Record the kine of text that includes the reference to the title. Explain its meaning in the scene and take a guess as to the idea's larger meaning. I know you haven't fnished the book yet, but i still want you to guess about how this line connects to the message of the novel.
From the text:
When he gave us our air-rifles Atticus wouldn’t teach us to shoot. Uncle Jack instructed us in the rudiments thereof; he said Atticus wasn’t interested in 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 was the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss Maudie about it. “Your father’s 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.
At this point in the novel, we can infer that Atticus is referring to refraining from hurting people or things that are innocent and bring us joy. This foreshadows the "mockingbirds" that will be exposed along the way.
To Kill a Mockingbird
