To Kill A Mockingbird Quote Analysis

“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 is a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee 94). This quote, delivered in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, introduces the mockingbird which is incorporated symbolically throughout the novel. The mockingbird, in presenting its gifts of music and beauty, is the symbol of Atticus’s practice of altruism because he believes in society’s responsibility to protect those who are vulnerable and innocent.
When considering the mockingbird literally or figuratively, the symbol is quite similar in meaning. Figuratively, certain characters could be categorized as

mockingbirds. For example, Tom Robinson, in trying to be friendly with a dejected girl in an attempt to make her life less miserable was wrongly prosecuted for rape. Mockingbirds sing their songs in an act of innocence, with no anticipation for the deed to be repaid. In this way, Tom is considered a mockingbird, and by Atticus’s standards, worthy of protection. The text mentions, “Courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. It's knowing you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do” (Lee 149). Atticus uses logic such as this in an uncompromising manner; the generosity rarely being returned in the same way it is given. In the same way, the mockingbird means the same thing literally. The text states, “… they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out to us” (Lee 98). The bird and the characters are very similar due to their overwhelming selflessness. In this way, mockingbirds do not harm, but solely provide their music to whoever will listen; similarly, Tom Robinson is generous without the egotism that surround most citizens of Maycomb.
Politics in Maycomb are malignantly infected with racism, this is showcased most obviously in the case between Mayella Ewell and Tom Robinson.

Maycomb is a petite, sleepy town, however, the political side is vicious. Atticus selflessly decides to defend Tom, an African American, in court who was being wrongly prosecuted for rape. Despite Maycomb’s arsenal of verbal chastisement on himself and his children, continued to defend Tom. Because Tom was African-American, his rights were subconsciously removed due to racial bias. "It was just him I couldn't stand," Dill said…"That old Mr. Gilmer doin' him thataway, talking so hateful to him… It was the way he said it made me sick, plain sick… The way that man called him 'boy' all the time an' sneered at him, an' looked around at the jury every time he answered… It ain't right, somehow it ain't right to do 'em that way. Hasn't anybody got any business talkin' like that—it just makes me sick." (Lee 155-165). Although the treatment was harsh, Atticus continued to defend Tom because Atticus’s virtues abide by protecting the innocent. The overwhelming negativity crowding the court case that Atticus disrupts for Tom Robinson supports Atticus’s altruism in defending the

vulnerable.
Mockingbirds are those who are defenseless and innocent; it takes those who have a durable moral and psychological grounding to stand up for these people.

In protecting the innocuous, one has to be capable of maintaining their own poise in the growling façade of abhorrence. This is expressed in the text when Atticus defended Tom Robinson against a mob of angry white supremacists ready to harm the two. However, he abided by his virtues lying in patience, fortitude, and courage without circumstances. The situation was described as,“We were taking a short cut across the square when four dusty cars came in from the Meridian highway, moving slowly in a line. They went around the square, passed the bank building, and stopped in front of the jail…’You know what we want,’ another man said. ‘Get aside from the door, Mr. Finch.’ ‘You can turn around and go home again, Walter,’ Atticus said” (Lee pg #?) Atticus remained unwavering in his beliefs, even though the members of the mob threatened him and his family when they came after The mockingbird represents both sides of protecting the innocent; those who need assistance and those who are brave enough to defend

them.
The mockingbird’s presence in the novel shapes Atticus’s spiritual aura as well. Atticus bases his life off of a small list of assorted ethics, including selflessness, dignity, empathy, and benevolence. These traits kept Atticus grounded throughout his life, in some ways less obvious than others. "Atticus said that Ewells had been a disgrace to Maycomb for three generations. None of them had done an honest day of work in his recollection....They were people but they lived like animals...There are ways of keeping them in school by force, but it's silly to force people like the Ewells into a new environment’” (Lee 30). Just as easily as anyone else at this time, Atticus could’ve turned into a person of Mr. Ewell’s caliber. Simply put, his morals keep him in balance and prevent it from happening. Additionally, his spiritual mindset is one that favored mind over brute force; this, while also a form of superior wisdom, kept Atticus afloat surrounded by those who resort to the use of violence. Atticus, unlike the other citizens of Maycomb, realizes that in order to effectively communicate and protect others, one does not need strength and macho. Atticus’s ability to maintain an even head during a rough period brimming with peer pressure and negativity.
By the use of a combination of traits that are difficult to properly preserve and carry out, Atticus has shaped himself into an ideal example of selflessness. His lifestyle mirrors the willingness to defend others who are less capable of doing so, much like a superhero. In this way, the mockingbird represents those who are incapable of protecting themselves due to innocence; Atticus’s morals state that these “mockingbirds” are worthy of societies protection which they seldom receive.