Huck's Morality In The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn
Society makes Huck believe that that is correct, and that is all he believes, until he travels along the river with a slave whom he has befriended named Jim. Initially, Huck sees Jim as only a slave, but that relationship builds until the overriding relationship is achieved, in which Jim is a father-figure in the eyes of Huck. " The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" made history because of its promoting of white people viewing African Americans as equal to themselves, which wasn't common in that day and age. Overall, Huck's outweighing view of Jim is as a patriarch, a sort of dad he never got to
Thought out a person's childhood, they experience events that transform them to become who they are later in the life. People have to deal with the decision of what right and what's wrong. At a young age, Huck chooses to run away from his home because he was raised by a father who was an alcoholic and means towards Huck. He really did not care for him. Huck knows this is wrong, but does it anyway, he decides to help a slave name Jim escape and try to help him reunite with his family again, by doing this he knows he is going to get in trouble if he gets caught.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a novel written by Mark Twain, is often referred to as a great American novel (Goodreads) due to it’s presence of the culture of the United States prior to the Civil War. Not only does this piece of literature demonstrate the mentality of the American society in the midst of slavery, but it also uses the symbolism of Jackson’s Island and the Mississippi river, one of the world’s largest river systems, to emphasize Twain’s message about morality and religion. Although perhaps not initially apparent, Twain tries to convince readers that civilization masks morality and that hypocrisy often lies within religion through Huck and Jim’s journey down the Mississippi River and their various encounters with other characters
Along with meeting so-called “civilized” society, Huck’s experience with the King and the Duke causes Huck to go against society’s narrow-minded beliefs. In an effort for the King and the Duke to get some cash, they sold Nigger Jim to Silas Phelps’ farm. After Jim was sold for forty dollars, Huck determines what happened to him. Nonetheless, while saving Jim, Huckleberry begins to meet conflicts about society, freedom, and religion. He starts to contemplate his motives and figure out whether saving Jim is the correct thing to do.
Suddenly, Huck’s eyes are opened to the shortcomings of people he was previously blind to. Huck reaches the pinnacle of his moral development when he decides that Jim is worth going to hell for, no matter what society may think about a slave’s worth. After much internal turmoil, he decides, “All right, then, I’ll go to hell” (Twain 215). This is a significant point in his changing perception of what is “sivilized”, as he finally decides that the ideals he has been taught are truly not worth it.
In the book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain creates many central questions for his reader to consider. One of these questions is since Huck grew up less civilized than normal children, does this affect his morality? In the story Huck has an alcoholic, abusive father he tried escaping from. His childhood was not that same as most other children who had a full family and a single home. But, this didn’t affect his morality, it might have made him a better person.
Although Huck seems to morally and ethically mature throughout the two-thirds of the novel, for the most part, as he is isolated from society, his development cannot be confirmed as permanent. Huck spends most of his time exploring islands with Jim, crossing rivers on the raft, and visiting various towns with two conman. Overall, Huck does not have enough substantial interactions with society for a long time. As Huck is a teenager, his values are constantly changing and developing, and he is vulnerable to his surroundings. When Huck and Jim are in isolation at various islands, Huck is free from society’s influence.
Huck is looking for a father, and Jim is looking to join a family. The two complement each other well (4). Helping an escaped slave is a criminal offense during this period of time. It could be argued that Huck is not fully aware of the consequences of his actions, but as the reader sees time and time again, Huck is a very wise, very practical, very street-smart boy.
Huck decides to act on his morals rather than be held captive by society; Huck believes that he has to act in the best interest of Jim and does not consider what society believes is acceptable behavior. By stating that he will “go to hell,” Huck reiterates what he promises Jim in the beginning- that he rather be a “low down abolitionist”; these statements combined supports his feelings to protect Jim from society. When Huck and Tom get back to the house, Huck states, “...it don’t make no difference whether you do right or wrong, a person’s conscience ain’t got no
This transition is the result of the extended period of time that the two spend together, which allows Huck to look past the differences that he has been taught to observe for his entire life and view Jim for what he is; a fellow man. By the end of this passage, Huck’s resolve to do right by Jim is so strong that he is willing to suffer eternal damnation rather than betray Jim. Perhaps Huck’s most important statement in this passage is “Alright then, I’ll go to hell”; here he decides he’s willing to go to hell for eternity rather than causing Jim to return to his life as a slave. At first Huck just thought of Jim the property of another person, a good to be bought and sold regardless of any evidence that he was a human being. As they travel together, this viewpoint is gradually weakened by examples of Jim’s humanity, culminating in a model shift that goes against everything Huck has been taught about the societal status of a
At the beginning of his journey, Huck viewed the "right" thing as whatever was most beneficial to himself at the time, but by the end of the novel Huck's consideration of other's feelings shows how much he has grown. On their little raft on the Mississippi River, Huck and Jim are free from society's judgement and peer pressure, so Huck is able to independently develop his own morals and values. His views are greatly impacted by those around him and by his upbringing, but on the Mississippi he is able to decipher what he feels to be right and wrong. Throughout the book, Huck proves that he would rather do what his conscience is telling him, rather than what society is telling
The classic novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn written by Mark Twain, is filled with problems about religion, alcoholism, education, and most importantly what is morally right and wrong. All throughout this best selling novel, religion is a very strong theme because Huck is trying find what is ethically right and wrong and to get his moral compass facing the right direction. Not only that but he is also faced with the problem of being the son of the town drunk, and all his childhood he has been beat countless times and at one point pap even makes Huck give him the money he had acquired to go buy alcohol so he could get drunk. In hopes of helping Huck have a better childhood, the widow Douglas has adopted him and is trying to civilize
Although there are numerous instances where Huck’s moral growth can be seen, the individuals around such as Jim, will influence his moral growth greatly. Jim, a runaway slave, is the most influential individual when it comes to Huck’s moral development. During the beginning of the novel, Huck’s morals are primarily based on what he has learned from Miss Watson. Huck begins to become wary of such ideals that Miss Watson has imposed on him, and decided all he wanted “…was a change” (Twain 10).
Upon closer examination into Huck’s moral transformation, certain aspects of his life have lead him to new outlooks on life and society. These ideas created tension between a new found friendship with Jim and still following the commands of Southern ethics which Huck still holds on to. Even though these perspectives were instilled on him at birth, Huck makes an exception for Jim due to the value Huck has for him as a human but also as friend. Despite Huck’s inability to reject
Specifically, through the controversy of slavery at the time, Huck learns how to listen to his intuition and conscience. His slight hesitation escaping with Jim makes him question the authenticity of his morality. He says, “I begun to get it through my head that he was most free--and who was to blame for it? Why, me … But you knowed he was running for his freedom, and you could ‘a’ paddled ashore and told somebody”
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