tells the truth and testifies that Mayella jumped on him while he was standing on a chair inside her home. Immediately after Tom testifies that Mayella hugged him around the waist, Judge Taylor bangs his gavel and the courtroom lights come on.Scout mentions,

This time Judge Taylor’s gavel came down with a bang, and as it did the overhead lights went on in the courtroom. Darkness had not come, but the afternoon sun had left the windows. Judge Taylor quickly restored order (Lee, 197).

The courtroom lights symbolically represent the truth and indicate that the facts of the case are finally being presented in the open. Tom Robinson continues to testify by saying that Mayella kissed the side of his face and demanded that he kiss her back. Judge Taylor's gavel can also symbolically represent justice. When he bangs his gavel, Judge Taylor is allowing Tom Robinson to tell the truth by silencing the prejudiced observers.

In chapter 19 of "To kill a Mockingird" some of the symbols are the Bible which Tom has to take an oath on.  This is to symbolize justice and this is ironic because Tom isn't getting any justice.  Tom is also a symbol of innocence.  Even though he is being treated as a guilty man by the prosecuting attorney.

In Chapter 5, Scout asks Miss Maudie if she believes the rumors about Boo Radley. Maudie tells Scout that whatever Stephanie Crawford says is false and comments,

"I remember Arthur Radley when he was a boy. He always spoke nicely to me, no matter what folks said he did. Spoke as nicely as he knew how" (Lee 29).

In Chapter 30, Heck Tate comments on Boo Radley's heroics, as well as his innocence by telling Atticus,

"I never heard tell that it's against the law for a citizen to do his utmost to prevent a crime from being committed, which is exactly what he did, but maybe you'll say it's my duty to tell the town all about it and not hush it up. Know what'd happen then? All the ladies in Maycomb includin' my wife'd be knocking on his door bringing angel food cakes. To my way of thinkin', Mr. Finch, taking the one man's who's done you and this town a great service an' draggin' him with his shy ways into the limelight---to me, that's a sin. It's a sin and I'm not about to have it on my head" (Lee 169).

Sheriff Tate mentions that Boo Radley did his utmost to prevent a crime which depicts Boo's morally upright character. He also comments on Boo's "shy ways" which illustrates Boo's innocence.

In Chapter 9, Scout asks Atticus why Cecil Jacobs said that he defended niggers. Atticus explains to Scout that he is defending a Negro named Tom Robinson and mentions that Tom is a good man. Atticus goes on to say,

"He's a member of Calpurnia's church, and Cal knows his family well. She says they're clean-living folks" (Lee 48).

After Tom is convicted and dies while attempting to escape from prison, Mr. Underwood writes an editorial which depicts Tom's innocence. Scout mentions,

"Mr. Underwood simply figured it was a sin to kill cripples, be they standing, sitting, or escaping. He likened Tom's death to the senseless slaughter of songbirds by hunters and children, and Maycomb felt he was trying to write an article poetical enough to be printed in The Montgomery Advertiser" (pg 241).

Tom Robinson is depicted as an innocent, vulnerable individual who is in a dangerous situation after he is falsely accused of assaulting and raping Mayella Ewell. While Tom Robinson remains in the shadows for the majority of the novel, Atticus elaborates on his character in chapter 9 when he explains to Scout that he will be defending Robinson. Atticus reveals that Tom Robinson is a morally-upright, respected member of the black community by telling Scout,

He [Tom Robinson] lives in that little settlement beyond the town dump. He’s a member of Calpurnia’s church, and Cal knows his family well. She says they’re clean living folks. (Lee, 77)

Tom Robinson's mild-mannered, meek personality is depicted in chapter 15 when Atticus prevents a lynch mob from harming him. After the crowd disperses, Tom quietly asks,

Mr. Finch? . . . They gone? (Lee, 156)

