The aphorism that gives Harper Lee’s most famous novel its title seems problematic on two counts. From a literary perspective, it encourages unproductive speculation about which character is the mockingbird. From an ornithological one, Atticus’s preference for mockingbirds over bluejays seems somewhat arbitrary: both are aggressive pests known to attack humans. While many find the mockingbird’s song pleasurable, others are irritated by its nocturnal warbling. Thus, while regionally appropriate, Atticus’s idealizing of the gray over the blue seems a little puzzling. Extant criticism on the aphorism has focused on the mockingbird; here I focus on the sin. I seek not to wade into a thicket of theological speculation (Shaffer), simply to contextualize Atticus’s assertion within the context of the language of sin as it appears in the novel. Arguing that such language reveals much about those who utilize it, I suggest that Atticus’s use of the word “sin” groups him with other characters for whom the term is a mask for prejudice understood as a “preconceived opinion not based on reason or actual experience” (“prejudice”). The reading calls into question Atticus’s alleged moral rectitude (Johnson), offering further evidence for those who would see Finch as ethically compromised (Gladwell). The word “sin” appears fourteen times in the novel. It is ascribed, in thought or speech, to seven characters: Miss Maudie, Scout, Atticus, Reverend Sykes, Mrs. Merriweather, Mr. Underwood, and Heck Tate. With one exception, each use is presented in a less than straightforward manner. Indeed, the word is often employed by the narrator and/or the author to indicate a character’s hypocrisy. Observes Miss Maudie of a sect of fervid Baptists: “Footwashers believe that anything that’s a pleasure is a sin. Did you know some of ’em came out of the woods one Saturday and passed by this place and told me me and my flowers were going to hell?” (59). Further asserting, “foot-washers

中文翻译：

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童子军的罪恶幻象；或者，为什么杀死一只知更鸟可能还好

为哈珀·李最著名的小说命名的格言在两个方面似乎有问题。从文学的角度来看，它鼓励了关于哪个角色是反舌鸟的徒劳猜测。从鸟类学的角度来看，阿蒂克斯更喜欢知更鸟而不是蓝鸟似乎有些武断：两者都是已知会攻击人类的侵略性害虫。虽然许多人发现反舌鸟的歌声令人愉悦，但其他人则对它夜间的鸣叫感到恼火。因此，虽然在区域上是合适的，但阿迪克斯对蓝色的灰色理想化似乎有点令人费解。现存对这句格言的批评主要集中在反舌鸟身上。在这里，我专注于罪。我不想涉足神学思辨的丛林（Shaffer），只是将阿迪克斯的断言置于小说中出现的罪恶语言的语境中。我认为这种语言揭示了使用它的人的很多信息，我认为阿迪克斯使用“罪”这个词将他与其他角色归为一类，对这些角色来说，这个词是偏见的面具，被理解为“不基于理性或实际经验的先入为主的意见” “ （“偏见”）。阅读质疑阿蒂克斯所谓的道德正直（约翰逊），为那些认为芬奇在道德上妥协的人（格拉德威尔）提供了进一步的证据。“罪”这个词在小说中出现了十四次。在思想或言语上，它归因于七个角色：莫迪小姐、斯库特、阿蒂克斯、赛克斯牧师、梅里韦瑟夫人、安德伍德先生和赫克·泰特。除了一个例外，每种用法都以不太直接的方式呈现。事实上，叙述者和/或作者经常使用这个词来表示一个角色的虚伪。观察狂热浸信会教派的莫迪小姐：“洗脚者相信任何令人愉快的事情都是一种罪恶。你知道吗，某个星期六，他们中的一些人从树林里出来，经过这个地方，告诉我，我的花要下地狱了？” (59)。进一步断言，“洗脚