Tom lives in a world dominated by women. He is being brought up by his aunt, with the occasional assistance of his cousin Mary, and he loves Becky. Huck is threatened by female domination in the shape of the widow Douglas, and Mrs. Thatcher and Joe’s father. Tom has, in a sense, to fight for his male identity, to prevent himself being smothered by the women around him, and he has also to play a male role, to take the initiative even with aunt, who is older than he. Thus circumstances put Tom in a position where he has no man on whom he may model himself or to whom he must defer. He is free to find and to express his own nature. He responds to this challenge in a splendid fashion, for he has, as his aunt knows, a great deal of
