While often romanticized in light-hearted novels and young adult movies, the infamous coming of age story is one that is often anything but glamorous. Inevitably, everyone faces the prospect of growing up, and, often times, the struggles with identity, responsibility, and purpose that come with it. For some, they are forced to uncomfortably reflect in order to understand the necessary progress they must make. For others, they must recognize the value of their principles and ideals, even if society suggests otherwise. For Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn, he must quickly learn to navigate his life while navigating the Mississippi River. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, titular character, Huck and runaway slave Jim venture down the Mississippi
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For much of his adventure, Huck struggles to answer the question “Who’s me?” (Twain 89). With each new name and identity Huck assumes, he realizes that none of them fit him appropriately. Even in the lavish family-oriented lifestyle of the Grangerfords Huck sees past the superficiality of such a life reconciling “there weren’t no home like a raft, after all” (Twain 107). Huck remains unsure of who he is and the life he wants until he makes his own decisions. After revealing the true identity of the duke and dauphin to Mary Jane Wilkes, Huck recounts “my heart swelled up sudden, like to bust; and the same second the house and all was behind me in the dark, and wasn’t ever going to be before me no more in this world” (Twain 185). With his decision, Huck realizes that the type of person he wants to be is not one that can be associated with the vile ways of the con men. The loss of his selfish tendencies demonstrates Huck’s maturity in making his own individual decisions. This ability to decide for himself is one that many adolescents strive for when asserting their independence. In modern society, the general assumption among adolescents is that being grown up equates to making personal decisions without the limitations of a parent. While often times we see this in association with choosing what time to go to bed, what movie to watch or whether to do homework or not, Huck’s character demonstrates the significance of such independence when it comes to understanding personal
For much of his adventure, Huck struggles to answer the question “Who’s me?” (Twain 89). With each new name and identity Huck assumes, he realizes that none of them fit him appropriately. Even in the lavish family-oriented lifestyle of the Grangerfords Huck sees past the superficiality of such a life reconciling “there weren’t no home like a raft, after all” (Twain 107). Huck remains unsure of who he is and the life he wants until he makes his own decisions. After revealing the true identity of the duke and dauphin to Mary Jane Wilkes, Huck recounts “my heart swelled up sudden, like to bust; and the same second the house and all was behind me in the dark, and wasn’t ever going to be before me no more in this world” (Twain 185). With his decision, Huck realizes that the type of person he wants to be is not one that can be associated with the vile ways of the con men. The loss of his selfish tendencies demonstrates Huck’s maturity in making his own individual decisions. This ability to decide for himself is one that many adolescents strive for when asserting their independence. In modern society, the general assumption among adolescents is that being grown up equates to making personal decisions without the limitations of a parent. While often times we see this in association with choosing what time to go to bed, what movie to watch or whether to do homework or not, Huck’s character demonstrates the significance of such independence when it comes to understanding personal