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Religion In The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain

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Mark Twain's relationship with religion was complicated. Although he was raised a Puritan, his view of organized religion in books like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is negative. Mark Twain connected the story of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to the before and post-Civil War southern societal structures because he didn’t appreciate it. The injustice of slavery and the corruption of civilized society are two major themes in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In the story Huck, a character observes his community as a normal place, which frightens him because he is aware of how cruel people can be to one another. Mark Twain utilized Huckleberry Finn as the realist narrator in conflict with the local setting. Hence, the southern gents …show more content…

Grangerford in particular, represented a nobility. This family had several slaves, a well-appointed home, and a sizable library of intellectual books.
“Everybody was always good-mannered where he was. Everybody loved to have him around too; he was sunshine most always- I mean he made it seem like good weather. When he turned into a cloud-blank it was awful dark for a half. Minute, and that was enough; there wouldn’t nothing go wrong again for a week.” (Page 141)
It is ironic, of course, that the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons are fighting bloody battles. Even though no one is aware how the conflict began, several males from both lines of the family have passed away throughout the years. Ironically, the conflict has taken over the Grangerfords' lives to the point where they now bring guns to church. This shows Mark Twain’s conflict between Huck and regional setting because this narrative clearly made the point that having high intelligence and riches doesn't automatically correlate to having superior moral and spiritual character. Hence this gave Huck a different perspective even though he chose thoughts for himself other than just follows what the majority is …show more content…

This ain’t no bad thing that we’ve struck here—plenty grub and an easy life—come, give us your hand, duke, and let’s all be friend” (Twain, 166). Because of poor judgement and dishonesty, society is being deceived. Huck was struggling since he is unsure of how to handle this circumstance. Twain employs the con artists in a sarcastic manner to emphasize how low on morals and lacking in respect the aristocracy were as a person climbs the social ladder. Twain openly criticized people who justified violence with the social hierarchy. The backdrop and aspirations are based on England's historical idealism, which Twain portrays as

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In the beginning of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain proscribes his audience from finding a motive, moral, or plot. In using rhetorical strategies such as satire, irony, and humor he challenges the reader to look for deeper meanings not only in the Notice, but throughout the whole novel. His purpose was to shed light on the false ideals that society represents as seen through the eyes of young boy. The ironic events that prohibit Huck from being a dynamic character suggest the inadequacy of blind faith in society. Twain uses satire to show the conflict between slavery and Christianity.

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Likewise, critic Laurel Bollinger describes Huck as “…courageous enough to stand against the moral conventions of his society…rather than conform to the "sivilizing" process of communities he rejects” (Bollinger). During his epiphany, he truly sees all the flaws in a “sivilized” life and realizes he cannot live his life according to ideals he does not agree with. Consequently, Huck decides, “And for a starter, I would go to work and steal Jim out of slavery again…” (Twain 215). He resolves to ignore what society thinks, because society’s beliefs are fallacious.

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He directly states that any “[p]ersons attempting…” to discover a motive will chance prosecution, any “...persons attempting to find a moral...” risk banishment , and any individual striving to find a plot “...will be shot” (Twain “Notice”). Contrary to usual authors that urge editors to discover a moral, Twain creates extravagant punishments instead, which leads to the thought that his efforts sit as an attention diversion from his secret morals hidden inside. Not only do the categories of racism and societal ignorance shine through his attempt of masked morals, but also the taboo on murder. Robbers on a broken down steamboat consider killing another man; however, the two decide against the decision because “...it ain’t good morals” (Twain 52). Specifically stated within an argument, Twain presents his own personal views on murder, which entails the involvement of personal morals, proving that in fact, morals build the basis of the

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He does not offer any easy solutions or hope for change, which does not give society much room for growth. Twain’s portrayal of some of the characters in the novel are often bleak and unfavorable. He shows how people use religion and social conventions to justify their mistreatments of others. For example, when Huck and Jim

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Twain does his best to deal with the conflict between society and the individual. Huck does not want to abide by society’s laws and does not want to conform in Mark Twain’s, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Huck is forced to be civilized in the beginning, so he leaves society for freedom and lives by his own rules but even that does not make Huck’s life easy. Huck has trouble obeying society’s rules from the start of the book. The Widow Douglas takes Huck in to try to sivilize him says Huck in the quote, “The Widow Douglas she took me for her son, and allowed she would sivilize me”(Twain 2).

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This novel discusses many themes such as the paradox between the “natural” man and the “civilized society”, the evils that take place in slave culture, and the dignity of human beings. Within the novel, Twain makes usage of satire in religion, society, hypocrisy, and slavery to show the ironies pointed out in human nature. Throughout the course of Huckleberry Finn, Twain exemplifies mockery when he causes Huck to inquire as to why he should care greatly about religious figures. “...I was in a sweat to find out all about him; but by-and-by she let out that Moses had been dead… so then I didn’t care no more about him; because I don’t take no stock in dead people (2).”

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In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain uses satire to provide commentary on various aspects of life in the South. He aims to expose human weakness, by criticizing the flaws of society. His use of satire is quite effective, as he successfully ridicules society in the South. In so doing, the author incites the reader to consider his or her own society and devise a method to transform it. Hence, Twain fully illuminates superstition and its profound impact on the characters in the novel.

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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a classic novel that takes the reader on a series of thrilling adventures full of life threatening situations, racism, and slavery. The author Mark Twain, uses the novel to highlight the flaws in society by creating a character like Huck, whose personal sense of morals and justice are more noble than those of the very people trying to civilize him. Throughout this captivating novel Huck endures his fair share of trouble and morally challenging decision but he always comes out on top by following his heart and doing what he feels to be right.

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Ridiculous Religion Religion is something that is very common amongst people, it brings ideas and people together and creates life long friendships. Religion also creates lots of division between people. This division of people is what caught the attention of author Mark Twain in his book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Mark Twain satirizes religion through his characters throughout the book. The main character, Huck Fin, grows up in a very religious town, but as he grows up his perspective changes and starts to think of religion as something that narrows people’s thinking.

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Mark Twain emphasizes the theme that a person's morals are more powerful than the corrupt influence of society in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Based on how Huck Finn views the world and forms his opinions, he does not know the difference between right and wrong. In the novel, Huck escapes civilized society. He encounters a runaway slave, Jim, and together they travel hopes of freedom. But along the way, Huck and Jim come across troubles that have Huck questioning his motives.

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To begin, Twain targets Huckleberry Finn's innocence and uses it as a way to show that anyone being raised in a racist, pro-slavery America was conflicted between morals and laws. At first, Huck is a "rebel" in his own mind, so to say, and tries to avoid becoming "sivilized" from the Widow Douglas. He sticks to what he knows, and uses his experience with people and his own judgment to make decisions like an adult, something quite

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The king and the duke display the power of titles and sophistication in this time period, which translate to the American South. They earn respect because of their titles as a king and a duke. Although Huck recognizes that they are frauds, he chooses to accept it without conflict instead of challenging the culture. Twain shows us the consequences of Huck’s choice because the king and the duke create trouble and perform scams to get money. Huck narrates, “I never see anything so dis- gusting” (217), displaying his disapproval of the act that the men are putting on.

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In the novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the reader gauges morality through the misadventures of Huck and Jim. Notably, Huck morally matures as his perspective on society evolves into a spectrum of right and wrong. Though he is still a child, his growth yields the previous notions of immaturity and innocence. Likewise, Mark Twain emphasizes compelling matters and issues in society, such as religion, racism, and greed. During the span of Huck’s journey, he evolves morally and ethically through his critique of societal normalities.

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