Category: Huckleberry Finn

Given the fact that proponents of left-wing agenda in this country have been jamming the notions of political-correctness down the throats of ordinary citizens for quite a while, it comes as no surprise that many Americans now have grown increasingly suspicious, towards the classics of American literature, as being innately racist. Mark Twain is one of such authors. Despite his friendly attitude towards Blacks, expressed in many of his books, Liberal censors now accuse him of patronising African-Americans, by revealing them in his novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, as simply agricultural workers, not overburdened with intellect, as opposed to todays Hollywood portrayal of Blacks as solemnly computer geniuses, FBI tough men and American Presidents. In their article Racism and Real Life: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in the Undergraduate Survey of American Literature, Annemarie Hamlin and Constance Joyner suggest that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should simply be banned nationwide, simply because in it, Black Americans are not being praised to the sky as intelligent and beautiful, as it is the case with todays many Hollywood movies: Mister Twain has authored a novel that perpetuates the inexplicable, insidious, and heinous sense of entitlement that dominates an entire society, manifested in the seemingly innate characteristics and dialogues of the fictional, racist, child, Huck Finn (Hamlin, Joyner. 2007). The self-appointed guardians of politically-correct morality, such as Hamlin and Joyner, also accuse Twains novel of being filled with racial slur  apparently, the word nigger is being used in it 48 times. In its turn, this makes Liberal whiners to think that the reading of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn may cause an emotional harm to representatives of racial minorities, even though that the word nigger is being used millions times by Black students in Canadian and American public schools, on daily basis, while referring to each other, without any visible harm being done to them, as a result.

Nevertheless, not too many people seem as being particularly eager to subscribe to Hamlin and Joyners point of view, simply because they cannot comprehend how it is possible to begin referring to one of American literatures masterpieces as racist piece of garbage, simply because Liberal White degenerates, with silver rings through their noses lips and genitals, want them to. The author of this paper is one of them. Apparently, in never occurred to self-appointed censors that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn cannot be thought of as being racist, in contemporary sense of this word, simply because at the time when Mark Twain was working on his book, the racial inferiority of Blacks could not become a subject of public discussion in principle, because of being self-evident. There can be no doubt as to the fact that Twain describes Jim as illiterate, overly prejudicious and highly unreliable individual, who likes to steal and who is absolutely incapable of relying on his own sense of rationale, while dealing with lifes challenges: Jim knowed all kinds of signs. He said he knowed most everything& Jim said you mustnt count the things you are going to cook for dinner, because that would bring bad luck. The same if you shook the table-cloth after sundown. And he said if a man owned a beehive and that man died, the bees must be told about it before sun-up next morning, or else the bees would all weaken down and quit work and die. Jim said bees wouldnt sting idiots, but I saw him being stung (Twain, Ch. VIII). However, Mark Twain did not know that in hundred years from his time, it will become a crime in America to even mention the fact that, during the course of IQ tests, Blacks score much lower, as compared to Whites. In his wildest dreams, Twain would never be able to imagine that, by the turn of 21^st century, White Americans were to degrade to the point of being afraid to step outside of their houses, after it gets dark, as they rightly consider the process of celebration of diversity, on the part of representatives of racial minorities, as such that pose danger to their lives, especially if such celebration takes place under the cover of darkness. Therefore, we can say that the application of Liberal political labels to someone, who lived way before these terms were coined up, cannot be thought of as appropriate. To say that Mark twain was a racist, is the same as saying that Albert Einstein was much smarter that Isaac Newton, for example. By the end of 19^th century, all European and American writers, philosophers, and scientists were racists, simply because they were not afraid of expressing their thoughts openly, as the concept of political correctness did not exist back then. After having set their foot on African continent, European explorers had found it being populated by primitive savages, who were never able to evolve beyond the Stone Age, and who were indulging in tribal warfare as their full time occupation. Therefore, it was only natural for Whites to think of Blacks as not being quite equal to themselves. This however, did not prevent Whites from growing increasingly sympathetic towards Blacks, as people who needed to be helped, in order to be able to get their act together. Mark Twain was one of such individuals. Even though that the thought of Black Americans being absolutely equal to Whites would never occur to him, he still thought that Blacks should be treated as human beings and not as soulless commodity. In fact, this idea represent a metaphysical foundation, upon which novels plot is based. Therefore, we can only agree with Mattlock Duczeminski, who in his article Adventures of Huck Finn is NOT Racist, suggests that Twains novel actually promotes tolerance: Those who condemn the novel as racist propaganda are missing the point completely; Huck has lived his whole life learning that Blacks are unequal and should not be considered human, but only through his escapades with Nigger Jim does he find himself battling what he has been brought up to believe (Duczeminski, 2007). If we blame Twain for being racist, we might as well blame the whole Western civilization for being racist in its essence (many hawks of political correctness do just that). And if we do it, in order for us to remain intellectually honest with ourselves, we should also stop utilizing technology, associated with this civilization. There is no need to use electricity (Edison was racist), we should ban plastics (Mendeleev and Dupont were racists), we should disband NASA (its founder Verner von Braun was not just a racist, but SS Sturmbanfuhrer), we should stop listening to classical music (as originating in European psyche, and therefore racist) etc. Why dont we just strip of our clothes, put on a grass skirts around our waists, make spears out of wooden sticks, and start performing a cannibal dance? This would prove ourselves as being non-racists once and for all. However, even the most ardent promoters of neo-Liberalism appear as being not quite ready to stick to their own ideological doctrines; therefore, they should stop making ridiculous claims that the classical works of American literature (like Twains The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn) must be banned from public libraries.

The issue of racism in todays America, can be compared to a skin rush  the more it is being scratched, the more it itches. But it is not the prospect of relieving this rush, which prompts lefties to continue scratching it, but the fact that they derive a pleasure out of the very process of scratching, as the only thing they know how to do. What actually attracts readers to this Twains novel, is the fact that it contain politically incorrect motifs. If it was not the case, then The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn would have been forgotten long time ago, as such that does not represent any literary value. We need to understand that, in order for the work of literature to stimulate readers brain cells; it must be controversial in its essence. In his article Huck, Twain, and the Freedmans Shackles: Struggling with Huckleberry Finn Today, Tuire Valkeakari is making a good point when he says: Twains narrative is itself shackled and diminished by its view of African Americans as Others. However, being a transitional text written by a former, desouthernized Southerner married to a liberal Northerner, the novel also clearly contains an effort, albeit a flawed and unfinished one, to transcend the limitations of post-Reconstruction racism and racialism (Valkeakari, p. 30). In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, author simply strived to describe the process of Huckleberry Finn broadening his intellectual horizons, as such that reflected Twains own intellectual transition. Author did not think of his novel other then something that was simply meant to entertain readers. There can be no doubt as to the fact that those who struggle with racism, as their full-time occupation, will find many racist motifs in Twains novel. However, before being granted a right to refer to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as trashy racist novel, they should have produced a literary masterpiece of at least the same value. Otherwise, they should be given a liberty to do with their opinions, in regards to Twains novel, just about anything, except for forcibly imposing them on everybody. Thus, we can say that the amount of racism, found in Twains The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, directly corresponds to literary critics ability to act as professionals  the less they are professionally adequate, the more racism they will be able to find in this novel.

