Throughout The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, inner conflict plagues Huck on his journey. Huck is faced with many situations that require him to make a decision. These decisions are usually between in his head and his heart. Should he do as he was taught, or should he do what he feels is just? In nearly all of these situations, Huckleberry Finn decides to follow his heart. It is clear that Huck doesn’t blindly follow the rules he has been taught; instead, he uses his emotions to guide him through these problems. Many of the decisions between head and heart revolve around Huck’s friend, Jim. Jim is a runaway slave that was formerly owned by Huck’s adoptive aunt, Miss Watson. Huck comes across Jim when he is trying to escape
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Huck deceives Jim by letting on that the recent events regarding their separation in the fog were all just a dream. He states that they had been together the whole time. Jim obviously believes Huck and then begins to think he is losing his sanity. After this, Huck feels awful about having tricked Jim. He decides to apologize, but it takes courage for him to do so. Huck has difficulty starting his apology, stating, “It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger, but I done it, and I warn’t ever sorry for it afterward, neither,” (78). During this time period, white people were taught to frown upon blacks. They were taught that whites were superior to blacks in every way, and that a white person should not apologize to a black person; he owes them nothing. Huck defies this precept by telling Jim he is sorry for his actions. His apology is sincere; he doesn’t enjoy seeing Jim upset because of his own activities. In his head, he realizes that he should not treat a black man with respect, for it would be against the morals of everyone around him. However, Huck grows less and less concerned with the laws and rules of those around him throughout the story. He is more concerned about treating Jim like he would want to be
Huck deceives Jim by letting on that the recent events regarding their separation in the fog were all just a dream. He states that they had been together the whole time. Jim obviously believes Huck and then begins to think he is losing his sanity. After this, Huck feels awful about having tricked Jim. He decides to apologize, but it takes courage for him to do so. Huck has difficulty starting his apology, stating, “It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger, but I done it, and I warn’t ever sorry for it afterward, neither,” (78). During this time period, white people were taught to frown upon blacks. They were taught that whites were superior to blacks in every way, and that a white person should not apologize to a black person; he owes them nothing. Huck defies this precept by telling Jim he is sorry for his actions. His apology is sincere; he doesn’t enjoy seeing Jim upset because of his own activities. In his head, he realizes that he should not treat a black man with respect, for it would be against the morals of everyone around him. However, Huck grows less and less concerned with the laws and rules of those around him throughout the story. He is more concerned about treating Jim like he would want to be