Innocence and Goodness： Symbolic Meaning of the Mockingbird

曹潤霞

【Abstract】To Kill A Mockingbird，a best-selling novel written by a woman writer named Harper Lee，is set in the American life during the depression，describing the life in a small town in southern America through the visual angle of two children.And this thesis will mainly analyze the symbolic meaning of the mockingbird mentioned in it.

【Key words】innocence； goodness； symbolic meaning

To Kill A Mockingbird was written and published in 1960.Its high popularity made it win the 1961 Pulitzer Prize despite mixed critical reviews.Delving into the authors own experiences as a child in Monroeville，this novel tells the story of a young girl named Scout and her father，a lawyer，who defends a black man accused of raping a white woman.In regard of the theme，it is obvious that Harper Lee tries to focus on racism existing in America.And throughout the novel，the author explores the differences between the Whites and the Blacks.Take Tom Robinson as an example，though the evidence is very powerful to show that he is guiltless，the court is not in favor of him.This is only because he is a black man and the accuser is a white person.The shadow of Jim Crow still covers every corner of the American society with black people subjugated to be inferior persons.Seen from the meaning of the word，the mockingbird seems to have nothing to do with the plot as well as the theme.However it has symbolic meaning in the novel.Lee uses the mockingbird to symbolize innocence in the novel which serves as another theme in the novel.

The titular mockingbird first appears when Atticus gives Scout and her brother Jem air-rifles as Christmas presents and allows their Uncle Jack to teach them to shoot.Atticus tells them that，although they can“shoot all the bluejays they want”，they must remember that“it's a sin to kill a mockingbird”.Scout doesnt know what her father means by saying so，and she goes to her neighbor Miss Maudie for explanation.Miss Maudie explains that mockingbirds never harm other living creatures.She points out that mockingbirds simply provide pleasure with their songs，saying，“They don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us.”Just as these lines depict，the mockingbirds are a kind of songbirds.They dont eat up peoples gardens，and dont nest in corncribs，but simply sing their hearts out for peoples enjoyment.Since the mockingbirds are harmless，it is wrong and sinful to harm or even kill them.Thus，in the novel，Harper Lee uses the mockingbird to symbolize pure innocence and goodness.“To kill a mockingbird” means to kill that which is innocent and harmless.By using the mockingbird as a symbol，the author tells us that it is always wrong to harm those who have not harmed us.This is just what Atticuss words mean.These lines from Chapter 10 introduce one of the key metaphors of the book： the idea of “mockingbirds” as good，innocent people who are destroyed by evil.

In the story，Boo Radley and Tom Robinson are both mockingbirds in a sense，since they do nothing wrong but are still punished.Boo Radley is a white man with strange personality.He never goes outdoors except，thus being regarded as a threat to the children around.But in fact，he is a good and innocent person and does not harm anyone.Instead，he leaves Jem and Scout presents，and eventually saves the children from Bob Ewell.Despite the pureness and goodness of his heart，however，Boo has been damaged by an abusive father.Nevertheless，he is not as evil as people believe.He is a typical mockingbird in the novel.Tom Robinson is another innocent destroyed carelessly and deliberately in the novel.He is an honest black man working in a good plantation.Being a warm-hearted person，he is asked by a white girl to help her do some work when her father is out and is forced to beat and rape the girl.As a result，he is accused of rape by her father.Living under the shadow of Jim Crow，a series of laws against the black people，there is no doubt that Tom is a victim of racism.Though all the evidence is in favor of him，he loses his case in the end.Toms case also represents the theme of racial prejudice in the story.As we know，To Kill a Mockingbird was written during the time when the South was still segregated，forcing blacks to use separate facilities apart from those used by whites，in almost every aspect of society.Therefore，although the evidence proves Tom Robinsons innocence in the court case，the town would not set him free due to the towns racist mentality.The connection between songbirds and innocents is made explicitly several times in the book： in Chapter 25，Mr.Underwood likens Tom Robinsons death to “the senseless slaughter of songbirds by hunters and children”； in Chapter 30，Scout tells Atticus that hurting Boo Radley would be “sort of like shootin a mockingbird.” The moral imperative to protect the vulnerable governs Atticuss decision to take Toms case，just as it leads Jem to protect the roly-poly bug from Scouts hand.

Reference：

[1]Lee·Harper.To kill a Mockingbird.Philadelphia：Lippincott， 1960.

[2]王恩銘.當代美國社會與文化[M].上海外語教育出版社，1997.