To Kill a Mockingbird deals with Southern life during the 1930 ‘s. The book exposes a great deal of stereotyping, racism and prejudice. Harper Lee uses symbolism to demonstrate the thoughts that a small Alabama town might have during that era. So what does the mocking bird symbolise and how did they come in play with the story?

“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’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”(Lee, 90) But can this terme, be applied to people? Characters who others distinguish as bad but who are in reality good. Such as Arthur Radley, ( otherwise known as Boo Radley) a person who other citizens make wild accusations about because of his reclusive lifestyle. When Jem gave a description of Boo, he said that Boo would dine on raw squirrels and cats, making his hands bloodstained.But when Scout walked Arthur home she never stated that his hands were bloodstained. Another fact is when Stephanie Crawford told the children of one night that she woke up to find Boo looking straight trough the

He tries to teach his children, Jem and Scout, the words of Thomas Jefferson, the words that all men are created equal. Atticus shooting the rabid dog, Tim Johnson, was symbolic. Here the rabid dog represents prejudice and how like a rabid dog it spreads sickness throughout the town. Atticus kills the dog, like he kills the racism and prejudice, not letting it spread to his children. Atticus was also the one who told Jem to shoot the blue jays instead of the mockingbirds. Harper Lee ends with Atticus reading the Gray Ghost to Scout by Jem’s bed. Before Scout goes to bed she describes the story, that is also about someone falsely accused of something he din ’t do, like Tom Robinson and Boo Radley.

When Jem and Scout get their air-riffles at Christmas Attticus one day told Jem “I’d rather you shot at tin cans in the back yard, but I know you’ll go after birds. Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit ’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” (90) As mockingbirds are innocent, and only sing for us, they represent the innocence of the town. blue jays are pretty birds and at first glance they do not look noisy and mean but they are. blue jays are viewed as the bullies of the bird world, they represent the racism and prejudice of the town

Some topics in this essay:
Harper Lee, Christmas Attticus, Gilmer Tom, Tim Johnson, Tom Robinson, Bob Ewll, Jem Scout, Boo Boo, Kill Mockingbird, Arthur Radley, tom robinson, blue jays, kill mockingbird, harper lee, rabid dog, jem scout, racism prejudice, shoot blue jays, blue jay, boo radley, arthur radley, it’s sin kill, children jem scout, lee’s kill mockingbird, soon exposed true,