Tom Sawyer Character Development

“There comes a time in every rightly constructed boy’s life when he has the raging desire to go somewhere and dig for hidden treasure”(156). This desire had struck the heart of young boy in the town of St. Petersburg. In The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain, Tom a young boy goes on many adventures with his companions. Tom is a troublesome boy who lives with his Aunt Polly and his half- brother Sidney. Throughout the story the mischievous boy often gets into trouble and expresses his apathy for the many things that bore him. Many would argue that even after all his adventures, Tom does not mature as a person, but that is simply not the case. Tom is mature because of his actions towards Becky, Huck, and Injun Joe. From the beginning of the story, Tom showed a particular interest in Becky, and on many occasions he showed he cared for her. As the story progresses Tom performs multiple actions to earn her affection. One of the first instances where Tom displays his love for her was when they were attending school. Becky had ripped the teacher's anatomy book and was guaranteed a whipping. When the teacher went around asking the class who had done it Tom had exclaimed, “I done it” (136). Through this …show more content…
The main occurrence where Tom brought justice to Injun Joe was at the courthouse. During the trial, Tom was brought up as a witness. At a witness he was asked where he was on the day of the murder. He then bellowed, “In the graveyard” (153)! Tom knew the risks he was taking when he made the statement, but he came to the conclusion that the salvation of Muff Potter outweighed the chance of being attacked by the Injun devil. Few people have the morals that he has to make such a decision. Even after all the horrendous things that Injun Joe had done, “Tom was touched” at the sight of his death (211). This displays Tom’s care for all people, regardless of their