Bibliography

Duczeminski, Mattlock Adventures of Huck Finn is NOT Racist. 2007. Associated Content. 2008. Web.

Hamlin, Annemarie and Joyner, Constance Racism and Real Life: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in the Undergraduate Survey of American Literature. 2007. Bnet Business Network. 2008. Web.

Mori, Kyle The Racism of Huckleberry Finn. 2007. Associated Content. 2008. Web.

Ray, David Mark Twain should be an African-American Hero. 1999. Bnet Business Network. 2008. Web.

Twain, Mark The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. 2006. The Project Gutenberg EBook. 2008. Web.

Titta, Rita Mark Twain and the Onset of the Imperialist Period. 1997. The Internationalist. 2008. Web.

Salwen, Peter Mark Twain, the New Yorker. 1985. Salwen Business Communications. 2008. Web.

Valkeakari, Tuire Huck, Twain, and the Freedmans Shackles: Struggling with Huckleberry Finn Today. Atlantis (Alicante, Spain), (28)2, 2006. p. 29-43.

TIn ordinary language it is common to use the words hero, main character or protagonist interchangeably, however in the language of dramatic theory, these terms are not identical; protagonists belong to a sub-set of main characters who undergo a change over the course of the novel. This change may be a literal change or a figurative change.

A usual form this change takes is the growth of a character from childhood to maturity or from mental immaturity to self-awareness. Three examples of such a change may be found in the novels Emma by Jane Austen (1775-1817), The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Samuel L. Clemens also known as Mark Twain (1835-1910) and My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok (1929-2002).

In Emma, the eponymous protagonist Emma Woodhouse is, in the beginning, an immature, irresponsible and meddling young woman who blossoms into a mature and socially acceptable woman over the course of the novel. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huckleberry, a wild and adventurous rascal comes to terms with civilization. In My Name is Asher Lev, Asher manages to attain a level of reconciliation between the demands of his artistic muse and the norms of his community.

There are three literary elements which are potently applied in all three novels in order to portray the growth of the protagonist within the course of the novel. These three literary elements are; the use of point of view, the conflicts facing the protagonist and the use of symbolism to depict changes in the protagonists character. This paper aims to discuss the chosen literary elements that provide an in-depth insight of the personalities by elaborating authors view about the growth of the protagonist in the course of the novel.

In terms of understanding protagonists Asher from the novel My name is Asher Lev, Huckleberry Finn from the novel Huckleberry Finn and Emma in the novel Emma, Asher Lev comes in front as the major character who has managed to bring better perception of the role of being a protagonist. Asher Lev has been projected as a character that was blessed with a community where one can live his life with serenity by practicing the ethical norms set by the community itself.

Growth of the protagonist has been shown from the fact that he comes into conflict with his values as bestowed in him by the community for the sake of his talent of painting. In the course of the novel, the author has projected the protagonist Asher to undergo turmoil as his parents did not want him to exhibit his paintings abroad because it rather reflected his anguish to the external world. The author has rather managed to provide a sympathetic concern with the protagonist that also motivates the reader (Potok, 2003).

Second in the examination of role of protagonists comes the character Emma projected by the author Jane Austen in the novel Emma. The protagonists has been projected as a complete stubborn and amazingly rich who tends to commit many wrong decision resulting a chaos in the length of authors narratives in the novel.

The growth of the protagonist Emma comes visible to the readers as maturing by getting known the feelings of love and regret of matchmaking couple the way she wanted. The author has rather projected the character to be a negatively stubborn person who wanted to have everything. The character gets to know her flaws when she starts to know that she is a failure (Austen, 1816).

Huckleberry Finn is a feral child, who has grown up without parental control, he has been taught lots of things by those bent on civilizing him, but he always ends up going against what he has been taught and doing what his heart tells him to do, despite being ridden with guilt at breaking the mores of society. In the end Huckleberry comes to reconcile with society, even while showing a glimpse of his former rebellious nature (Twain, 2007).

The literary element that differentiates the character Asher from the other chosen protagonists is the point of view. It has been observed that all three novels include narratives referring to point of view which is a literary element. For instance, in the case of Asher Lev, the narration or point of view helps us in understanding the growth of Asher from birth to mature age.

It is the narration that let us know that the protagonist discovered the talent of art within. We can understand the role of narration in shaping the perspective of readers regarding the growth of Asher by this quotation extracted from the novel stating, As a matter of fact, observant Jews did not paint at allin the way that I am painting.

So strong words are being written and spoken about me, myths are being generated (Potok, 2003, p. 3). The quotation completely states and helps us observe the growth in protagonist as he confirms that he has started to paint and thats the level of maturity. Moreover, the quotation also explains that people were using strong words against him that shows that in the course of the novel, the protagonist will have to go strong to face the hardships.

The quotation helps the readers to understand the role of narration or point of view in elaborating the authors view of protagonist. In a similar manner, in case of other two novels, the readers have also been persuaded by narrations or point of view to shape a perspective regarding the protagonist Emma and Huckleberry.

The role of narration in the novel Emma clearly projects the growth of Emma, the protagonist, throughout the novel. The type of narration observed in the novel Emma is objective narration that supplies the views of author for the growth of Emma. In the case of Emma novel, one can observe an omniscient narrator unlike My Name is Asher and Adventures of Huckleberry Fin.

The narration in the novel Emma describes Emma to be a handsome and extremely rich person which clearly changes it description style as follows, The real evils, indeed, of Emmas situation were the power of having rather too much her own way, and a disposition to think a little too well of herself (Austen, 1816, p. 76): As the quotations marks the maturation of character through omniscient perspectives. The quotation thus allows readers to shape perspective regarding the growth of the protagonist.

In the case of third novel, the adventures of Huckleberry Fin, we come to know that the role of point of view of narration is entirely significant as in this manner the perspectives of author come across easily but it is somewhere dependent upon the plot. It has been observed in the third novel representing protagonist, Huckleberry Fin, that the narration is visible in case of colloquial stating the protagonist to remain the same as in personality.

The only thing that changes around him is his environment influenced by incidents and adventures. For example, The Widow Douglas she took me for her son, and allowed she would sivilize me; but it was rough living in the house all the time, considering how dismal regular and decent the widow was in all her way (Twain, 2007, p. 32).

