I'd rather you shot at tin cans in the backyard, 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.

               In this quote from from page 119 of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch is explaining to his son, Jem, that it's alright if he shoots at the bluejays, but to remember that it's a sin to kill a mockingbird. Later, we find out from Miss Maudie on page 119 that it's considered a sin to kill this bird because "Mockingbirds don't do one thing but sing their hearts out 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." In this book, mockingbirds symbolize innocence. Throughout the plot development, I notice that innocence is a reoccurring topic, cleverly woven into each chapter. One example is the Tom Robinson case. Tom Robinson is a black man, which already makes him the target of the Maycomb citizens' racial prejudice against people of color. This town's racism illustrates the killing of innocence when people treat Tom and his family with hate, ignorance, and discrimination, simply because of the color of their skin.
 Another perspective of the Tom Robinson case is Tom himself being persecuted. He is being falsely accused of raping Mayella Ewell by her father, Bob Ewell. Although this seems illogical and is completely unforeseen, the townspeople gossip about him relentlessly, showing no mercy or compassion. 

                To me, this quote is completely relevant to modern day society. Presently, more and more young adults, children, toddlers, and even babies, are being exposed to technologies. Growing up, technology didn't have as big of an affect as it does today, which forced my generation to read, be creative, and socialize. I'm not trying to dis technology, as I use it quite often, such as my phone and laptop. I just think that as a child, it's important to be free of the world's struggles and issues, and to just focus on growing and developing. Of course, as the years go by, one needs to become aware of events around the globe, not just in their house. However, I've noticed that as young children have easy access to technology, they quickly start to lose the energy and spark that little kids should have. Instead, they lay around on their device, not caring about a single thing, other than what's online.