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Published in England in December 1884 and in the United States in February 1885, "Huckleberry Finn" is a novel that represents Naturalism (c. 1865-1900), a literary movement that uses detailed realism to show how social conditions, heredity, and environment shape human character. The main character, Huckleberry Finn, is a young boy who grows up during the late nineteenth century. He has a practical and logical perspective without making judgments, adding a satirical humor to the story.
Antagonist: In the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck Finn is influenced by society's rules and laws, which shape his perception of what is considered right.
Going against these conventions makes him feel like a traitor and villain, willing to accept punishment in hell for standing by his beliefs. Throughout the novel, Huck follows his conscience and does what he believes is right, even if it involves resorting to deception, dishonesty, and theft.
Plot Summary: The narrative commences with Huck Finn being taken under the care of Widow Douglas and residing with her sister, Miss Watson.
Both the Widow and Miss Watson attempt to civilize Huck by sending him to church and school, teaching him cleanliness and manners.
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However, Pap, Huck's intoxicated father, comes back to town demanding Huck's money. Judge Thatcher and the Widow both seek legal custody of Huck. Pap abducts Huck and takes him to a cabin on the opposite side of the Mississippi River from St. Petersburg, Missouri. In Pap's absence, he locks Huck in the cabin and physically abuses him when he returns drunk.
To escape from both Pap and the cabin, Huck pretends to be dead. He then hides on Jackson's Island, situated in the middle of the Mississippi River. While there, Huck encounters Jim - a slave owned by Miss Watson - and they decide to stick together.
Huck and Jim discover a raft and a house drifting along the river. Inside the house, they stumble upon a deceased person, but Jim refuses to show Huck the face of the man. They embark on their journey downstream using the raft, encountering various individuals such as swindlers and slave hunters. Jim gets sold into slavery, prompting Tom and Huck to attempt his rescue. Meanwhile, Huck learns of his father's demise. Ultimately, Huck determines to venture out West. This narrative explores themes of racism and slavery as well as the conflict between societal conventions and a more primitive existence. In the novel, the Mississippi River symbolizes freedom since Huck and Jim, navigating in solitude on their raft, only answer to each other.
The river can also represent the joys and perils of life as Huck and Jim face dangers from the townspeople they encounter. The fog that accompanies their journey along the Mississippi signifies the complicated obstacles that hinder the achievement of life's objectives. The motif of childhood is evident in Huck's behavior throughout the novel, as it excuses him from certain actions. Despite lacking proper guidance from a family and community, Huck demonstrates a better understanding of moral choices than many adults in the story.
Huck participates in deceit and fraud throughout the book, but he quickly learns that lying can be acceptable depending on the motive. He also realizes that certain teachings he has received conflict with what is morally right.
Jim educates Huck about different superstitions and folk stories, which initially may appear unbelievable but ultimately uncover some truth. Jim's superstitions provide an alternative viewpoint to societal conventions, reminding us that the popular opinion is not always accurate.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn employs a first-person storytelling approach, with Huck serving as the narrator.
The narrative structure of the story parallels the path of the Mississippi River, guiding readers through darkness, fog, and into bright sunlight. It is brimming with unexpected turns and anecdotes that illuminate the values of the characters. The novel portrays how "The Widow Douglas treated me like her own child, attempting to civilize me." However, living under her roof presented challenges due to her somber and proper demeanor. Eventually, I reached a breaking point and decided to leave. Once again wearing my worn-out clothes, I returned to my makeshift shelter—an old sugar-hogshead barrel. In that moment, I finally tasted true freedom and contentment.
Tom Sawyer sought me out and informed me of his plan to form a gang of robbers. He proposed that I could join if I returned to the widow and adopted a respectable lifestyle. Hence, I acquiesced and went back. ” (Twain 5)| This quote, extracted from the opening page of the novel, portrays Huck's account of events subsequent to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Huck introduces the notion of his resistance towards the Widow Douglas attempting to civilize him. As a young boy seeking independence, this opposition is rooted in his observations of the societal norms surrounding him.
The significance of this quote lies in its role as the basis for Huck's yearning for freedom and his inclination to break away and be self-reliant. It also provides insight into why Huck relies on deception throughout the narrative. Huck holds a contrasting viewpoint to society's notion of what is morally correct, compelling him to consider whether he should adhere to his conscience, which may lead him towards "wrong" deeds, or conform to society's definition of "right" behavior. This is vital because it shapes his decisions and actions during his journeys along the Mississippi River, where he encounters various individuals from the towns lining the river banks.
The quote provides important background information for the reader, offering an understanding of past events and their impact on the story. It also reveals Huck's perspective on his life and society: "Pap he hadn't been seen for more than a year, and that was comfortable for me; I didn't want to see him no more. He used to always whale me when he was sober and could get his hands on me; though I used to take to the woods most of the time when he was around."
"(Twain 14)“I borrowed three dollars form Judge Thatcher, and Pap took it and got drunk and went-a-blowing around and cussing and whooping and carrying on” (Twain 23)| This quote illustrates Huck's father's tendency to frequently leave town for extended periods of time and engage in destructive behavior. Throughout Huck's childhood, his father would return home and physically abuse him. As a result, Huck developed a strong aversion towards his father and sought refuge in the woods whenever his father visited town to avoid being subjected to further beatings. This provides insight into why the Widow Doulgas ultimately took Huck in - he needed someone who would provide care and instill moral values as he matured into adulthood.
