Harper Lee in To Kill a Mockingbird cleverly develops a bird motif throughout the novel with names and people who are symbols of the mockingbird. The names, “Finch”, and “Robinson” are both connections to this recurring bird motif. However, the mockingbird allusion is probably the most powerful. Atticus tells Scout and Jem that it “is a sin to kill a mockingbird.” Miss Maudie goes on to explain that the mockingbird is harmless, and its purpose is to sing for our enjoyment.
Although there is a good argument for who the mockingbirds are in the novel, Tom Robinson is definitely one of the main characters symbolic of the innocent, harmless bird. Tom is a man of character who only helps Mayella Ewell because he feels sorry for her sad existence. Mayella is raising her brothers and sisters on her own and is abused by her father, Bob Ewell. Her loneliness leads her to seek out affection wherever she can, and unfortunately, she decides to prey on Tom Robinson.
Tom is innocent of the charges of rape, and it is only because he is a black man that he is found guilty. He is killed trying to escape prison because he knows that even an appeal will not save him from his fate. The mistreatment of Tom and his eventual killing is a sin committed by the racist values of southern people.
Other important “mockingbirds” in the story can include, Boo Radley, Scout, Jem, Dill, and even Mayella Ewell who has no control over her life. They are all harmless innocents in a bigoted, racist world.
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