In chapter 19, Tom Robinson takes the witness stand, and his upright, benevolent personality is on display. When Atticus asks Tom if he was ever paid for helping Mayella complete her various chores, Tom demonstrates his compassionate, generous personality by saying,

No suh, not after she offered me a nickel the first time. I was glad to do it, Mr. Ewell didn’t seem to help her none, and neither did the chillun, and I knowed she didn’t have no nickels to spare. (Lee, 195)

During Mr. Gilmer's cross-examination, he asks Tom why he chose to help Mayella without accepting any monetary compensation. Tom once again reveals his generous, altruistic personality by saying,

I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more’n the rest of ‘em— (Lee, 201)

In addition to Tom's compassionate, gracious nature, he is rather naïve for publicly admitting that he felt sorry for a white woman, which is a serious offense in Maycomb's racist society. Tragically, Tom's statement turns the jury against him, and he eventually becomes a victim of racial injustice.

There are many quotes that point to Boo as a symbol of a mockingbird. One example of his "mockingbird" status is the connection between him & the tree. He leaves gifts there for Jem and Scout- his version of the mockingbird's singing. When Jem sits down to write Boo the letter, he says "we appreciate everything which you have put into the tree for us." This shows that while they may not yet guess who's doing it, Jem & Scout know that someone innocent and kind is offering friendship.

This lesson is first revealed when Atticus buys the children guns.

Atticus said to Jem one day, “I’d rather you shot at tin cans in the back yard, but I know you’ll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ‘em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”

That’s the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss Maudie about it.

“Your father is right,” she said. “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”

Without realizing, Jem, Scout, and Dill have in a way been trying to kill that mockingbird. The children have built up a view of Boo based solely on a preconceived notion that is completely wrong. This is similar to the racism evident in the rest of the town: a judgment made before knowledge. Yet from that notion they have developed a pattern of behavior that seeks to destroy the true nature of Boo by pretending that it could not possibly exist.

It is through the attack on the children and Sheriff Tate's understanding that Boo’s identification as a mockingbird becomes most clear. The sheltered innocence of Boo’s life would be threatened should he be brought to trial for the death of Bob Ewell, even though he would most likely be acquitted as a hero. It is this hero worship that would “kill” the mockingbird, Tate believes. The people, especially the women, would bother him continually with food and praise for such a brave act. Such attention would ultimately destroy who Boo is, his innocence, and his quiet love for the children of Atticus Finch. Scout and Jem finally acknowledge this at the end. When Atticus asks Scout if she understands why they will say Bob Ewell fell on his own knife, she replies that is they did it any other way, "Well, it'd be sort of like shootin' a mockingbird, wouldn't it?

Tom's connection is not as obvious; it is inferred from his character, rather than directly stated. Innocent of the crime for which he is tried, he valiantly attempts to prove that innocence to the society which has already judged him. His noble life has brought joy to those with whom he has come into contact, but for most in the town, his skin color has already convicted him. Even with Mayella Ewell, he has tried to help her, something which her family cannot seem to do. Yet for his attempt he is killed, crushed by the racism that is so deeply embedded in the community. With his death, Dill, Jem, and Scout come face to face with the sin that has killed this mockingbird.

The mockingbird becomes a symbol of innocence in the novel, and there are a few characters who reflect its message. One such character is Tom Robinson.

First, let's look at the original quote from Atticus which introduces the concept of the mockingbird as a symbol and then see how Miss Maudie's explanation adds to his reasoning.

When the kids are given their air rifles from Uncle Jack, Atticus isn't thrilled. He says the kids can play with them under one condition:

Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit em', but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird. (chapter 10, p. 90)

Later, Scout asks Miss Maudie about it. She replies,

Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird. (chapter 10, p. 90)

These quotes create the symbolic representation of the mockingbird as an innocent creature who wouldn't harm anyone or anything. Mockingbirds simply make music for all to appreciate and enjoy. From here, we can now look for quotes that suggest the same idea for Tom.

