Mockingbird Motif

After reading To Kill a Mockingbird the definition of motif was clear to me. I often mix up symbolism and motif however, the novel showed me that a motif enhances the meaning of things or themes within the story. The novel helped me understand motif since it explained the meaning of the motif within the themes and actions that portrayed the themes. The motif really helped me grasp the true meaning behind To Kill a Mockingbird. The part where I understood the motif the most was when Tom Robinson was caught while trying to escape the prison. Just like a mockingbird he was shot dead when he was in fact completely innocent; he was the victim. If the novel hadn't given examples to enhance the motif I wouldn't have been able to follow the story line and the meaning behind the novel.The motif is very simple: a mockingbird. It's thought to be a sin to kill a mockingbird since the bird is purely innocent and hasn't done anything harmful or wrong. You can relate that to life; it's wrong to blame someone who is innocent.

Without the motif the many themes within the pages of To Kill a Mockingbird would be pointless. All the themes follow the motif that it's wrong to blame something/someone who is not guilty. Throughout the book the motif is spread out and explained through different themes such as prejudice in all forms, standing in someone's shoes, and growing up. When you're being prejudice you're against a person, thing, or even a race and that theme was showed through Tom Robinson's case and through the Cunninghams even. People of lower class and race were blamed for things they did not do. As you grow up you realize things and as little kids Jem and Scout blamed Boo for doing things that he didn't do. After Scout realized Boo/Arthur had killed Bob Ewell she said that it wasn't Boo/Arthur because she didn't want Boo to go through court and be blamed. He had already been through many hard times and he was trying to protect Scout and Jem, not harm them. The motif is the base of the themes and shows that each theme/issue is not right and that blaming others/things for your problems could lead to unjust conclusions.

Symbolism (Extra Credit)

The character I portrayed was Mayella Ewell. The symbol I chose was a plain looking bird who is trapped in its cage. Mayella is of lower class so, like the bird who is plain, she is thought of to be an outcast from society. Also the cage represents how trapped she is. In her house she is the only one who tries to make progress, but her father, Bob Ewell, beats her, which makes her crave attention and freedom from her home and family. Once Tom Robinson shows kindness towards her and acts like he's releasing her, her urge for freedom becomes great and she acts rash. However, her actions caused her to feel a great amount of guilt, and that guilt turns into a new cage that will keep her trapped within her own feelings.

Life Lesson

Throughout my life I've heard many different tidbits of advice such as don't eat yellow snow. Although that piece of advice has stayed with me, that's not the advice that has really helped and impacted me. When I was younger and I was fighting with my sister or arguing with a friend my mom would always say, "remove yourself from the situation." Whenever she said that it usually meant she was getting impatient and needed us to take a chill pill. By stepping down and leaving the argument alone you can calm down and clearly think out the problem without anger and rage blocking out your sense of right and wrong. I don't know how many times this quote has been used by my mom, but all I can infer is that it's been over used for many years now. Even though it's over used I never get tired of hearing this quote since it reminds me to give myself time to before jumping to conclusions.

To many this lesson would seem pointless and inferior compared to other life lessons, but to me it holds important meaning. As a child I would always jump to conclusions and get angry, but bit by bit I learned to remove myself rather than dwell on and continually pester whoever happened to be the unlucky victim of my complaints. Today I do occasionally keep a subject rather than dropping it, but rarely do I ever get to the point in a fight where anger is seeping from me. Many times I've kept my temper and avoided unnecessary actions; it even helps when others are arguing and, all I tell them is "drop it" or "stop talking about it." As a child I didn't understand how walking away would help; I just thought it was another way of saying 'I surrender, you win.' It took me a few years to decipher the true meaning, but now I hold it close. When you keep at it you or others can get seriously injured, physically, mentally, or emotionally which really isn't necessary. The best way to solve differences is to calmly and patiently discuss with the other person in order to clarify what you disagree on, not jumping to conclusions and acting on a whim.