The quote states that protagonist for sure lived a terrible phase in his life but that could not change him or grow him in another personality. Thus it could be stated that the comparative pointer between the narratives with respect to the protagonist are quite precedent as it differs greatly. It shows that the literary element of point of view for sure shapes reader perspective regarding growth of the protagonist.

The second literary element that has greatly observed to serve as a perspective shaper for the readers of Emma, My Name is Asher Lev and Adventures of Huckleberry Fin is conflict. The second literary element is conflict that is visible in all three novels. For instance, in the case of My Name is Asher Lev, we can observe that the conflict is between the protagonist and his community.

The conflict between the protagonist and the community helps the readers to understand the source of growth in the protagonist life in the novel. The following quotation helps us in understanding that the conflict rather worked as a catalyst in the growth of the protagonist.

It goes as, Away from my world, alone in an apartment that offered me neither memories nor roots, I began to find old and distant memories of my own, long buried by pain and time and slowly brought to the surface no (Potok, 2003, p. 113). The quotations shows us that the conflict between the community and protagonist gave way to the insight of protagonist and that he moved ahead to decide one thing from the options community and his passion.

The literary element of conflict also has a high significance in the novel Emma as the protagonist goes through troubles because of her self being. The concept of self being refers to the conflict that an individual probably have from himself. The protagonist grows in the course of the novel as coming to know the fact that self centeredness rather became a trouble. The following quote helps us understanding the role of literary element of conflict in the growth of Emma.

It follows as The first error, and the worst, lay at her door. It was foolish, it was wrong; to take so active a part in bringing any two people together (Austen, 1816, p. 116). In this way, through the help of the above quotation, it could be understood that the protagonist turned towards a turning point to gain understanding with the right path. The conflict of individuality becomes visible in the novel with the help of conflict. The literary element conflict has not been made prominent in the case of Huckleberry.

The young boy Huckleberry does not have any of the conflict but the environment in which he grows in the course of the novel has rather conflicting instances. For instances, the environment set by the author around protagonist is conflicting to what we call a normal living. For example,  hadnt had a bite to eat since yesterday, so Jim he got out some corn-dodgers and buttermilk, and pork and cabbage and greensthere isnt nothing in the world so good when its cooked right (Twain, 2007, p. 234) .

Thus, with the help of the above quotation, it comes to our understanding that the growth of the protagonist Huckleberry is elaborated in terms of the conflicting environment he lives. Therefore, it could be said that the literary element of conflict is present in all three of the protagonists life but the intensity has been observed to be less in the case of protagonist Huckleberry.

The third literary element is symbolism which is quite evident in all the three novels. It can be stated that in the novel, Adventures of Huckleberry Fin, has a strong support of symbolism which helps the readers in experiencing the growth of the protagonist Huckleberry. The symbolism in the novel Adventures of Huckleberry is the river of Mississippi.

The symbolism, the river of Mississippi, states the escape of the protagonist from all the mishap where he stays for longer hours on his rafts. The growth in the protagonist is visible as he has found out the way to cherish his life out of incidents that have rather shattered him.

The following quote states the reason why the protagonist will go to Mississippi river to escape. Its lovely to live on a raft. We had the sky up there, all speckled with stars, and we used to lie on our backs and look up at them, and discuss about whether they was made or only just happened (Twain, 2007, p.67).

From the quotation it comes visible to us that the protagonist does not really want to live a life full of negative incidents and he has rather grown to take his life where he wants to go. In this way, the readers experience the growth in the protagonist Huckleberry.

The literary element of symbolism plays a very major role in the elaboration of growth of protagonist Asher. The symbol used in the novel is ear-lock that shows the concern of religious closeness of Asher. In the course of the novel, Asher cuts his ear-lock that shows us the maturation of the protagonist.

The maturation of the protagonist is visible through the symbol ear lock because it was a symbol to show his belief in the rituals and value as his father had it and so he had that sort of hair style. The protagonist has been observed to cut his ear lock because he could not keep his religion and passion for art along as both of them were conflicting to each other. It was the religious belief that one should keep bonds strong and keep intensions within.

This idea comes visible from the following quotation. As a matter of fact, observant Jews did not paint at allin the way that I am painting. So strongwords are being written and spoken about me, myths are being generated: I am atraitor, an apostate, a self-hater, an inflicter of shame upon my family, myfriends, my people (Potok, 2003 p.87).The protagonist cuts his ear lock which is action and a symbol indicating the growth of the protagonist in the eyes of readers and is a mere elaboration.

According to the protagonist, it was not the logic to keep the same haircut as his father did. In the case of third protagonist Emma, the symbolism is the word game that many characters in the chapter 41 play. The symbol of playing the word game actually illustrates misunderstandings among characters that rather work a source of growth of Emma in knowing something he never knew and changes his mind set to look at the things.

In this way the readers come to know the growing phase in Emma. The quotation adds a meaning to the statement of symbolism as, Seldom, very seldom does complete truth belong to any human disclosure; seldom can it happen that something is not a little disguised, or a little mistaken; but where, as in this case, though the conduct is mistaken, the feelings are not, it may not be very material (Austen, 1816, p. 132). This means that the literary element of symbolism for sure plays a major role in all three selected novels.

Conclusion

From the above analysis, it could be stated that the role of protagonist is very important to bring transition to the plot of the story and that the protagonist itself grows throughout the novel with the help of literary elements. The literary elements such as point of view (narratives), conflict and symbolism contrastingly and comparatively in the three protagonists namely, Emma, Asher and Huckleberry helps the reader to understand the growth of the protagonist in the course of the novel.

We have observed in the above analysis, that in particular, the element of narratives clearly reflects the idea of author and the second person. Narratives allowed us to understand feelings and attributes of protagonist from a different angle. Following the same manner, the second literary element of conflict also helps us in creating a perspective. It has been observed that the element of conflict takes place in all three stories Emma, My Name is Asher Lev and

The adventures of Huckleberry. The conflict has been observed in the stories differently from respective antagonists present in the novel. Thirdly, we have also noticed that the element of symbolism has also played a major role in elaborating us a different angle for setting our perspective. It has been studied that raft for Huckleberry, ear lock for Asher and word game assures maturation instances in the characters.

References

Austen, J. (1816). Emma. New York: Printed for John Murray.

Potok, C. (2003). My Name Is Asher Lev. New York: Anchor Books.

Twain, M. (2007). Huckleberry Finn. London: Evans Brothers.

Introduction

In his book Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain portrays the way society instills morals to its people in a satirical manner. These morals are indented and therefore the author uses the book to highlight the evils that are in the society. Huck, the key character in the book, brings the collision of a sound heart and a deformed conscience, a conflict well illustrated through the theme of racism, civilized society, and slavery among others.