Mr. Underwood wrote an editorial in The Maycomb Tribune about the trial and the verdict. His quote directly links the mockingbird to Tom by using the phrase "senseless slaughter" in relation to the trial's outcome. He's implying that sentencing Tom to prison is the same as killing songbirds for no reason at all. Both actions are senseless and wrong.

Mr. Underwood simply figured it was a sin to kill cripples, be they standing, sitting, or escaping. He likened Tom's death to the senseless slaughter of songbirds by hunters and children. (chapter 25, p. 241)

Tom is just like a mockingbird. He doesn't harm a soul and aims to help those around him, no matter their race. These quotes set up the argument for the symbolic representation of Tom, but because it's figurative, there isn't anything more direct than these quotes. However, you could create an argument using evidence from the trial to show Tom's innocence and connect it back to the characteristics of the mockingbird that Atticus and Miss Maudie state directly. Look through chapters 17–21 for evidence. You could discuss Mayella's bruises, Ewell's testimony, and Tom's disability to show his innocence.

Mockingbirds symbolize innocent beings that do not harm anybody and bring joy to those around them. They are also defenseless creatures that rely on the generosity of others to protect them. The characters of Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson, and Boo Radley could be considered symbolic mockingbirds because they display similar characteristics and meet the criteria of innocent beings.

"No suh, not after she offered me a nickel the first time. I was glad to do it, Mr. Ewell didn’t seem to help her none, and neither did the chillun, and I knowed she didn’t have no nickels to spare" (Lee, 195). 

Tom Robinson displays his benevolent, kind nature, which is similar to that of a mockingbird. He generously offers his help to Mayella without receiving anything in return.

"I saw something only a lawyer’s child could be expected to see, could be expected to watch for, and it was like watching Atticus walk into the street, raise a rifle to his shoulder and pull the trigger, but watching all the time knowing that the gun was empty" (Lee, 214).

Similar to a mockingbird, Atticus is defenseless against the jury's prejudice during the trial. He can only stand and listen as the jury wrongly convicts Tom Robinson.

"They fired a few shots in the air, then to kill. They got him just as he went over the fence. They said if he’d had two good arms he’d have made it, he was moving that fast. Seventeen bullet holes in him" (Lee, 239).

Tom Robinson was defenseless, and he was tragically gunned down as he attempted to flee the prison yard.

"To my way of thinkin’, Mr. Finch, taking the one man who’s done you and this town a great service an‘ draggin’ him with his shy ways into the limelight—to me, that’s a sin" (Lee, 280).

After Boo Radley saves the children's lives, Sheriff Tate refuses to disclose the information to the public in order to prevent the citizens from bothering Boo. Similar to a defenseless mockingbird, Sheriff Tate decides to protect Boo from the limelight.

"Boo was our neighbor. He gave us two soap dolls, a broken watch and chain, a pair of good-luck pennies, and our lives" (Lee, 280).

Boo's benevolent, generous nature is depicted when Scout recounts the numerous gifts he has given her and Jem. Just like a mockingbird that spreads joy by singing songs, Boo's gifts make Scout and Jem happy.

A good symbol for Aunt Alexandra would be a magnolia tree. Like her, they are formidable and difficult to move. They are also ubiquitous throughout the South, including Alabama. In addition, a magnolia could be seen as representing tradition going back many generations. Aunt Alexandra also has old-fashioned views of how young ladies should behave. This is a constant source of frustration to Scout. Magnolia flowers are beautiful and delicate, but when they die they fall and make piles of ugly brown petals and stems, representing Aunt Alexandra's personality. She can be motherly and ladylike, but she also shifts and becomes sharp and critical.

A mockingbird could potentially be used as a symbol for many characters in the book, Tom Robinson and Boo Radley in particular. It could be used for Jem and Scout as well, but I wouldn't suggest it; there are too many other characters for whom the symbol works better.