This helps the reader understand Huck's behavior when his father returns to the town. Huck bribes his father with money to make him go away and get drunk, as he always does. Huck may not want his father around because his actions are embarrassing. Personally, I would feel embarrassed if my parents were alcoholics who caused trouble and acted obnoxiously in public. I find Pap's behavior of "blowing around and cussing and whooping and carrying on" annoying, especially when he comes to town and gets drunk.
At the start of the journey, when we were about a quarter of a mile away from the island and it was still quite bright outside, I instructed Jim to lay down in the canoe and hide under a quilt. I did this because I knew that if he sat up, people would easily be able to identify him as a black person from a distance. This quote demonstrates Huck's awareness of the significant difference between his own white skin and Jim's black skin. However, I am still unsure why people would be able to discern their skin colors from such a far distance.
Huck's motives for hiding Jim on the raft are unclear. He claims to disagree with slavery and racism, so it's puzzling why he would be worried about people seeing Jim with him. One possibility is that Huck simply didn't want others to know they were on the island. It's unlikely that Jim would have been easily seen from a distance anyway. If Huck was genuinely concerned about their visibility, perhaps they should have traveled at night instead of during daylight. In the meantime, Jim provided a satisfying meal of corn-dodgers, buttermilk, pork, cabbage, and greens. As we shared supper, we conversed and enjoyed each other's company.
According to Twain (107), Huck and Jim find that there is no place like a raft. They feel incredibly free, comfortable, and at ease on the raft, unlike other places that feel cramped and suffocating. The raft symbolizes the freedom they both desire and enables them to be their true selves without the fear of judgment or being dictated by others. They express that everywhere else they have been "seems so cramped and smothery". This interpretation suggests that they feel compelled to conform to societal norms in other settings.
Both Huck and Jim faced societal expectations and pressures. Huck was forced by Widow Douglas to conform to societal norms by wearing nice clothes, attending school and church. Similarly, Jim, as a black slave, had to obey Miss Watson's commands. However, their relationship is intriguing as they both find solace in the raft, considering it as their true home. Society wouldn't approve of their bond if they were aware of it. The freedom they experience on the raft enhances their pleasure in sharing a simple meal of cornbread and greens.
"It quickly became clear to me that these individuals claiming to be kings and dukes were nothing more than deceitful and fraudulent impostors. However, I chose to remain silent and not reveal my suspicions. This approach ensured that there were no conflicts or troubles. If they desired to be addressed as kings and dukes, I had no objection, as long as it maintained peace within our group. There was no point in telling Jim about my doubts. The most important lesson I had learned from my father is that the best way to navigate such people is to let them have their way." (Twain 115).
Huck is demonstrating a growing awareness of how to avoid trouble and a desire to do so. His decision not to tell the cons about Jim's presence is not solely because Jim told him not to, but also because he is starting to understand societal norms. I believe he realizes that if he were to provoke a fight with them, it could result in both him and Jim being captured and returned to St. Petersburg. They both prefer their current life on the raft, as it provides them with freedom that they lack in St. Petersburg. I appreciate Huck's silence in this situation because it signifies his departure from the restrictions of St.
Since moving to Petersburg and living independently with Jim, Huck has matured. When he decides to remain silent about the true identity of the con artist and not expose the Duke and the King, I believe he considers Jim's well-being and how a confrontation could result in Jim becoming a slave once again. I noticed that Huck acknowledges this by stating that his father taught him to let con artists have their way. I find it ironic that Huck gives his father credit for actually teaching him something, despite his drunkenness and abusive behavior. As Huck reflects, "I was trembling, because I had to make a forever decision between two things, and I knew it."
I pondered for a moment, holding my breath, and then said to myself: "Alright, then, I'll go to hell" - and tore it up. The thoughts and words were awful, but they were spoken. I allowed them to remain spoken and never considered reforming. I pushed the entire thing out of my mind and decided to return to wickedness, which was familiar to me because of my upbringing. As a starting point, I would work to steal Jim out of slavery again; and if I could come up with anything worse, I would do that as well. Since I was fully committed to my path, I might as well go all the way.
"(Twain 195)| Huck once again chooses to commit the "wrong" act of freeing Jim from slavery. He believes that he had already set Jim free by not betraying him when they first met in the woods. However, I don't think Huck is solely responsible for liberating Jim; Jim managed to escape Miss Watson on his own, and it just so happened that Huck stumbled upon him in the woods and decided not to report him. Even then, Huck didn't see it as morally acceptable for Jim to be enslaved, and this belief remains unchanged. Despite society's insistence on the morality of slavery, Huck willingly condemns himself to damnation without actually doing anything wrong.
This is my preferred quote as it demonstrates the development of Huck's character. It reveals that he has transformed into an individual who does not conform to societal norms when he believes they are unjust. This illustrates Huck's maturity since he embarked on his journey down the Mississippi River. I find this quote somewhat amusing because Huck essentially suggests that if he is going to act poorly, he might as well fully commit to it. Despite not doing anything morally incorrect by freeing Jim, I appreciate that Huck is aware of the distinction between right and wrong.
Huckleberry Finn: A Tale of Naturalism and Moral Dilemmas. (2016, Sep 07). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/adventures-of-huckleberry-finn-dialectical-journal-essay
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