The conflict between character and conscience

A character-conscience conflict stands out well in Twains masterwork. Huck rejects the morals of society because he does not understand why society cannot come to his rescue by protecting him from his cruel father who is good for nothing drunkard. The circumstances that bewilder Huck force him to stay with a widow, a thing that he does not like, though he stays there anyway. He is in continuous conflict with himself.

Furthermore, the author illustrates Hucks beliefs towards religion and Christianity in a satirical way. In a conversation, he responds by saying that he would like to be in hell to have a change (Twain 27). He, therefore, misunderstands the concepts of religions although his motives are not bad. He follows his ways as opposed to those of the society, indicating the level of his character-conscience conflict.

The author also presents Huck as a clever and a person who does not like harming or offending his colleagues. He never associates with liars and fraud people and therefore avoids them to have his peace (Twain 32). However, on realizing the risk that Jim is in, he makes up his decision and allows him in, to ensure that nothing bad happens to him. Tom Sawyer serves as the epitome of illustrating these conflicts.

The idea of sound heart-conscience conflicts stands out well, like Tom Sawyer, the most notable character reveals. The student is involved in several issues, the first incidence being where he whitewashes the fence as a punishment from his mother. He intentionally tricks his colleagues to assist him in the job. He knows the trick whereas the colleagues think that they are doing the job for fun. The boys do the job with a kind heart arousing Sawyers conflicts with himself for hiding the truth from his colleagues. Furthermore, the turn of events in Sawyers love with Becky illustrates a character-conscience conflict.

The two parties fall in love entering into courtship, a relationship that breaks as soon as Sawyer abuses his lover (Twain 45). Despite the break, Sawyer fights with his conscience, as he knows well that he ought to marry, a case that forces him to reconcile with Becky thereby continuing with their love affairs. Also, instances of conflicts stand out where Sawyer and Finn see bad Joe murder doctor Robinson while visiting the graveyard.

Upon the discovery of the murder, Joe blames Muff for the killing, a scenario too heavy for Sawyer to bear. Following his piling inner fights, he and his friend Huck decide to escape becoming pirates. His mothers conscience tells her that they are already dead and therefore prepares for their funeral.

Conclusion

However, Sawyer and his colleague show up, and following a serious character-conscience conflict on whether to reveal or conceal the murder, Sawyer gradually gains the courage to testify on the murder against Joe. Twain therefore successfully shows how a sound heart collides with a deformed conscience, a situation that forces people like Sawyer to speak their minds thereby doing as per their hearts demand.

Works cited

Twain, Mark. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.

There are a great number of different pieces of literature, which became to be the works representing significant value to the world of literature, literary critics and people fond of the enormous world created by the works of literature of different styles and periods.

But I am going to introduce my work representing critical analysis of the greatest novels and their main characters from the point of view of similarities and diversities of the journeys each protagonist makes toward self-awareness. Thus the novels are Huckleberry Finn written by Mark Twain, Emma written by peerless Jane Austen, and My Name is Asher Lev written by Chaim Potok.

The novels represent different kinds of main characters: a very talented artist, Asher Lev, who tries to find his way in life to develop his talent; a young boy, Huckleberry Finn, who is searching for some better conditions of life and tries to introduce better conditions for slaves; and a young woman, Emma Woodhouse, an inhabitant of a small village who has never seen the sea, this girl lives with her father.

The novels describe the roles of the three protagonists and their journeys towards achieving certain results. All three novels are aimed at provoking thoughts and affecting the readers perception of the protagonists growth.

There are some differences in the novels as the plot is intricate, whereas My Name is Asher Lev written by Chaim Potok is full of different flashbacks and forwards; the tone of book is extremely thoughtful. The action takes place in New York and the flashbacks are concerning Italy dating 1960s to-1970s.

The protagonist is a very gifted teenage artist and the representative of Jewish community; he is a very religious person who prays three times a day. The only one who does not support Asher is his father, here we can see a generation and cultural gap; as two generations of one family cannot find a certain compromise and reach an agreement. The father of the main character is a diplomat in his mid-40s; he possesses conservative views and accepts his sons talented works only as hobby.

The novel Emma written by Jane Austin is represented from a very interesting perspective, thus there appears expression of the perpetual chain of events when the main character of the novel tries to unite her friend by the bonds of affection and even a nuptial knot. The novel Huckleberry Finn is narrated in the first person and the speaker is the main character who tells the readers about his life and adventures.

The next point I am going to analyze is the relationship of the main characters of the novels under discussion with members of their families. Thus Emma Woodhouse from the novel Emma by Jane Austin is the only child of the family; she lives with her father in the huge estate, she does not have mother as she died many years earlier.

The girl is very energetic, a good friend and companion. The father of the protagonist is rich and he wants his daughter to live in happiness and wealth. So, he decides to marry her off to achieve his goals. Emma is a self-willed young lady; she refuses to get married and instead starts arranging relations with her friends.

Huckleberry Finn is a young boy, whose desire for adventures can be compared only with the human desire to live. He is very energetic and quick-witted, but he lacks some persistence to achieve his goals. Huck lived with his father only, he does not mention his mother, then a kind widow took him to care of him. She tried to make him obtain education and basic knowledge of religious aspects.

One day Hucks father appeared again; they lived an ordinary life until his father started to beat Huckleberry. The poor boy escaped and had to take care of himself on his own. He would rather escape and live on the raft with his slave-friend Jim.

The main character of the novel My Name is Asher Lev has complicated relations with the members of his family, as his father does not support him in his hobby and pays little attention to the boys talent. Thus all the three protagonists of the novels under consideration have problems in relations with their families. As their families are not full it is even more complicated to interact with members of their families.

Thus the conclusion is concerned with the comparison and contrast of the famous novels of well-known writers: Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Emma Jane Austen, and My Name is Asher Lev written by Chaim Potok. The literary works are different from the point of view of presentation of basic aspects and concerns, but at the same time there appear a great number of ideas common for the three novels. The aspects in common are the complicated relationships between the protagonists and their families; the main characters of the two novels are males and the narration is represented from the first person.

The protagonists are different but similar at the same time: they have different goals but they are very energetic and persistent from the point of view of achieving those goals. Thus Emma in her burning desire to be happy tends to affect her friends feelings; Huck is craving for adventures and starts the journey to protect his friend Jim from slavery; Asher is an extremely gifted artist, whose talent is rejected by his father.

Works Cited

Austin, Jane. (2001). Emma. New York: Random House, Inc.

Potok, Chaim. (1983). My Name is Asher Lev. New York: Fawcett Crest.

Twain, Mark. (2008). The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. New York: Penguin Books.