Jem and Scout are like squirrels; they gather bits of knowledge about the world throughout the book, then hide them away till they are older. Atticus tells Scout that Jem is doing this because he has difficulty dealing with the jury's guilty verdict for an obviously innocent man. Also, they find the treasures that Boo Radley has squirreled away in the knot of a tree.

A symbol is often an object that represents or stands for something else. For each of the characters listed, I would think about what they like to do or important events in the story that involve that character. Then pick an object that might have been used by that character or used in that situation. For someone like Atticus, you might choose something law related. He's a lawyer, so a law book or even a gavel makes sense. I realize he isn't a judge, but the gavel is so symbolic of a courtroom, that I believe it works just fine for Atticus. I think a gun might work for him too, since he is handed the weapon in order to shoot the rabid dog. For Calpurnia, I think an apron would work well. She's in charge of much of the cooking and cleaning, and she is likely to be wearing one more often than not.

She stopped shyly at the railing and waited to get Judge Taylor’s attention. She was in a fresh apron and she carried an envelope in her hand.

Judge Taylor saw her and said, “It’s Calpurnia, isn’t it?”

For Jem, I would use a pair of pants. That might sound strange, but Jem losing his pants and getting them back at night is a favorite part of the book for me. Using pants for Jem also allows you to tie his symbol to Scout's symbol because you could use a clothing item for Scout too. Use overalls for Scout's symbol. They are important because they represent her tomboy personality and are a point of contention between her and other ladies.

“Don’t you contradict me!” Mrs. Dubose bawled. “And you—” she pointed an arthritic finger at me—“what are you doing in those overalls? You should be in a dress and camisole, young lady! You’ll grow up waiting on tables if somebody doesn’t change your ways—a Finch waiting on tables at the O.K. Café—hah!”

Any answer to this question should not provide specific information given the very nature of meaning within symbols. Look to items particularly associated with each character. A symbol of Atticus may be his glasses, his favourite chair, even the rifle. Calpurnia may be symbolized by her association to the family through food and through her church. There are, in other words, as wide variety of symbols which may be associated with each character, but it is their interaction with these items, and how these items play out in light of the rest of the story, and in light of how these characters are perceived by other characters. Symbols only have meaning that we, the reader, attatch to them, even when that meaning is an assumed one "meant" by the author.

Though Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, and Jem Finch are very different characters in many ways, they all share an innocent quality that defines the mockingbird motif. Tom's innocence is a legal one, Boo Radley's innocence is misunderstood as threatening, and Jem's innocence is characteristic of a child.

Tom Robinson is characterized as a kind father and husband, but his character is not very well-defined. This superficial treatment of the character of Tom is deliberate. By giving readers a limited view of Tom, one that focuses on his positive qualities, the reader never really gets to know Tom Robinson. This means that the reader doesn't know Tom well enough to see him as anything but innocent and undeserving of the suffering he endures, both in a legal sense and in a personal sense.

Boo Radley is a misunderstood figure in Maycomb, and his need for solitude contributes to his status as an innocent victim of gossip. By the end of the novel, it is revealed that his subtle ways of connecting with the children through gifts and his rescue of them the night of Bob Ewell's attack make him a well-meaning person, innocent and undeserving of the fear he seems to inspire in others.

Jem's innocence is perhaps the most easy to understand and observe. Though he tries hard to be grown-up, he is still very much a child, at the start of the novel and at the finish. When he is targeted by Bob Ewell and injured, Jem's innocence adds emotional depth and poignancy to the reader's experience of the novel. Jem, as a child, is innocent and undeserving of the fear and pain he suffers as a result of Bob Ewell's desire to hurt Atticus.

