Nature In Huckleberry Finn

In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck resides in two different environments: the Mississippi River and on land with Pap and Miss Watson. Living alongside with people from different backgrounds, they obligate Huck to conform to society’s central dogma of being “sivilized” and to support the crude idea of slavery. On the contrary, the river is a physical body that embodies freedom and tranquility. In an environment consisting of isolation and thought, Huck and Jim are able to liberate themselves from living a legalistic, rigorous society. With Huck’s internal conflicts and Jim’s departure, Twain implies that civilization is conflicting and barbaric, hypocritical, but life on the river is a place of freedom.

Huck starts thinking, “I went along slow then, and I warn’t right down certain whether I was glad I started or whether I warn’t. When I was fifty yards off, Jim says, ‘Dah you goe’s, de ole true Huck; de on’y white gentleman dat ever kep’ his promise to ole Jim.’ Well, I just felt sick.” (Twain 114). Jim has taught Huck about compassion and empathy, as well as to reject the racist upbringing he had. Slowly but surely, with the help of Jim, we see Huck beginning to form his own beliefs about the world, and reject the upbringings he

Wisdom is to maturity as writing a paper is to taking an English course. And wisdom can only be gained through life experience, good, bad, or in between. Huck’s maturity is developed through his adventure down the Mississippi River, where he must make “adult” choices that will affect not only him but his dependent friend, Jim, showing that all kids need is to be given responsibility in order to become responsible.

In the novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, the contrast on civilization and nature developed throughout the novel. When Huck lived with the widow she tried civilized him, but it was obvious he did not want to be civilized. His whole life he grew up without parental figures, so he wasn’t used to having rules or being disciplined. As the reader, it was easy to make the connection that Huck didn’t want to be civilized because he never was when he was growing, and didn’t want to start anytime soon. On Huck and Jim’s journey down the river they experienced nature for what it really was when they sailed on the raft and hid from society. Through encounters with people they met on their journey, the Duke and the Dauphin and the Grangerfords,

During the era in which Mark Twain wrote The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, society was seemingly divided into two separate belief systems. These systems included the racial and religious systems. The religious system promoted equality and fellowship among people while the other encouraged the complete opposite. Due to these two varying systems, many people were divided into two separate groups: the “civilized” and the “other.” These two discriminatory and hypocritical belief systems were something that Mark Twain highly opposed and this was evident in his most popular tale. The main theme in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is the social hypocrisy between society and religion. It is through Huck’s experiences with Jim and his own upbringing

As some critics have pointed out, Huck never condemns slavery or racial prejudice in general, but he seems to find an exception to the rule in Jim. Nevertheless, the fact that Huck does learn to see beyond racial stereotypes in the case of Jim is a profound development, considering his upbringing. He lived in a household with the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson where slaves were owned. And Pap’s ranting over a free black man indicates his deep racial prejudice. When confronted with the fact that a free black man was highly educated and could vote, Pap decides he wants nothing to do with a government that has allowed this to happen. He wants the free man, whom he calls “a prowling, thieving, infernal, white-shirted free nigger” to be sold at auction (Telgen 9). In other words, all black people are slaves, white man’s property, in his eyes. Such are the views on race with which Huck has been raised. But there is no agreement to what Twain’s message on the subject of race is. While some critics view the novel as a satire on racism and a conscious indictment of a racist

This causes readers to also question the beliefs of society. Twain shows this when he writes through Huck, “ People would call me a low down Abolitionist and despise me for keeping mum-but that don’t make no difference. I ain’t a-going to tell,” (Twain 38). This quote proves that even though Huck knew what society would think of him if he deviated from the standards, he chose to anyway because it is what he believed was right. Twain also demonstrates this when Huck decides, “”All right, then, I’ll go to hell,” - and tore it up,” (Twain 191).

“I would go to work and steal Jim out of slavery,” Huck shares, showing that he would be willing to risk his life and reputation to free his friend, Jim (Twain 195). Instead of this institution creating kind, caring, compassionate learners and leaders, the educational institution instills primitive, old world values into its students in the South. However, because Huck escaped this formal Southern education, he has good morals. Southern society considers Huck an uneducated, ignorant boy, but it is he who possesses far more knowledge and compassion than any educated person of the South, showing the hypocrisy of the society in which he lives. Huck relates, "It was kind of lazy and jolly, laying off comfortable all day, smoking and fishing, and no books nor study,” while he is living out in nature with his Pap (Twain 25). He does not enjoy a formal education of books and work, but can still appreciate the beauty and curiosities of the world, in nature and its people. Huck is able to see past the barriers society puts up, as he did not receive a Southern education, which creates people who support slavery and do not think for themselves. The educational institution is like a factory, pumping out identical children all believing in old world Southern values. Huck escapes from this ‘prison’ and only then does he become a better