Introduction

In the novel The Adventures of Huck Finn, the writer portrayed the theme of racism and slavery in South America during the end of civil war. As he was writing this novel, race matters which had appeared to be an optimistic course during the period subsequent to the civil war, once more became stressed. In this case, he purposely brought to concentration human beings frequent hidden inadequacies. On the other hand, the main themes in the film Catch me if you can are of broken homes, troubles one goes through during childhood and money fraud (Twain 15-350).

Main body

It can be argued from the film catch me if you can that; street smarts sometimes outweighs book smarts as Frank could forge educational degrees, proficient attachment, occupation histories, checks as well as his name despite the fact that he had no relevant schooling. From this it is clear that, he was street smart to forge school and professional testimonials to prove to people that he was a pilot, physician or a collage professor. This indicates that even though one is not much learned, he can use his inborn smartness to be successful in life (Redding & Abagnale 50-200).

On the other hand in the novel, the writer portrays Huck as someone who was very intelligent despite his young age. In this case, Huck makes mature decisions which very few people of thirteen years of age could. For instance he contrasted the ideas of the society and jeopardized himself going to hell for his intimate relationship with Jim. Based on this, Hucks street smartness is influenced by the society and his relationship with Jim. In this novel, street smarts outweighs book smarts; as we can see Huck was an outcast who never went to school but his reasoning was more than anyone elses in the book. In general, both Huck in the novel and Frank in the film used their reasoning and not education to be successful in life and to evade being caught. From the two incidents it can be seen that, street smarts outweighs book smarts in both the novel and the film as evident by the acts of Huck and Frank respectively. In the film it is well indicated that, Frank was well skilled in checking forgery to the extent that the FBI police after arresting him could use him to help in the arrest of other forgers (Twain 15-350).

From the film it can be seen that, there were instances of childhood troubles and marriage breakages within the family especially when Frank realized that his mother was having extra-marital relationships with his fathers pal. Ultimately, the family was forced to break and Frank disappeared from the home using forged cheques; which he had been given by his father. After a while, the money Frank had; got finished and from there he started forging cheques and educational testimonials. On the other hand Huck was an outcast and poor thirteen years old child. Since he went against the societys views, he risked going to hell by releasing and following Jim. It can be argued that, Hucks father was a drunkard, poor and abusive which made Huck to be taken by Widow Douglas; to her home where she tried to educate him. Eventually, Huck ran and coupled with a band of burglars who performed ridicule fights. It can be seen from the novel that, there were family conflicts especially when Douglas wanted to adopt Huck. From both the novel and the film, there are instances of child ran-away from home because of conflicts in the family (Redding & Abagnale 50-200).

From the two works it can be stated that, there was differences in the family backgrounds. In this case, Frank was born in a well-up family while Huck was born in a poor familial background. On the other hand, the novel The Adventures of Huck Finn portrays the theme of racism which is indicated as characters features; on the varying society and alternatives involving what were correct to an individual or society. Based on this, Huck is faced with incidents where racism thrives in the society especially when he was taken by Widow Douglas, and when he befriended Jim. According to the societys view, Huck was supposed to treat Jim as a slave because he was black; despite what the society and religion stated, Huck made a decision to free Jim after observing that Jim was caring for him. In the novel, Huck said that, I would see him standing my watch on his instead of calling me; which would result to my continuing sleeping&. (Twain 215). Further, incidences of racism are evident in chapter six where drank Pap condemned the administration for permitting blacks to cast their votes. This can be seen from where he uttered, There was a free nigger there, asking, Why couldnt he be sold (Twain 27). On the other hand, in the film Catch me if you can; racism is not clearly portrayed but the theme which is clearly portrayed is that of hiding individuality, theft and money fraud. From the film it is clear that Franks father was a cheque forger and later; after Frank ran away from home he learned about forgery and became an expert in it (Twain 15-350).

Conclusion

In conclusion, it can be said that there are a lot of similarities between the novel The Adventures of Huck Finn and the film Catch Me if you can. From the above discussion, it can be said that street smarts outweighed book smarts among the two works.

Works cited

Redding, Stan & Abagnale, Frank. Catch Me if You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake, Later Printing Edition. New York: Broadway Publishers. (2000): P, 50-200.

Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. London: Penguin Classics Publishers. (1986): P. 15-350.

Saint Petersburg is introduced as a comfortable patron town in the ‘Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’, but ironically the main characters of the text reveal the obvious social ills it satirizes. A young boy and an escaped slave, Huck, and Jim have many adventures in the book. Twain uses both these characters to satirize different religious views, stereotypes among white people, and other superstitions that make the audience aware of the social ills which ultimately reveals a theme.

The first victim of Twain’s satire is religion. Commonly he mocks certain situations to highlight the religious beliefs practices at the time. The fight between Shepardsons and Grangerfords is an important part of the text because of the way Twain satirizes religion by describing a day “we all went to church about three miles, everyone a-horseback. The men took their gun and kept them between their knees or stood them handy against the wall” (Twain 109). This fight seems pointless for Twain as it’s been going on for so long that both the Shepardsons and Grangerford don’t recall the purpose of their fight. The men of the families are at each other’s throat right after prayer at church, meaning they want to look good in front of their society. They use church and religion as a front for their reputation instead of actual religious purposes. Like when Huck says, “Then Miss Watson took me in the closet and prayed, but nothing comes of it. She told me to pray every day, and whatever I asked for I would get it.” (Twain 10) Huck realizes that praying and asking God for advice has no purpose and is merely for a reputation.

Secondly, Twain tackles society by satirizing the stereotypes of black people set by white society. Finn was raised to believe slavery was just a normal part of society and couldn’t have any feelings about the way slaves were treated. Huck treats Jim as a different person knowing that he is a slave, for example, “we were ready to shove off we was a quarter of a mile below the island, and it was pretty broad day; so I made Jim lay down in the canoe and cover up with a quilt because if he set up people could tell he was a nigger a good ways off” (Twain 51). Huck improperly concludes that one can see a black person from a distance. Huck believes African Americans are not the same as white people for the majority of the book. He also believes black people aren’t as smart as white people describing Jim as “he had an uncommon head level head for a nigger” (Twain 76). And jest before saying that Huck assumes Jim “judged it was all up with him anyway it could be fixed; for if he didn’t t get saved he would get drowned; and if he did get saved, whoever saved him would send him back home so as to get the reward, and then Miss Watson would sell him South, sure” (Twain 75). Judging a black person’s intellect was another common stereotype at the time. To satirize allegations against Jim, twain uses his character to prove that black people are just as smart. And by the end of the book, Jim was more respected as a person. Twain’s satire is also predominantly present for the rumors of Huckleberry’s death. The people think Huck killed himself “most everybody thought it at first. He’ll never know how nigh he comes to getting lynched. But before night they changed around and judged it was done by a runaway nigger named Jim” (Twain 56). Here Jim was suspected of the alleged murder of Finn, but his father was originally convicted of murder. It made sense to suspect his father since he actually had a motive. Since pap wanted his inheritance he would have a proper motive, then Jim who coincidently left town the same day. With this example, twain emphasizes that the light-skinned people would blame a black person rather one of their own. His satire in this scene focuses on the irony that society can simply blame their slaves rather than actually knowing if he is dead or not.

