Huckleberry Finn's Journey

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is one of the most loved novels in American literature. Due to its popularity, there are a lot critiques and analyses of the work, especially of Huck and his development. But in all the analyses of Huck, people have neglected to appreciate one of the most important protagonists in American literature, Jim. Without Jim's guidance for Huck, Huck's journey would have failed. In Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Jim plays the role of a father to Huck by providing for his physical, emotional, and moral well-being.

Jim plays the role of the father by providing for Huck's physical well-being. He first provides food and shelter for the runaway boy. Jim is continually catching fish and fixing meals for Huck. He takes it upon himself to build "a snug
Taking a closer look at the novel reveals that Jim himself provides Huck's moral strength. When Huck mockingly asks him to interpret the meaning of the trash on the raft, "rather than taking each item of debris and divining its meaning as Huck requests, Jim takes each act of kindness and concern he has shown Huck Finn over the course of their journey and defines for the boy, perhaps for the first time in Huck's life, the meaning of friendship, loyalty, and filial or family responsibility." (Chadwick). By apologizing to the slave, Huck was not only accepting Jim as his friend, but he was also accepting his moral values. It is Huck's friendship with Jim that makes possible his moral growth. Jim's comment, "you's de only fren' ole Jim's got now" (67), when Huck is paddling off to turn him in, stops Huck and forces him to decide in favor of Jim. The memory of Jim's friendship keeps Huck on the right track. When Huck remembers their friendship, "and couldn't seem to strike no places to harden me against him, but only the other kind" (161), he makes the decision to "go to hell"