Mockingbird Motif

At the beginning of the year, I thought that a motif was just a theme of the book. After reading To Kill a Mockingbird, I realized that a motif is a reoccurring theme in the novel, not just a specific theme out of many others. I now feel like I can understand the motifs in other books, and analyze them more deeply, not just reading thoughtlessly.

The mockingbird motif is pretty much a sin to kill something innocent. It was first brought up in the book by when Miss Maudie tells them that it's a sin to kill an actual mockingbird. As the story progresses, the motif gets deeper, and begins to relate things to innocence, such as Tom Robinson's case, how he was innocent, but still guilty. This describes clearly the theme of justice and injustice. Also, when Tom gets killed, the motif is brought up again by saying it was a sin to kill cripples.