The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: An Attempt to Edify Society
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn written by Mark Twain is a classic that has stood through the ages. The story is about a boy named Huckleberry Finn, otherwise known as Huck, who runs away from home and travels down the Mississippi river on a raft. Huck meets many people along the way, including a runaway slave named Jim, who becomes his companion. Throughout this novel, humor is a tool Mark Twain uses. He uses ridiculous and hypocritical situations to create this satire. Mark Twain exposes the flaws in his society by satirizing slavery, religion, and education. At the beginning of the book Huckleberry Finn is staying with the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson because his father …show more content…
Like the Grangerfords, there are people in the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that classify themselves as Christians, yet hypocritically own slaves as property. At the Widow Douglas’ house, Huck goes on to explain that the slaves are called into the house to pray. “By and by they fetched the niggers in and had prayers, and then everybody was off to bed.” (3) Silas Phelps, Tom’s uncle who is a preacher owns slaves and keeps Jim in a shed so he doesn’t escape. To the townspeople Silas is a very good preacher. “But it warn’t surprising; because he warn’t only just a farmer, he was a preacher... and never charged nothing for his preaching, and it was worth it, too.” (229) At one point, Silas goes into the shed where he is keeping Jim and prays with him. “Jim told him Uncle Silas come in every day or two to pray with him, and Aunt Sally come into see if he was comfortable and had plenty to eat...” (250) The Widow brings the slaves in for prayers, and Silas prays with Jim, but what’s the value of it? It seems absurd that these Christians would be loving enough to pray with them, yet own them and treat them like property. As the story progresses, Huck reaches a point where he struggles with what he’s going to do about Jim, but in the end he decides not to turn Jim in. “All right, then, I’ll go to hell”—and tore it [the letter] up... I would go to work and steal Jim out of slavery again; and if I could think …show more content…
Huck and Jim’s main mode of travel is on the raft on the river. Away from society and on the raft, Huck and Jim become equals because they don’t need to conform to society’s norms. Jim talks about his family a lot of the raft “When I waked up just at daybreak he was sitting there with his head down betwixt his knees, moaning and mourning to himself. I didn’t take notice nor let on. I knowed what it was about. He was thinking about his wife and his children, away up yonder, and he was low and homesick; because he hadn’t ever been away from home before in his life; and I do believe he cared just as much for his people as white folks does for their’n. It don’t seem natural, but I reckon it’s so.” (158) Jim cares so dearly about his family, that he is willing to buy them back. “...how the first thing he [Jim] would do when he got to a free State he would go to saving up money and never spend a single cent, and when he got enough he would buy his wife, which was owned on a farm close to where Miss Watson lived; and then they would both work to buy the two children, and if their master wouldn’t sell them, they’d get an Ab’litionist to go and steal them.” (91) Its a twisted reality but it’s the only way he can be reunited with them. Huck’s mind begins to open and clearly believes Jim is more human than a slave. Just as Jim cares for his family, he cares for Huck in the same way. “I waked him up, and I reckoned it was going to be a
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn written by Mark Twain is a classic that has stood through the ages. The story is about a boy named Huckleberry Finn, otherwise known as Huck, who runs away from home and travels down the Mississippi river on a raft. Huck meets many people along the way, including a runaway slave named Jim, who becomes his companion. Throughout this novel, humor is a tool Mark Twain uses. He uses ridiculous and hypocritical situations to create this satire. Mark Twain exposes the flaws in his society by satirizing slavery, religion, and education. At the beginning of the book Huckleberry Finn is staying with the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson because his father …show more content…
Like the Grangerfords, there are people in the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that classify themselves as Christians, yet hypocritically own slaves as property. At the Widow Douglas’ house, Huck goes on to explain that the slaves are called into the house to pray. “By and by they fetched the niggers in and had prayers, and then everybody was off to bed.” (3) Silas Phelps, Tom’s uncle who is a preacher owns slaves and keeps Jim in a shed so he doesn’t escape. To the townspeople Silas is a very good preacher. “But it warn’t surprising; because he warn’t only just a farmer, he was a preacher... and never charged nothing for his preaching, and it was worth it, too.” (229) At one point, Silas goes into the shed where he is keeping Jim and prays with him. “Jim told him Uncle Silas come in every day or two to pray with him, and Aunt Sally come into see if he was comfortable and had plenty to eat...” (250) The Widow brings the slaves in for prayers, and Silas prays with Jim, but what’s the value of it? It seems absurd that these Christians would be loving enough to pray with them, yet own them and treat them like property. As the story progresses, Huck reaches a point where he struggles with what he’s going to do about Jim, but in the end he decides not to turn Jim in. “All right, then, I’ll go to hell”—and tore it [the letter] up... I would go to work and steal Jim out of slavery again; and if I could think …show more content…
Huck and Jim’s main mode of travel is on the raft on the river. Away from society and on the raft, Huck and Jim become equals because they don’t need to conform to society’s norms. Jim talks about his family a lot of the raft “When I waked up just at daybreak he was sitting there with his head down betwixt his knees, moaning and mourning to himself. I didn’t take notice nor let on. I knowed what it was about. He was thinking about his wife and his children, away up yonder, and he was low and homesick; because he hadn’t ever been away from home before in his life; and I do believe he cared just as much for his people as white folks does for their’n. It don’t seem natural, but I reckon it’s so.” (158) Jim cares so dearly about his family, that he is willing to buy them back. “...how the first thing he [Jim] would do when he got to a free State he would go to saving up money and never spend a single cent, and when he got enough he would buy his wife, which was owned on a farm close to where Miss Watson lived; and then they would both work to buy the two children, and if their master wouldn’t sell them, they’d get an Ab’litionist to go and steal them.” (91) Its a twisted reality but it’s the only way he can be reunited with them. Huck’s mind begins to open and clearly believes Jim is more human than a slave. Just as Jim cares for his family, he cares for Huck in the same way. “I waked him up, and I reckoned it was going to be a