Perhaps the most important symbol to discuss in To Kill A Mockingbird is the symbolism behind the mockingbird. The title is more than just a title but is a symbol for what is to come in the story. The mockingbird symbolizes innocence, so the title means that innocence is being killed or destroyed. Throughout the book, there are several characters who can be viewed as mockingbirds, such as Jem, Tom Robinson, Dill, and Boo Radley. This means that they are innocents who are damaged or destroyed by evil. After Tom Robinson is shot, Mr. Underwood even compares his death to the act of killing a songbird. Additionally, the fact that Jem, Scout, and Atticus have the last name Finch, which is a type of bird, may portray that they are vulnerable in the racist town of Maycomb.

Another symbol in To Kill a Mockingbird is Boo Radley. Boo Radley is used within the story as a means to show how Jem and Scout mature and grow throughout the story. In the beginning, Boo is a town superstition that frightens the children. This shows how innocent Jem and Scout are and that their beliefs are not based on their own, real experiences, but they are based on the beliefs of those around them. As the story continues, and Boo leaves presents for the children and mends Jem's pants, the children begin to see Boo as an intriguing and real human being, not just the town spook. In the end, they realize that he is a kind and understanding person, a mockingbird in his own right, a child damaged by a ruthless father. The changing relationship between the children and Boo Radley serves to reveal Jem and Scout's growing maturity and moral awareness.

Atticus Finch tells Jem that “it is a sin to kill a mockingbird” when his children are given air rifles.   Mockingbirds only provide enjoyment.  Unlike other birds, they do not eat up the gardens or nest in inappropriate places. They sing their “hearts out for people.” In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, one of the major themes is the idea of not killing mockingbirds.

Symbolically, Tom Robinson and Arthur Radley are the mockingbirds in the story.

First, Tom Robinson, a black disabled man, tries to help a young woman who is being abused by her father.  In the time period and locale of the story, the black man was to totally separate himself from the white woman.  It was lucky that Tom had not been hung instead of receiving a trial.  The all-white man jury could not possibly give a black man anything other than a conviction. 

Tom was an innocent man who tried to help another human being and was punished for it.  In the end, it was a sin to kill Tom Robinson who was guilty of nothing.

In the local newspaper, Mr. Underwood labels Tom’s killing senseless.

“Atticus had used every tool available to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of men’s heart Atticus had not case.  Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed.”

Arthur “Boo” Radley’s life symbolizes the mockingbird.  Boo was harassed by his father and the townspeople his entire life, Boo is also a disabled person.  Lee never specifically lets the reader know what is wrong with Boo; yet, his character is important to the children and the story.  Eventually, the children realize that he has watched them from his house and tried to look out for them.  In the end, he saves both of the children’s lives. 

He chooses to follow them to protect them and in the end has to kill Bob Ewell.  The sheriff protects Boo knowing that he would never survive the attention that he would get if it were known that he had killed Bob Ewell to save the children.

Heck Tate, the sheriff, says: “…taking the one man who’s done you and this town a great service and draggin’ him with his shy ways into the limelight…to me, that’s a sin.  It’s a sin and I’m not about to have it on my head.  Not this man.”

In life, the innocent are often overcome by the deceptively evil. .  By using a black man and a white man to represent the mockingbirds, Lee goes beyond the stereotypical and shows that prejudice and hurt go far beyond color and race.  Anyone can be bullied or treated badly.

The mockingbird in “To Kill a Mockingbird” symbolizes innocent people who are persecuted by thoughtless or careless people. In the story, Boo Radley is an innocent victim of the town’s gossip and prejudice. Tom Robinson is also an innocent victim of hearsay and prejudice. Atticus tells his children it is a sin to kill a mockingbird because they haven’t done anything to deserve being hurt. The people of the town have committed the sin of condemning innocent people. Tom is condemned in court and Boo is condemned by being shunned by his community.

In Chapter 10, Scout recalls the time Atticus gave her and Jem air-rifles and instructed them that it is okay to shoot bluejays but that it is a sin to kill mockingbirds. Miss Maudie clarifies this point for Scout:

Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.