Finally, superstition within the novel is another example of Twain’s use of satire in the book. Most of the superstition is seen through jin from the point he met Huck on the Island. Huck first ridiculed Jim for everything he says, but Jim’s adept intelligence of nature helps him the most at the end. Tom fools Jim to believe in one of his superstitions when “Tom plays a trick on Jim as he sleeps, hanging his hat above him on a tree. In an attempt to explain what happens to his hat, Jim said the witches bewitched him and put him in a trance, and rode him all over the State, and then set him under the trees again, and hung his hat on a limb to show who done it” (Twain 6). Here Twain suggest that most of Jims superstitions are built out of his facinati9on for an explanation for everything. “And he said that handling a snake-skin was such awful bad luck that maybe we hadn’t got to the end of it yet. He said he druther see the new moon over his left shoulder as much as a thousand times than take up a snake-skin in his hand.” (Twain 53), Jim explains to huck that all the bad luck they have been constantly experiencing is because of the dead skin they have been carrying around. Once again Jin superstitious view about “Some young birds come along, flying a yard or two at a time and lighting. Jim said it was a sign that it was going to rain.” (Twain 45) is another example of his ridiculous superstitious views. At the time, superstitions were commonly used to predict weather and other outcomes of events. Twain suggest there is a lot to mock of the past and a lot of his satire is directed to that.

Twain mocks the old society at that time for their stereotypes, superstitions, and religious perspectives. His satire was directed for the time the book was published. With his intentions of publishing his book he also wanted people to realize the main message of the story. The theme of ‘The adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ is the struggling conflict between natural life and civilization. Even when Huck runs away from everything and lives in the wilderness he constantly refers to the constraints of the society he lives in like superstitions and how to treat colored people. So, twain satirizes these aspects that make people conflicted to hopefully allow people to analyze their own society. This book may have been published in the past, but it is also relevant to today’s society.

The Adventures of the Huckleberry Finn, narrated the fascinating story of Huck, an uncivilized and naïve boy who learns to grow and mature throughout his long and eventful journey on a raft to free Jim, a runaway slave. His journey proves to be more than a thrilling adventure to free Jim from slavery, it also serves as an unforgettable learning experience allowing Huck to grow and mature as an individual. Before the journey, Huck was an immature boy in an indecisive match with morality, unable to decide if he should follow his own path or society’s path. Throughout his journey, Huck combats face to face obstacles allowing him to discover his own path and his moral beliefs, away from society’s influences. These obstacles influenced his sense of morality and guided his moral development, shaping him into the mature and developed young man he became at the end of the novel.

Huck learned plenty of life lessons from his adventures on the river that added to the development of his character. First of all, Huck learned to make life-defining decisions that determined his fate. The hard decisions he made include turning in Jim or not or if he should help the girls by stealing the money from the duke and king. All of these encounters helped him discover his principles and develop his own moral code. As Huck explains,”I says to myself, this is another one that I’m letting him rob her of her money. And when she got through they all jest laid theirselves out to make me feel at home and know I was amongst friends. I felt so ornery and low down and mean that I says to myself, my mind’s made up; I’ll hive that money for them or bust.”(Twain178). Huck had to decide if he should let the duke and king rob the girls or if he should stop them. However, the girls’ kindness and love towards him made him decide to steal the money from the duke and king and rightfully return their money. Therefore, the decision he made in this situation contributed to the growth of his character due to the fact that he returned the stolen money. Huck had to right the wrong that had been done to them and by doing this Huck realized that stealing from people was a sin allowing him to make stealing part of his immoral code.

Another life lesson was that Huck learned that he should not go too far with his jokes because of the harm he might cause. This life lesson made him grow as an individual because it made him realize that the jokes he makes can be harmful rather than funny. When Huck realized that not everything is fun and games, he moved from this stage of acting foolish and childish to acting maturely. “Well, by night I forgot all about the snake, and when Jim flung himself down on the blanket while I struck a light the snake’s mate was there, and bit him.” (Twain 55) Huck puts a dead snake into Jim’s blanket. Tragically, he forgot the snake and whenever there is a dead snake its mate comes and curls around it so the snake bit Jim. Huck also learned the value of friendship which is the most important life lesson he got from the journey. Huck doesn’t view Jim as a slave like everyone else, but instead, in his eyes, Jim is his friend. Huck grows to love and care about Jim because he constantly stands by his side through the whole journey. “Jim was gone! I set up a shout—and then another—and then another one; and run this way and that in the woods, whooping and screeching; but it warn’t no use—old Jim was gone. Then I set down and cried; couldn’t help it. But I couldn’t set still long. Pretty soon I went out on the road, trying to think what I better do” (Twain 214). When Huck ran away from the duke and king, he ran to the raft but didn’t find his friend jim. He stood crying and he refused to leave, instead he went to look for him. Huck learned to love which is something he didn’t get from his abusive father. Although Jim was a slave, Huck learned to love him despite society’s views on African-Americans as slaves and foolish people. Huck was able to create his own path away from society’s principles as his friendship with Jim developed.

As the journey continues, Huck learns more and more lessons that built his character More. He learned how to value the magnificence and intensity of nature. “now you’d hear the thunder let go with an awful crash, and then go rumbling, grumbling, tumbling, down the sky towards the under side of the world, like rolling empty barrels down stairs— where it’s long stairs and they bounce a good deal, you know. “Jim, this is nice,” I says. “I wouldn’t want to be nowhere else but here.” (Twain51) In Jackson’s island, Huck spends time in nature for the first time and he realized how much he enjoys looking at nature and how beautiful it is. This specific scene shows his growth as an individual as he becomes more appreciative and grateful for the things around him. Last but not least, Huck learned to follow his heart instead of his conscience. “Is your man white or black?” I didn’t answer up prompt. I tried to, but the words wouldn’t come. I tried for a second or two to brace up and out with it, but I warn’t man enough—hadn’t the spunk of a rabbit. I see I was weakening; so I just give up trying, and up and says: “He’s white”(Twain93).Huck’s conscience told him that turning in Jim was the correct thing to do, but Huck‘s heart said otherwise. Huck did not turn Jim in and this choice he made, added to his character’s development. Instead of following what he was taught, he followed what he and his heart believed was correct.

