What is a Mockingbird What makes Tom Robinson, Mrs. Dubose, and Boo Radley Mockingbirds - Essay Example

e’s story, Atticus proves the black man is innocent of all charges while implicating that any damage done was actually caused by the girl’s abusive father, but the defendant, Tom Robinson, is found guilty anyway by the all-white jury. In the meantime, the children have made friends with their eccentric neighbor, Boo Radley. Boo has spent the majority of his life imprisoned by his parents in the house next door. Scout’s brother, Jem, has also spent several afternoons reading to a mean old lady of the neighborhood, Mrs.

Dubose, on his father’s orders. In the context of the book, the mockingbird is used to symbolize something innocent and without a true voice of its own. In the real world, the mockingbird is quietly helpful as it feeds on the grubs and other harmful insects that often damage needed crops but has no true song of its own. Instead, the mockingbird sings a compilation of songs that it hears in its environment. “The literature contains countless stories of notable imitations. One New York City bird reproduced perfectly the beep-beep-beep of a backhoe in reverse, while another threw a high school football game into confusion by mimicking the referee’s whistle.

Yet another ‘joined the National Symphony Orchestra during an outdoor concert in Washington D.C.’” (Tveten 292). This reveals it to be a bird capable of appreciating its environment as well as a bird without a true voice of its own. It is known only by its appearance and the way in which it is defined by others. Its borrowed voice, appreciation and participation in its environment and its changeable nature make this a bird that deserves recognition and respect. This concept is found in the book when Atticus tells Scout and Jem, “I’d rather you shoot at tin cans in the backyard, 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” (Lee 69). As the following discussion will