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Theme Of Justice In Huck Finn

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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. Not everyone lives their life that way though. Huck is betrayed by societies faulty systems and poorly imposed laws early in the book. The very judicial system that was supposed to protect him instead hands him over to his drunk abusive father. The whole town knew what kind of man his father was, and knew that Huck would be better off under the guardianship of the widow, but the judge treated Huck like he was nothing more than his father 's property and said "courts mustn 't interfere and separate families if they could help it." That decision led to Huck living such a terrible life with his drunk …show more content…

Throughout the rest of Huck 's journey he continues to meet people along the way that believe themselves to be good civilized people but they all contradict that in some way. The Grangerford 's are in a murdering feud with another family, the Phelps own slaves and are trying to get a reward for Jim, the townspeople that feather and tar the Duke and King without a trial, the execution of Boggs, even the Widow tells Huck not to smoke but takes snuff herself. Huck spends a large amount of time in the book pondering over how to be good and do the right things, and at the end of the book when he decides to go West and leave it all behind he has finally realized that he 's not the one that 's bad, society is. Huck heads back out into the world not for more adventure, but to get away from

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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an American classic, it was the starting point for all great American Literature. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been awarded all of these honorable titles because of its abnormal and controversial plot line. During the time period when the book was written, it was unacceptable to view African- American’s as anything other than slaves. They were viewed as inferior to whites and were treated like property, they had no rights. The main character of the book, Huck, disagrees and disobeys these norms and pushes the boundaries of society when he becomes friends with a slave from his childhood; Jim.

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As the story goes on, Huck starts to grow up and decide things for himself. Sometimes what he decides contradicts what he has

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At the very end of the book Huck says, “Aunt Sally she’s going to adopt me and sivilize me and I can’t stand it. I been there before” (296).   Throughout the book, Huck constantly battles society and their

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979 Words | 4 Pages

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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Though they have different motives for leaving their pasts, both characters feel they need to leave the life they have settled into. For Huck, he needs to escape his abusive father and confinement of the cabin. He suffers through living with his father for a while, but Huck becomes so miserable he cannot stay any longer. He even adds that “it was dreadful lonesome,” saying “[he] made up [his] mind [that he] would fix up some way to leave there” (Twain 34). In this moment, Huck determines he will not live confined to some shack in the woods, stifled by his father’s rules.

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Throughout the novel, Huck scorned upon the idea of civilization. From the start, he already claimed his distaste towards Widow Douglas and Miss Watson ‘civilizing’ him. He obviously didn’t like the ‘civilized’ life, as he kept running off to have adventures with his best friend Tom Sawyer, and even escaping from civilization while travelling with Jim. During his journey down the Mississippi River, without the control of society, Huck began to develop his own sense of morals, struggling between his own moral standard and the ‘deformed conscience’ of society. In the end, his ‘strong heart’ broke through, and he decided to escape from the incorrect moral standards and confines of the society, and

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Huckleberry Finn is a significant character in Twain’s novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Typically anyone who reads this novel gains a sense of knowledge of what it was like to live in such times. In this book, Huck undergoes many types of occurrences ranging from manufacturing a gang with his friends to dressing up as a girl. Huck also is involved in more serious and controversial events that mentally force Huck to think like an adult. Readers get to experience Huck’s way of thinking throughout the whole book.

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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

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People often struggle to reconcile their consciences with societal expectations. Mark Twain follows this struggle in his fictional novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn through a bildungsroman of a young boy. Twain uses this innocent facade to hide a deeper criticism of society’s ideal of what is “sivilized” in order to rip away the mask of perfection and reveal humanity’s true flaws. As a child, Huckleberry Finn sees the constraints of society just like any other child his age: stifling and pointless.

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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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1752 Words | 8 Pages

Huck defies the societal hierarchy, beginning to see Jim as an equal. He not only apologizes to a black person, but he also tries to help thieves and potential murderers, showing that he is looking beyond social categories. After saving himself from the sinking boat where a group of criminals are trapped, “ [Huck] begun to worry about the men—I reckon I hadn’t had time to before. I begun

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1429 Words | 6 Pages

This is clear when he, “went on thinking.” Huck begins to reminisce about all the good times he had with Jim, and it is very apparent he held them very close to his heart. This is clear with Huck stating, “how good he always was,” when referring to Jim. Huck also begins to connect how important he may have been to Jim, when Huck says, “ he was so grateful, and said I was the best friend old Jim ever had in the world, and the only one he’s got now.” Huck now has a momentous decision, determining whether or not he will follow the morals he has viewed as good, or those he knows truly for himself.

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884 Words | 4 Pages

Throughout their journey, Huck is aware that Jim has escaped but does not know whether or not to turn him into the authorities. Huck’s mentality about society matures and he realizes his need to protect Jim from dangers. As the novel progresses, Huck begins to realize the flaws in society. Huck ultimately chooses to follow his own

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939 Words | 4 Pages

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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583 Words | 3 Pages

Huck would be characterized as a proponent of individuality rather than conformity. Furthermore, Huck did not apprehend slavery and its contribution to productivity. Slavery is so inhumane and blacks should have just as much rights as whites. Towards the end of the novel, Huck’s true innocence is shown when he helps Jim escape his confinement at the Phelps’ house. Innocence got the better of him since he was debating whether he should inform Ms. Watson about Jim’s dilemma or should he save him.

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