Through his numerous encounters on the river, Huck was able to grow out of the immature habits of a thirteen year old boy to a mature young adult. Although he faced struggles throughout his journey, they proved to be educational learning experiences. Huck morally developed during this journey because he was able to create his own set of beliefs and guidelines. Huck matured and learned various life lessons and principles. In conclusion, the ride along the Mississippi was a successful journey and a learning experience shaping Huck into a mature individual.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain was published in the United States in 1885. Since then many people have argued whether or not it is an American classic. Most American classics have amazing history lessons and memorable story lines that follow them through the test of time. Unfortunately in the past there has been a lot of controversial classics but each has its own supportive reasoning on why they continue to be talked about. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is and always will be an American classic for its relatable characters and great educational points.

Huck Finn as a character is someone that doesn’t want to conform to society or necessarily follow the rules. But he does mean well and want to do what he thinks is best. Throughout the years society always wants to change and pressure the youth. As kids sometimes we are told what church to go to or what groups to hang out with. But Huck didn’t want that to define him. He was rebellious and full of adventure like most kids at that age. “That is just the way with some people. They get down on a thing when they don’t know nothing about it.” (Twain)

Even though Huck dealt with a lot, one thing he was always around as a youth was racism. To this day there is still race issues and some authors are hesitant to write about it. Mark Twain shows that a classic can have some rough parts to them but in the end it is all a history lesson and can teach us a lot. Some people don’t agree that certain wording in the book should be allowed but the point of how Twain wrote this book was for the reader to be able to close their eyes and relate to the scene and understand what the characters are going through. Another way that Twain doesn’t really sugarcoat things is how raw Huck and many others are treated in the story.

Some say this book by Mark Twain is a must read and a book that can be read over and over again. That is one staple to why it should be taught in education. No matter what is going on in the world the book can relate to the changes. Weither you are white, black, young, old, or never even heard of Huckleberry you can read this book and end with a smile. Huck has that aroma about him. He does some questionable things throughout the story but he will always want whats best and will be willing to help other in need. That is a lesson the world needs to hear about.

Oscar Wilde once said “If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.” Since being published many years ago Mark Twain has grown throughout history. His stories and lessons have been past from generation to generation. These stories will never get old because of how much they have impacted American literature. It truly is one of the most classical pieces of American literate to this day and it will continue to be taught on through time.

Work Cited Page

1. Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. New York: Penguin, 1986. Print.
2. ‘Oscar Wilde Quotes.’ BrainyQuote.com. BrainyMedia Inc, 2019. 1 February 2019. https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/oscar_wilde_137990

Banning books comes from the understanding that it will protect student’s minds from literature that is deemed to be a concern in libraries. Many books are banned because they have racial reasons, violence, or an opposing view of the person trying to ban the book. You will see most books being banned in high school libraries because of the need for adults to censor and protect student’s minds. When a student goes into their high school library they should have the opportunity to go in and be able to pick and choose whatever book they want to read. High school is when students begin to think for themselves, so others should not be the one to withhold books from them because they believe it will not benefit them. Some of the books are even banned or challenged in a student’s curriculum. Books that have been part of high school curriculum for years are now being removed because of the things that are discussed in them. There are several cases where a book will be banned because of a sentence or word in the book. However, the books that are banned for that reason are award-winning books and have a deeper message in them. One of those books is the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Huckleberry Finn does not deserve its place on the Banned Booklist, in the book the use of the N-word is justified

Huckleberry Finn is an amazing piece of literature written by a writer named Mark Twain. This story is considered a classic and sells almost 200,000 copies each year. The story is told through a young kid named Huck’s life. Huck turns away from his father Pap house after getting abused. Huck sets sail on a canoe to Jackson’s Island where he finds Jim, a slave. Throughout the rest of the story you see Jim and Huck become close friends as they face difficult tasks, they lose each other multiple times but they always end up finding each other. Even when Jim is found by people that want to put him back in slavery, Huck is there to protect him. As you are probably wondering why this classic of a book would be banned, it is banned for the simple fact that the N-word is said multiple times throughout the entire story. However, if you remember the time period that this book was written in, the language goes with it. That type of language was unfortunately common in this divided time period. This book is fiction, however, the events that happen in the time period are not so Twain wants the reader to understand how things were back then. The book should not be banned from the library because even though the subject of the book is difficult to read it is important that we remember the time period it was written in. If books are banned to try to shield students’ minds from difficult topics, how do you expect them to do well when they leave high school? Reading books with difficult topics prepare students to think for themselves and understand the world that they are about to be released into. Even though people want Huckleberry Finn to be banned, it is an interesting piece of literature to read. The theme behind the story is well put together, it should stay in libraries.

One place that Huckleberry Finn was challenged is Duluth, Minnesota. Schools in Duluth will not read the book in English class, however, the books are still accessible in the school’s library (Louwagie). In Wynnewood, Pennsylvania a Montgomery County School has also dismissed the book from being taught. In both school districts, Huckleberry Finn was taken out of the classroom setting because it made students uneasy while reading it (McDaniel). All the time schools have to make tough decisions that will benefit the school and students as a whole. They also have to deal with parents, so when a book is challenged or banned a lot of people will be affected. Which is why a decision like this should not be taken lightly. When the school has to make a decision they have two choices. They have the choice of choosing to remove the book or keeping it despite the complaints. These choices come with consequences no matter what choice they pick. If they choose to keep the book in the library the people who want it gone will be angered. They will probably try to fight against the book, even though most people who fight have not fully read the book. Now if the book is removed the people who challenged the book will be pleased. But what about the students who choose to read the book? When a decision is made we must trust that the student’s education is the main priority. Huckleberry Finn has been around for a while and if this book did more harm than good, it would have been removed a long time ago. Reading this book will not do any harm to the student, it provides them with an excellent piece of literature that they should have the opportunity to read.

In Huckleberry Finn, the N-word is used multiple times, a word that comes from one of America’s lowest times. During the time that this book was published America was a racially divided nation. It was a time of oppression and injustice. A time in which the use of the N-word was normalized to degrade African Americans. Antonio Aiello who is a Banned Books week Coordinators says that this subject will forever be a hard subject to discuss because of America’s history of racism (McDaniel). Talking about this piece of history can be a hard thing for students to hear about. To be able to discuss complicated topics is a right that schools should take advantage of (Tomer). Students learn the most in a school setting, it is where they learn the majority of the things that they know. Huckleberry Finn should be kept in the libraries for the reason that it is a part of history and it teaches us how America used to be. It also gives us the chance to comprehend America’s past and how we choose to move forward in the world (Sawyer). When we look at the story of Huckleberry Finn and see how it was back then to how it is now, there is progress. When people read Huckleberry Finn they are shocked at how African Americans were treated. Which is why it should stay in libraries so that students can be shown how far America has come. There has been a conversation about removing the N-word from the book. The word in the book creates emotion, it makes you angry or sad about how African Americans were treated. Twain does this for a purpose, it adds to the emotion in the story. Even if they do censor the book’s N-words it would be better than them banning the book as a whole in public school libraries. Looking past the reason why people want the book to be banned and you get an amazing piece of literature. In the book, Huck spends a lot of time with Jim and during this time he sees that despite Jim’s skin color he is a good person (Sawyer). When others saw Jim as nothing else but a slave Huck saw a friend, someone who helped him when everyone else he knew turned their back on him. Huckleberry Finn is a book about Huck’s character development throughout the story. When we first met Huck he was someone that did not see a problem with Jim’s position, throughout the story we see him develop into someone who disapproves of it. Jim helps Huck countless times throughout the story which is why Huck ends up changing his view on how African Americans should be treated. Many people are so focused on the language in the story that they forget to comprehend the messages throughout the story. Huckleberry Finn is an adventure-filled book that follows two kids throughout a horrible time period. They find comfort in each other.

