.That was the point where Boo became the main topic of gossip by the neighbours. They started telling scary stories about him and judged him for what they had heard about him. Boo Radley never left his house because of that.. In truth, Boo never wanted to hurt a fly.

Boo Radley does not mimic the actions of other human beings, but many residents of Maycomb perceive him as if he does. To them, Boo executes the actions of a fiend. Because Boo is shy and reclusive, he does not defend himself against the false stories about him. The symbol of the mockingbird can be applied to Boo Radley also because a 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 and coloured by the meanness of other people. He does not show evil of his own. What is known about him is what other people say. He is believed to have stabbed his father in the leg with a pair of scissors, to peep through windows at night, to be
"six-and-a-half feet tall, to have dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, his hands were blood-stained; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time" (Lee, 19).
Of course, none of the stories about him are true. In fact, the stories tell us more about the people who spread them rather than about Boo Radley himself. The range of 40 different songs (National Geographic) that a mockingbird can produce can also be symbolic of the many different stories the people of Maycomb tell about Boo Radley.

"Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit `em, but remember it 's a sin to kill a mockingbird," (Lee,98)
Atticus tells the children. To put it in more general terms, Atticus tells Jem and Scout to follow a moral law that commands them to spare the innocent. This moral law has obligations. Atticus must defend Tom Robinson even though he knows he will fail because he must do the just and moral thing.

“Tom Robinson 's case is something that goes to the essence of a man 's conscience—Scout, I couldn 't go to church and worship God if I didn 't try to help that man…..before I can live with other folks I 've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn 't abide by majority rule is a person 's conscience," (Lee, 120) says Atticus to Scout. This quotation demonstrates that protecting the innocent goes before anything and stands at the very root of person 's conscience. Furthermore, the children must respect harmless Boo Radley and not tease him even though he appears strange and reclusive. As a response to all the Boo Radley teasing, Atticus tells the children to let Boo manage his own business. This idea of leaving Boo Radley be connects to the symbol of the mockingbird by showing that this character should be free to exist without interference, like in the wild.

Throughout the novel, Scout, Jem, and Dill are curious about the "mysterious" Boo Radley because he never comes outside or associates with anyone in the neighbourhood. Boo Radley becomes a game for the children and they act out Boo Radley scenarios that they believed to be true. These stories were based on the gossip that trails through their neighbourhood. For example, Miss Stephanie tells the children that while Boo was sitting in the living room cutting a magazine, he
"drove the scissors into his parent 's leg, pulled them out, wiped them on his pants, and resumed his activities." (Lee, 11).

The story about the stabbing is the opposite of the true personality of Boo Radley. He left gum, pennies, and wax dolls for Scout and Jem. He sewed Jem 's pants and left them on the fence so he could get them easily. He also saved Scout 's and Jem 's lives while risking his own. Boo is a fragile and gentle person. He reflects the nature of a mockingbird with his actions. Mockingbirds have deep connections to their territories (National Geographic), just as Boo as a deep connection to Jem and Scout through the tree.

All in all, Lee wants to show the reader that the true identity of a person is revealed through their actions. This is true of the mockingbird as well. Listening to a mockingbird is confusing as they take on the voice of others, and can only be identified when their behaviour and appearance are observed. One character, Boo Radley shows who he really is through his acts of kindness, compassion and courage. A mockingbird is the perfect symbol to represent that, because lots of people don’t know how beautiful this creature is and so this is a great symbol to deliver the message of not judging people and seeing things from their points of view!

Works Cited:
Lee, Harper, To Kill A Mockingbird. Grand Central Publishing: New York, 1960

Cited: Lee, Harper, To Kill A Mockingbird. Grand Central Publishing: New York, 1960