Preview

Theme Of Slavery In Huck Finn

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
120 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Theme Of Slavery In Huck Finn
Jim is at the mercy of the White man because even when Miss Watson sets him free in her will Tom says he has to scoop out dirt and do other ridiculous things before he’ll let him go. Through the interaction of the main characters in this story it’s easy to see why slavery is cruel and evil. Jim is like a father figure to Huck by sheltering him from some of the disturbing events in the book. As the novel unfolds we learn that Jim is smarter and kinder than any of the other characters and shouldn’t be judged by the color of his skin. Society is wrong for thinking that all black men are inferior to white

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a book about the injustice of slavery and racism in the South. The novel details the experiences of Huck Finn, a thirteen year old white boy, and Jim, a black slave, who each escape in search of freedom. While Huck is escaping from a drunk, abusive father, Jim is escaping from slavery in order to prevent his owner from selling him. There is much debate over whether or not the book is racist. While many believe that Huckleberry Finn is a racist text due to the overuse of racial comments and inappropriate language throughout the novel, Huckleberry Finn is actually not racist because the book is about a boy who overcomes his racist upbringing by becoming acquainted with a slave.…

    • 935 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Mark Twain and Henrik Ibsen were both influential authors. Their books are read today and seen as stories that dive into social problems during the author’s respective times. Mark Twain’s Huck Finn (from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn) is about a young boy who finds himself struggling with an issue within his morals that he was taught. Nora Helmer, from Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll House, deals with a secret that could cause her to be disrespected in society. Although both Twain and Ibsen use a bevy of characters that affect how they persuade the audience of their social issue, Twain uses supporting characters to build up Huck’s moral dilemma, whereas Ibsen introduces challenging characters into Nora’s situation.…

    • 1328 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Mark Twain’s novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain expresses his messages about many different topics. One of those in particular includes freedom. Freedom has a different perspective for each individual character in the novel. To Jim, freedom means an escape from slavery and to Huck freedom means a chance to escape from his civilized world. Their desire for freedom has one main focus which is happiness. We are able to read about all the different ways freedom has taken a toll on the characters throughout the book.…

    • 851 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To Kill a Mockingbird is a classic story which has an abolitionist tone that can be seen when a white lawyer defends a black man and tries to instill anti-prejudice values in his children. In addition to Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Mark Twain uses his literature to speak out against social injustices. He wrote multiple books that focus on all aspects of everyday life, and one of the most famous of these books is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Mark Twain uses a subtle abolitionist tone to criticize the injustice of slavery while trying to not directly offend the majority of people who will read his book.…

    • 918 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, is often considered the greatest American novel ever written. In writing Huck Finn Twain explores many different themes. Among the themes he chooses to expand on are the Mississippi River, the intellectual versus moral education of Huck, the hypocrisy of civilized society, childhood, lies and cons, superstitions, the value of money, religion, and racism and slavery. This paper will explore the theme of racism and slavery. Racism and slavery is shown throughout the novel by being expressed through different characters opinions, and the moral of what is right and wrong in Huck’s time era. In this novel Huck has to make the hardest decision of his life based on the theme of racism and slavery.…

    • 852 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Huckleberry Finn Criticism

    • 1018 Words
    • 5 Pages

    To Huck, for a majority of the novel, Jim was seen as Mrs. Watson’s property and Jim was incapable of emotions and it would be fine if he was sold away from his family. It was not until the last half of the novel did Huck see humanity in Jim. Huck recalled that Jim “was thinking about his wife and his children, away up yonder, and he was low and homesick; because he hadn't ever been away from home before in his life; and I do believe he cared just as much for his people as white folks does for their'n. It don't seem natural, but I reckon it's so. He was often moaning and mourning that way nights, when he judged I was asleep, and saying, "Po' little '! po' little Johnny! it's mighty hard; I spec' I ain't ever gwyne to see you no mo', no mo'!" He was a mighty good nigger, Jim was” (Twain 152). Twain hoped that his would provide seeds for an equality movement between African-American and the white Southerners. Twain wanted peace after years of fighting, so by adding human qualities to Jim and creating a strong relationship between Huck and Jim, the peace would possibly come through The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.…

    • 1018 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When Huck was being raised he was taught that African Americans were property and their feelings and dreams did not matter to the white folk. After Huck had been living with Jim for a little while he began to realize he was taught wrong and he should not remain close to his previous beliefs. He now knows no matter what the skin color, people are people and should be treated equal. Huck realized himself and Jim are just alike in many ways and have many of the same beliefs, only Jim has black skin and not white.…

