The Evolution of Huck Growth and maturity is a strong theme throughout “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain which centers on a character named Huck Finn, a rambunctious boy whose adventures with a runaway slave build him into a mature young man. Although before these adventures, Huck is an uncivilized and immature boy who is always up to no good with his friend Tom Sawyer. In “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” Mark Twain escorts us through Huck’s experiences with Jim, the runaway slave, that teach him many valuable lessons as he matures in his thoughts and actions. During the adventures Huck and Jim have together, Huck displays many episodes of immaturity. An example of this is when Huck and Jim get separated in a thick
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Huck starts caring for others even when they have done him wrong. An example of this is when Huck finds out the king and the duke died. “Well, it made me sick to see it; and I was sorry for them poor pitiful rascals, it seemed like I couldn't ever feel any hardness against them any more in the world. It was a dreadful thing to see.” (Twain 231). This quote shows how Huck has matured to the point that he has no hard feelings towards the king and the duke and even feels bad for them even though they treated him and Jim so poorly. Also during the final chapters, Huck starts putting others and their needs in front of his own. An example of this is when Huck decides that he would go to hell to save Jim from slavery. “‘All right, then, I'll go to hell’- and tore it up. It was awful thoughts, and awful words, but they was said. And I let them stay said; and never thought no more about reforming.” (Twain 214). In this quote Huck is essentially saying that he would give up his life for Jim. This shows a tremendous amount of character and maturity to want to protect a friend and their freedom to the point of suffering in hell. Another example of Huck putting others and their needs in front of his own is when he exposes himself, the king, and the duke as frauds to save the three sisters from having their property and money stolen. “Don't you holler. Just set still and take it like a man. I got to tell the truth, and you want to brace up, Miss Mary, because it's a bad kind, and going to be hard to take, but there ain't no help for it. These uncles of yourn ain't no uncles at all; they're a couple of frauds—regular dead-beats.” (Twain 187). It takes a lot of courage and character to own up to a big lie like Huck does. Huck does not do this because of any personal gain he would receive, but does it out of his care for the girls. He does not want to see them hurt and suffer
Huck starts caring for others even when they have done him wrong. An example of this is when Huck finds out the king and the duke died. “Well, it made me sick to see it; and I was sorry for them poor pitiful rascals, it seemed like I couldn't ever feel any hardness against them any more in the world. It was a dreadful thing to see.” (Twain 231). This quote shows how Huck has matured to the point that he has no hard feelings towards the king and the duke and even feels bad for them even though they treated him and Jim so poorly. Also during the final chapters, Huck starts putting others and their needs in front of his own. An example of this is when Huck decides that he would go to hell to save Jim from slavery. “‘All right, then, I'll go to hell’- and tore it up. It was awful thoughts, and awful words, but they was said. And I let them stay said; and never thought no more about reforming.” (Twain 214). In this quote Huck is essentially saying that he would give up his life for Jim. This shows a tremendous amount of character and maturity to want to protect a friend and their freedom to the point of suffering in hell. Another example of Huck putting others and their needs in front of his own is when he exposes himself, the king, and the duke as frauds to save the three sisters from having their property and money stolen. “Don't you holler. Just set still and take it like a man. I got to tell the truth, and you want to brace up, Miss Mary, because it's a bad kind, and going to be hard to take, but there ain't no help for it. These uncles of yourn ain't no uncles at all; they're a couple of frauds—regular dead-beats.” (Twain 187). It takes a lot of courage and character to own up to a big lie like Huck does. Huck does not do this because of any personal gain he would receive, but does it out of his care for the girls. He does not want to see them hurt and suffer