FAMOUS QUOTATIONS FROM
TO KILL A
MOCKINGBIRD.
- Probably
the most famous is the quote used in the title of the novel. After the children have
received air rifles for Christmas, Atticus tells Jem that it's okay to shoot all the
blue jays he wants, since they are a pesky bird that harm human crops and such. But he
warns him that "it's a sin to kill a mockingbird," since they are harmless and only make
music for people to enjoy. - Atticus' best advice comes as
a warning to Scout: "You never really understand a person until you consider things from
his point of view--until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." Scout takes the
advice to heart, especially at the end of the story when she steps in Boo's shoes and
sees her neighborhood through his eyes for the first
time. - "I wish Bob Ewell wouldn't chew tobacco." This is
Atticus' humorous response after Bob spit in his
face. - "In the name of God, do your duty... In the name of
God, believe him." These are Atticus' final remarks to the jury in his summation during
the Tom Robinson trial.
There are far too many
literary devices used by author Harper Lee to mention. There is a great deal of
symbolism--from the mockingbird (human and winged) to the injured arms of Tom and Jem to
the "morphodite" snowman created by Jem and Scout (with a black center and white
outside). I also enjoy many of the allusions made by Lee: Civil War, sports, political,
educational, geographical, cinematic and literary are just a few of the types of
references that can be found throughout the book.
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