"Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy" - To Kill a Mockingbird

#ToKillaMockingBird #HarperLee #Prose #Literature #Novel #Review

Intro

I've wanted to read To Kill a Mockingbird for years, and, at the age of 23, I've finally gotten around to it! After graduating from university, I became a bit disinterested in reading and writing for a while - I assume this is due to the fact that I had to do so much of it for three years straight! Well, I picked this book up in a local Waterstones one Saturday afternoon and, shamefully, it stayed on my bookshelf for a while - a long while. Anyway, after more than a year without having finished a single novel, To Kill a Mockingbird finally allowed me to break free from my rut! And what a book it is!

As always, this will include spoilers ...

Synopsis

Written in the first-person, Harper Lee's novel allows us to experience the world of the Deep South in the 1930's through innocent eyes: through Scout, A.K.A Jean Louise Finch. Set over a two year period, Scout starts school for the first time; becomes fascinated with Boo Radley; observes Jem's movement out of childhood and into early adolescence; witnesses the unfair trial of Tom Robinson and, being dressed as a ham, she narrowly escapes death.

"People generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for"

Race, gender, class, age: each of these reflect the challenges faced by repressed social groups throughout history - even so far back as Chaucer's time. And each of these groups come with their own place within the hierarchy of society. White, upper-class men occupying the top tier; black, lower-class women being at the bottom. As we all know, these themes appear in thousands of of prose, poetry, plays, films. Pretty much, anything and everything that you or I would have come across during our lives. So, then, what makes Lee's novel so different, or so special?

For me, at least, it is the point-of-view we are given. The world through the eyes of an innocent child...

So, why is the theme of innocence so important?

Well, firstly, within this novel, mockingbirds symbolise innocence. Miss Maudie explains to Scout that "mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy." Mockingbirds are not like other birds, they sing and they bring joy to those who listen to them. Scout is repeatedly told that it's a sin to kill a mockingbird, although I couldn't help but notice their symbolic death everywhere in this novel. So, if it‘s a sin, and one that we are repeatedly reminded to avoid, why do the characters perpetuate this destruction of youthful innocence?

At the beginning of this novel, Jem is innocent and thinks of people as equals but as time goes on he begins to categorise them into four groups: "the ordinary kind like us, the kind like the Cunninghams out in the woods, the kind like the Ewells down at the dump, and the Negroes." Jem's categories are less sophisticated but they undoubtedly mirror societal hierarchy. Jem’s views about society and equality have become distorted by the societal indoctrination he's subject to - being surrounded by racism has undoubtedly taken it's toll. Age and innocence, it seems, are incompatible.

Mr Underwood also compares Tom's death to "the senseless slaughter of songbirds.“ Tom, who was wrongfully convicted of rape, was ruined by social oppression. Tom, it seems to me, was the only character to lose his innocence in more ways than one: figuratively and literally.

Scout and Innocence

Unlike many characters in this narrative, Scout learns to judge people through her experience of them as opposed to the way that most of the people in this town do - steeped in prejudice. During Tom's trial, Judge Taylor's states that "people generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for". Not Scout; her opinions and her views are shaped through her own experiences and, predominantly, through Atticus (a character that I would liken to the moral compass of this story). Scout is young and so she struggles to understand these prejudices that she is surrounded by.

Sadly though, even Scout begins to feel the pressure of societal prejudice as she ages. A resilient tomboy at first, Scout begins to change after her Aunt Alexandra moves into the family home.

A constant source of conflict for Scout, Aunt Alexandra is the archetypal Southern woman: she is poised, fashionable, and she wears a corset. Aunt Alexandra juxtaposes Scout in every way but she also foreshadows Scout's destiny. Scout begins to wear dresses, she serves tea to the society ladies, and she sits in on her Aunt's meetings with them. Scout admits that "this was a part of her campaign to teach me to be a lady." This is the first instance where Scout realises that becoming a lady is something that even she cannot avoid.

"Remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird"

Conclusion

To Kill A Mockingbird gives us a fresh perspective on the world and the prejudices within it. When I read The Help by Kathryn Stockett I thought it was great: it shares similar themes to Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird and it has a female protagonist. But Skeeter (the protagonist of The Help) is actively seeking to challenge the oppression placed on gender and race, whereas Scout is just trying to understand the world.

Scout says to Jem, “I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks.” Scout, you see, doesn't mean to be subversive, she just is because she's too young to understand why society is the way it is, and why people act the way they do. Aging forces us all to lose our innocence: it's inevitable.

This book reminded me that, yes, to kill a mockingbird is a sin, but sadly it's one that none of us can avoid forever.

*All images courtesy of Google Images*