Arthur (Boo) Radley and Tom Robinson are like mockingbirds. They don't bother anyone. And when they do interact with people, they only try to help. In short, Tom and Boo do nothing but help (sing their hearts out) and/or keep to themselves. It would be a sin to harm them and it would be right to help and protect them. Atticus takes Tom's case because it is the right thing to do (and because he knows he will do it honorably). Atticus also defends Boo when the children are making fun of him. At the end of Chapter 5, Atticus warns them to "stop tormenting that man." Atticus knows more than the children do; that Boo Radley is not hurting anyone and like the mockingbird, it would be a sin to hurt him, even by playful mocking. This is why Atticus defends Tom and Arthur.

In terms of the language used in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, we hear the "voice" of a young Scout narrating the story as an adult. We are, however, able (through Harper Lee's gift of writing) to hear the child Scout was, come through in the pages of the story, capturing the innocence, concerns, joys and fears of a young girl.

Another aspect of the language, perhaps more importantly, is the dialect used. The story takes place in Alabama, in the imaginary town of Maycomb. The town is in the middle of the Great Depression, and the end of the Civil War is not so long ago that people have forgotten how the South suffered; many of the townspeople feel a strong resentment for the non-slave black community which still suffers deeply from prejudice at the hands of these whites. Many of the members of this small-town white community still speak the language of the Old South—where education and cultural growth have not arrived with enough force to change their language—so different from the language of the North.

Additionally, among the whites there are delineations. There is language of people like Atticus and Miss Maudie, and then the language of the Ewells. Importantly, there is also the language Calpurnia uses with the Finches, and the language she reverts to when among her own people.

If the language can have any symbolism, I would expect that it shows clearly the divide between the educated community and the uneducated community. Most of the time, people like Atticus, Miss Maudie, Aunt Alexandra, Judge Taylor, Uncle Jack, etc., show their standing in the community by the way they speak: they are more sophisticated which would symbolize their intellect, education, and their ability to rise above the circumstances that keep the rest of this this town from moving forward more quickly into the newly- arrived twentieth century. This learning is seen in Calpurnia's speech and ability to read and write. She is a character that walks between the two worlds.

On the other hand, people like Bob Ewell are a clear example of this part of the country and its inability to move beyond its past and its sense of being persecuted and treated unfairly in the war between the North and South. Ewell, his son Burris, and daughter Mayella show through their speech how uneducated—and hateful and suspicious—they are, still mired down by the sensibilities and prejudices of the Old South.

For example, when Mayella takes the stand in court, she becomes extremely argumentative because she thinks that Atticus is making fun of her. It is only when judge Taylor assures her that Atticus is being polite that she will answer his questions.

She was looking at [Atticus] furiously.

"Won't answer a word you say long as you keep on mockin' me…

And to Judge Taylor she declares:

Long's he keeps on callin' me ma'am an sayin' Miss Mayella. I don't have to take his sass…"

Even Bob Ewell's language shows his sense of the "good old boys" of the South when he acts without respect toward the court and its representatives. When asked if Mayella is his daughter, his response is:

Well if I ain't I can't do nothing about it now, her ma's dead...

And...

Just before sundown. Well, I was sayin' Mayella was screamin' fit to beat Jesus—

I believe that the different types of language used in the novel symbolize the educated from the uneducated, the forward-thinking from those locked in the South's past.

Probably the best example of Tom Robinson's symbolic comparison to the mockingbird comes from the pen of newspaper editor B. B. Underwood. Underwood is not a friend of the black man; in fact, according to Atticus, he "despises Negroes. Won't have one near him." But Underwood is a fair man, and he has already supported Atticus (and Tom) when he stood guard silently over them at the jail on the night that the prospective lynch mob paid a visit. Even Underwood can see the injustice of the jury verdict and Boo's death, and he pulls no punches in his printed reaction. In his editorial concerning Tom's death in the Maycomb Tribune, Underwood compares Tom's death to the

... senseless slaughter of songbirds by hunters and children...  (Chapter 25)