Sometimes in a high school classroom teachers would teach and read Huckleberry Finn. However, in recent years, teachers have not had this privilege because many do not want this book to be taught, read, or even thought about. People are fighting for this book to be removed from the curriculum, not just the high school library. The people with the most important opinion are the people who give knowledge to the upcoming generation, teachers. Michael Moran who is a language arts teacher at Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids defends Huckleberry Finn. He believes that the N-word is a crucial part of the book because its purpose is to end racism, not further the progress of it (Hogan). He believes that Twain uses the word so people can see how inappropriate and harsh times were back then. Moran also says that the students should be warned about the N-word in the book before they read it. Which is a great suggestion because it gives them a chance to prepare and understand the history of the word before approaching the book. Robert Secino who is a teacher at Shrewsbury High school also defends the book. He believes that lessons and messages that are in Huckleberry Finn are important (Reis). Many people seem to forget that there are messages in the book because they are too focused on a word in the book. If reading the book makes students uneasy, teaching the book can be a struggle too. However, teachers do it all around the world because they want their students to be educated in all areas. We must trust that through all their education they went through to get the degree they have the ability to teach Huckleberry Finn.

Banning books from public school libraries do not benefit the student in any way. Most people want to ban books in public schools because they believe the information should not be provided for the student. Banning the book as a whole is not right for the other students who actually want to enjoy the book. Books with sensitive subjects give students a sense of maturity and skills that will help them grow as a person. Although some of the books in the library have extreme subjects, they should not be banned. Huckleberry Finn is a book that people want to be banned because of the N-word that is displayed in it. The word is not meant to offend anyone, it is simply used to portray emotion into the story. However, if a student chooses to pick out the book knowing the information that it holds then they should have the book accessible to them. Huckleberry Finn is actually a great piece of literature that holds a message if you actually have the chance to read it. It is a story told in a time of history that is important to talk about, no matter how uncomfortable we feel reading it. In the words of George Santayana “Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it”. Huckleberry Finn is a classic that deserves to hold its place on a high school library shelf, so let it stay.

In the 1884 novel that is still controversial to this day, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, the protagonist of the book, the young, fun-loving and adventurous spirit, Huckleberry Finn goes through an enormous change in the book, a moral change. From a naive kid with an inferiority complex who followed whatever his best friend told him, to a young man who did what he believed was right. Huck goes through a big moral change, doing what he believes is right, even if it means he’s going to hell.

In the beginning of the novel, Huckleberry Finn, a young and fun loving kid with very little sense of morals, starts off in the novel as a stereotypical hillbilly kid who doesn’t know how to read or write and with a bit of an inferiority complex, caused by living with a drunk and abusive father, his Pap. It is at this point in the book, where Huck is first seen without any sense of morality. Fortunately for him, Huck is later helped by a runaway slave named Jim, who belongs to Widow Douglas, the lady who adopts Huck. Jim later joins Huck on his exciting and perilous journey across the South and helps him gain his own sense of morality. Throughout his many adventures , Huck is put into numerous different situations, some more dangerous than the others, where he has to think on his own and use his own sense of judgement to make important decisions that will affect the morals of which he will carry with him throughout his own life and throughout the story. In one of the first few chapters of the book, Huck is friends with and looks up to a boy not much older than him, named Tom Sawyer who has decided to start his own gang, the Tom Sawyer Gang. In order for one to become a member, they must give consent to the murdering of their families if they break one of the gangs many rules. It was at this time, that one of the other boys that was joining the gang, realized that Huck did not have an actual family of his own. “They talked it over, and they was going to rule me out, because they said every boy must have a family or something to kill, or else it wouldn’t be fair and square for the others. Well, nobody could think of anything to do-everybody was stumped, and set still. I was most ready to cry; but all at once I thought of a way, and so I offered them Miss Watson-they could kill her” (8). It was at this moment that Huck hit his acme of immorality in the story. Huck offers the boys the lady who adopted him, who decided to take in this young, uncivilised hillbilly who can’t read or write all because she simply wanted to help him, and Huck offers her up all because he was going to be kicked out of a kid’s gang. By the end of the first half of the story, Huck could now begin his long, self-reflective journey of gaining his own sense of morality.

In the second and third half of the book Huck experiences his biggest morality change, especially in the third half where Huck, Tom and Jim are stuck on a farm trying to free the latter. Huck must decide if he should go along with what society says and turn Jim in as a runaway slave, or keep his promise to his new friend, and help him see through to his freedom. Huck feels guilty not turning Jim in when he hears him talking about hiring an abolitionist to steal his family. He does not think it is right to help take away slaves from people that he doesn’t even know. To turn Jim in for these reasons would be the influence of society on Huck. Huck’s decision on this matter marks another major step in Huck’s moral progression, because he decides not to turn in Jim on his own. This is the first time he makes a decision all on his own based on his own morality. Both this incident and the Wilkes Scheme represent Huck’s ultimate realization and rejection of society. To encapsulate Huck’s total moral progression through his decision to help Jim, Huck states, “It was a close place. I took it up, and held it in my hand. I was

a-trembling, because I’d got to decide, forever betwixt two things, and I knowed it. I studied a minute, sort of holding my breath, and then said to myself: ‘All right, then I’ll go to hell’ -and tore it up” ( 215). Huck’s moral progression can be traced throughout the book beginning from his total lack of morals to being able to make the right decisions on his own. It is only with the help of Jim as a moral guide that Huck is able to undergo this moral transformation to use his own judgement and truly progress. The situation that Huck is encountered with choosing his friends over society is the main dilemma that pushes Huck to establish his own standards of morality, rather than accepting those that society has set forth.

Huckleberry Finn goes through a monumental change within the story. From a young boy with no morals or ethics at the beginning, to a kid who does what he believes is right. Huck’s morals change for the better by the end of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.