Examples Of Individuality In Huckleberry Finn

Thomas Gregory

Mr. Brobeck

English 11 (1)

9 December 2015

Individuality Cannot Be Confined As time goes by, more and more people claim that individuality is dwindling in American society. Many claim this decrease in individuality is due to people being pressured into following the paths of others instead of creating their own. However, is this truly the case?Throughout the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck and Jim face these same pressures and are forced to decide which path to take. Although many believe that individuality in a conformist society is impossible, Huck and Jim’s struggles to forge their own opinions is ultimately triumphed, proving individuality is possible. An occasion where Huck’s individuality is observed

The sisters try to make Huck conform and become a stereotypical good boy; however, even from the very start of the novel, Huck plainly states that he will not conform to society. Huck asserts that, "the Widow Douglas took [him] for her son, and allowed she would sivilize [him]” (1). He then goes on to get "into [his] old rags and [his] sugar hogshead again, and was free and satisfied" (1). In this passage, Huck decided that his individuality was more important than being a stereotypical good boy. His changing from his nice clothes to “old rags” symbolize his refusal to conform to society’s standard, thereby supporting that individuality can be achieved. An instance where Jim displays his individuality was when he lost Huck in the fog. Jim chastises Huck for playing a trick on him when he says, “‘Dat truck dah is trash; en trash is what people is dat puts dirt on de head er

In the end, however, he rips the letter and wishes to free Jim despite society’s standards saying, “‘All right, I’ll go to hell’” (162). Even though Huck chooses the morally correct decision to set Jim free, society’s corrupted ways of thinking makes him believe that, “‘[he]’ll go to hell’" for his choice. Despite society corrupting Huck in his way of thinking, he has not lost his ability to decide for himself. This choice to defy all he had previously known about slavery, displays his individuality in a conformist society. In another instance, Jim hints towards his individuality when he states his opinion to Huck about the King and the Duke. Although Jim’s social status restricts what he says, he does manage to ask whether, “it ‘sprise [Huck], de way dem kings carries on?” (115). A conformist slave would never try to persuade a white man; however, Jim chose to take his own path. He decided to go behind the King and the Duke’s backs and share his own opinion with Huck because he knew it was the right thing to do. On the final page of the book, Huck mentions that Aunt Sally is “‘going to adopt [him] and sivilize [him], and [he] can’t stand it” (220). This final passage allows Huck to reveal how much he has grown as an individual throughout the course of the story. This growth, as seen by his inability to stand the idea of being “sivilized”, presents the idea that he detests