Twain begins the story by revealing how huck was raised. The reader sees how Huck’s father, …show more content…
While on the raft he would act childish and then realize jim was not his slave and he would have to “work myself up to go and humble myself to a [black man]” (twain 89). The reader sees Huck having a blast with Jim and then all of a sudden he would remember that Jim was black and think he was above a grown man. He was brought up in an environment where white people were seen as superior. Those of darker skin were hardly seen as human beings. During that time “the morality of the South says that helping Jim is a sin”(Wakefield). In an article about huck Finn, Richard wakefield wrote an analyze on how african americans were seen during that time period. Wakefield describes how they “equates manners with morality” (Wakefield). They think that what their parents have taught them are their individual thoughts and morals. They just fell into what they were taught was right and wrong. During that time, going against the norm ,even just a tad, was obscure and improper therefore wrong. Huck has several moments where he lets jims race get in the way of their friendship. He has moments of weakness where he is tempted to “go and write to that [black man] owner and tell where he was”(twain 216). Seeing jim as an equal was not a basic instinct for huck. He knew who jim was as a person but had a hard time distinguishing between what society brainwashed him to think and what he actually thought. John C. Gerber said it best ”Huck is finally confronted with the moral problem that has been nagging him all the way down the river: should he inform Miss Watson about Jim’s whereabouts as his conscience, schooled by his society, urges him to do”(Gerber). He could have easily given Jim up or just act like he never knew where he was and left, therefore creating the climax of the story. In