Twain uses colloquial diction to convey Huck’s struggle between the values of his southern upbringing, which urge him to return Jim, and his strong friendship and loyalty with Jim, which encourage him to protect the runaway. Although Huck lacks education, Huck interprets the laws in ways that are morally sound, an interpretation that most educated people fail to understand, while they blindly accept the injustice of slavery. Throughout the novel, Twain makes use of uneducated diction and syntax to convey an ironic contrast between Huck’s ability to discern between moral and immoral actions and his lack of education.

I enjoy reading your viewpoint on the stories; however I believe every reason you listed displayed naturalism. When the narrator developed depression, her family trying to control her actions and the expectations of her to stay home were all out of her control. In Huck Finn, he came across moral issues were he was able to decide what would be the best course of action. Huck story was more of a tale of realism. The narrator, however, did not have a choice to make therefore she escaped in own mind by envision people walking in the paths and arbor or the woman escaping in the

In response to the racism of his time, Mark Twain uses The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to contend that racism is an artificial, manufactured product of civilization that supplants the ingrained, human resistance to injustices like racism. To substantiate this point, Twain interweaves the reoccurring motifs of the instinctive feeling of sickness, the effects of a civilized upbringing, and the presence of romanticism into the story.

In the books, The Adventures Huckleberry Finn and To Kill a Mockingbird, the authors demonstrate several themes: the coexistence of good and evil, the importance of moral education, the existence of social inequality, racism and slavery, intellectual and moral education, and the hypocrisy of “civilized” society. The common themes throughout the two books depict; that although the settings are nearly a century apart, society has not changed as drastically as believed.

Huck is psychologically held by his drunken, abusive father, Pap who kidnaps him, and sends him to an isolated cabin in Illinois. Pap is illiterate and oppressive and threatens to Huck that he will "take some of these frills out [of] [Huck] before [he is] done with [him]" (20). Pap suspects Huck of putting on airs and thinking he is better than his father. Pap wants Huck’s money as a slaveholder, and he wants to profit from holding his slave. He saves himself by faking his own kill with an animal and flees the cabin. This shows that he is trying to escape slavery for himself, and frees himself from his father’s grasp. Tom believes that abolishing slavery is associated with thieving. They decide to save Jim and put it as a game, as Huck and Tom tag along with the other robbers to steal back Jim from the Phelps (202). They resolve to steal Jim, freeing him from the bonds of slavery. Tom decides to make it as a game and it turns out that they manage to save their friend Jim from slavery. Furthermore, it represents the theme of slavery because Tom and Huck are saving their own friend. Slavery has been around throughout the novel and Twain himself has been hotly debated in

Twain argues it was not only the slaves who were bound in slavery but also everyone else around them. Since Jim is a slave who ran away, Huck is socially expected to go and report him, but Huck said he “ain’t agoing to tell” anyone about Jim (32). Huck is breaking widespread belief and not partaking in what is expected of a white boy. Huck’s freedom is more ingrained than any expectations anyone has for him and is one of his greatest qualities. Slavery is a set of rules everyone participates in and to step out of that and treat an African American person as a person is a very difficult thing because society is not accepting of it. Earlier in Huck’s adventure, after he was adopted by a widow, she spoke to Huck about religion and the benefits of prayer, Huck did not seem to understand the purpose of it all. The Widow spoke of “spiritual gifts” that were to be attained by prayer, a concept that confused Huck because he did not see how it helped anyone. Huck quickly finds the flaws within the concept of religion and decides he “wouldn’t worry about it anymore, but just let it go,” especially since it does not help him in any way (8). Huck does not see how praying will benefit him and therefore decides that he will have nothing to do with religion. There is also a social connection through practicing any religion and Huck grew up without any of that. Religion is one of the biggest social expectations, everyone is expected to abide by it, just like any other social standard. Huck’s reaction to religion and the prospect of turning in his friend clearly argue Twain’s point that those who do not benefit from society are the ones who challenge its

The following paper will briefly show arguments, and conclusions within the writings of Mark Twain’s story Huckleberry Finn. I will discuss the various themes that Mark Twain is bringing to light within his story. This paper will show how Mark Twain uses those themes within the story, and how they are specifically used. I will also briefly discuss the life of Samuel Clemons, the author known as Mark Twain, and give the reasoning behind choosing the name of Mark Twain when writing his novels. Themes of escapism will be discussed.