Question: Why does Atticus consider it a sin to kill a mockingbird but okay to kill a mad dog?
The reason that Atticus considers it a sin to kill a mockingbird but not morally wrong to kill a mad dog is because a mockingbird will only do good things in its life but the mad dog is about to do something wrong shouldn't suffer the consequences because it is almost retarded at that point. After Uncle Jack trains Scout and Jem how to use an air rifle and Atticus tells them that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird, Miss Maudie says, "Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy." Harper Lee is trying to show us that a major theme in this book is that no one should hurt or taunt things that do no harm to anyone or anything. The mad dog can represent all of the damaging forces in Maycomb that can do harm and create harm for the "mockingbirds" of Maycomb. An example of a mockingbird in the book is Boo Radley. Boo does no harm to anyone in Maycomb and is a pure and good person, but is destroyed by evil, which in the book can be seen as an air rifle, such as Stefanie Crawford who can hurt Boo. Boo is attacked also by the children of Maycomb, such as Scout and Jem who can view him instead as a mad dog. Stefanie Crawford can be perceived as a "mad dog" because she goes around has the most powerful weapon of all- gossip. Atticus on the other hand, feels the need to protect mockingbirds and that is why he says it. The reason Harper Lee includes this at this part in the book, is because the trial is about to begin and Tom Robinson can now be perceived as a mockingbird. A mockingbird is a metaphor to describe people who do nothing wrong but can be hurt and need protectors. Atticus is that protector. He has the ability to protect him and now feels obligated to do it, and this is the same reasoning behind not killing a mockingbird. Atticus says it is alright to kill a mad dog such as Stephanie Crawford who attack with things like racism towards Tom Robinson. But now the reader can understand the title as well. How to Kill a Mockingbird indicates that Scout or Jem will kill a mockingbird. As the reader, one can suspect that they will damage Boo as he is the main "mockingbird" in this book.
What do you, as the reader, think- will Scout or Jem hurt Boo in a form? Or am I flat out wrong and am crazy as Tom Johnson? Please use the space below to debate about the questions or the post.
You are not as crazy as Tom Johnson. Boo Radley is much like the dog, tortured and then finally dies. With the dog, he is luckier, because Atticus ends it quickly. Boo has no such luck, he keeps getting hit by bullets and bullets, the verbal bullets of the townsfolk. There is no companion for him, no person mature enough to find a way to be his friend. If this was not bad enough already, he has a brother who is trying to isolate him from the rest of the town, and ruining what little social contact he has. For every one child who matures enough to stop bullying Boo, there are 3 ready to take their place. This is the role Harper Lee may have in store for Scout and Jem. They have matured out of the Radley scenario, but they may come back to help Boo, and give him the companionship he truly needs.
ReplyDeleteYou are not crazy. It is very possible that Harper Lee creates Boo Radley so that she can portray the character of the mockingbird. Boo is a mockingbird because he has never done anything to the community, or anyone for that matter, and he is already forced to suffer because of the communities rumors. In the end, there is no way of telling what happens, so for now we cannot fully decide if Boo Radley is the mockingbird or not. So far though, Scout and Jem have not hurt Boo. If anything, they have helped him. They have given him that one connection to people from the outside world, that keeps him sane. Nathan Radley took that away from them, and so now we do not know if Scout and Jem will have any further connection with Boo.
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