Villainy is a common theme seen in Mark Twain’s work of historical fiction, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. One of the most surprising villains in this story is Tom Sawyer. His villainy is rather unexpected because not only is he merely a child, the stage of life seen as the most innocent, he is Huck’s best friend. But his actions hinder the protagonists and place them in an obscene amount of danger. His personality, actions, and contributions to the villainous themes in the book deem him quite malevolent. Tom’s personality in general is awful. First off, when you hang around Tom, the number one rule is that Tom is always right. From the very beginning of the book he displays this terrible trait. When the logic of his ideals for his gang
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One notable thing is the connection made between Tom and the conmen. The conmen sold Jim for forty dollars, and “Tom give Jim forty dollars for being prisoner” (Twain 294). Jim becomes a prisoner for forty dollars, and stays a prisoner for forty dollars. This connection compares Tom and the conmen, showing that they are really not that different. They both lie to achieve what they want, and the lives of others are nothing more than dollars and cents. His character also reflects on the theme of hypocrisy. Tom tell Huck that “he was going to start a band of robbers, and [Huck] might join if [he] would go back to the widow and be respectable.” Tom has invited Huck into his gang, where the aim is to steal and kill others, for the price of behaving well. A gang such as Tom’s screams “rebellion,” but Tom asks Huck to act civilised and live with the widow. Hypocrisy cannot make itself any more clear through these means; Brutus could not be an honorable murderer, for honor and murder contradict each other, and the same goes for any other person who would force civilisation on others whilst taking the life of another. And lastly, Tom is very clearly Huck’s foil. Tom is a character whose moral compass is basically a roulette wheel, and Huck is shown to be maybe one of the most moral-driven people in the south by the end of the book. “I been there before,” (Twain 295) is the last thing Huck says at the end …show more content…
He is a bad person and a bad friend throughout his entire appearance in the book. It leaves one hoping that another book may contain a redemption arc for him. Even as a child, and as a child who poses as a friend, he is no better than the men who died having donned a new fitting of tar and feathers. Truly, maleficence hides behind a masque of
One notable thing is the connection made between Tom and the conmen. The conmen sold Jim for forty dollars, and “Tom give Jim forty dollars for being prisoner” (Twain 294). Jim becomes a prisoner for forty dollars, and stays a prisoner for forty dollars. This connection compares Tom and the conmen, showing that they are really not that different. They both lie to achieve what they want, and the lives of others are nothing more than dollars and cents. His character also reflects on the theme of hypocrisy. Tom tell Huck that “he was going to start a band of robbers, and [Huck] might join if [he] would go back to the widow and be respectable.” Tom has invited Huck into his gang, where the aim is to steal and kill others, for the price of behaving well. A gang such as Tom’s screams “rebellion,” but Tom asks Huck to act civilised and live with the widow. Hypocrisy cannot make itself any more clear through these means; Brutus could not be an honorable murderer, for honor and murder contradict each other, and the same goes for any other person who would force civilisation on others whilst taking the life of another. And lastly, Tom is very clearly Huck’s foil. Tom is a character whose moral compass is basically a roulette wheel, and Huck is shown to be maybe one of the most moral-driven people in the south by the end of the book. “I been there before,” (Twain 295) is the last thing Huck says at the end …show more content…
He is a bad person and a bad friend throughout his entire appearance in the book. It leaves one hoping that another book may contain a redemption arc for him. Even as a child, and as a child who poses as a friend, he is no better than the men who died having donned a new fitting of tar and feathers. Truly, maleficence hides behind a masque of