    • 521 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In the novel, Mark Twain creates an interesting relationship between two seemingly opposite characters: a white boy and a black man. Right away, the reader realizes this relationship seems not only odd, but almost unlikely. As the story matures, the relationship between Huck and Jim matures as well. In the beginning of the book, Huck treats Jim as though Jim is not a human-being, but something sub-human with human-like qualities. More to the climax and conclusion of the book, Jim changes in Huck 's eyes. Huck now seems to regard Jim as a friend, supported by the fact that Huck did not have the heart to turn in the fugitive slave. This relationship is critical in the plot. Twain not only uses it to advance the story, but to address a rising national problem. The national need for companionship and re-bonding after the Civil War, not only to heal the wounds between the North and South, but between blacks and whites. Twain illustrates this need by making Jim become something of a father figure to Huck, a type of nurturing between men, essential for the survival of the nation. Twain sets the scene by showing that Jim felt he had an obligation to protect Huck on their adventure, especially when they enter the house floating on the…

    • 1165 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    First and foremost, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn elucidates the treatment of African Americans during the Southern antebellum. A succinct and ideal model of the treatment is when Tom’s aunt asked if anybody was hurt if a steamboat accident fabricated by Huck, who is pretending to be Tom, to explain why he was late, Huck states “‘No’m. Killed a nigger’” (Twain 328). The statement insinuates that African Americans at the time were not considered as human beings; rather, African Americans were considered as individuals that are subhuman. In the latter parts of the book, after Jim, a runaway slave, helps the doctor treat Tom, who was shot in the leg, “[The men] all agreed that Jim had acted very well, and was deserving to have some notice took of it, and reward. So every one of them promised, right out and hearty, that [the men] wouldn’t cuss him no more” (Twain 423). This so-called “reward”, is something most, if not all of the audience already has as a right, suggesting that Jim is considered a subhuman since he has to be rewarded with a right that many already have. Twain utilizes a plethora of actions to…

    • 603 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    During the time of Huckleberry Finn, Slavery was around. Slaves were mistreated and held at a lower standard. Slaves like Jim were play pranks on because they were low in the class system. Tom does play a prank on Jim by putting Jim’s hat on the Branch while he was sleeping. This lead Jim to believe he was put in a trance by witches and they took around the US. Making him seem a fool to the white superior classes, but a well know person through the slave community. Slavery cause separation created a the idea of slaves being with slaves and whites being with whites. Creating separate community where one is better than the other. Creating were separate societies where people weren’t treated…

    • 125 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jim is the slave of the widow Douglas and Miss Watson, Huck’s guardians in the beginning of the book. A key part in Huckleberry Finn is how Huck is the only person who treats Jim like anyone else. Most see Jim as just another useless black man but to Huck, Jim is a very important man. Jim acts as the sort of father figure for Huck when they are flowing down the river. Although Huck was taught how to be friendly, Jim is friendly by nature. When Huck has “Gone Away,” Jim is genuinely concerned, saying "Goodness gracious, is dat you, Huck? En you ain' dead—you ain' drownded—you's back agin? It's too good for true, honey, it's too good for true. Lemme look at you chile, lemme feel o' you. No, you ain' dead! you's back agin, 'live en soun', jis de same ole Huck—de same ole Huck, thanks to goodness!" (15.19). Huck is confused but, he can see how much Jim cares for him. Huck is always very respectful towards Jim, which is a way most people did not act towards slaves at the time; Jim tells Huck that he was the only "white genlman dat ever kep' his promise to ole Jim" (16.16). Later on in the story, the two come across a boat, and on the boat was Huck’s dead father. Knowing how much this would upset Huck, Jim shielded Huck from seeing this by saying "It's a dead man. Yes, indeedy; naked, too. He's ben shot in de back. I reck'n he's ben dead two er three days. Come in, Huck, but doan' look at his face—it's too…

    • 897 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Huck does not consciously think about Jim's impending freedom until Jim himself starts to get excited about the idea. The reader sees Huck's first objection to Jim gaining his freedom on page 66, when Huck says, "Well, I can tell you it made me all over trembly and feverish, too, to hear him, because I begun to get it through my head that he was most free-and who was to blame for it? Why, me. I could get that out of my conscience, no how nor no way." Huck is hearing the voice of society at this point, not his own. He does not see a moral dilemma with Jim being free; he is opposed to the fact that he is the one helping him. This shows Huck misunderstanding of slavery. Huck does not treat Jim like a slave when they travel together, this shows the reader that Huck views Jim as an equal in most ways. Huck sees having a slave only as owning the person, not actually being a slave to someone. Therefore, when he helps Jim runaway it would be like stealing. This conscience is telling him that Miss Watson, Jim's master, never did anything wrong to him and that he shouldn't be doing a wrong to her by helping Jim escape. This is a totally different view of Miss Watson from Huck's perspective. Huck always disliked Miss Watson, but now that this society voice plays a part in Huck's judgment his views are changed. This society views allows Huck to see Jim, a friend, only as a slave and Miss Watson, almost a foe in his young views, as a dear friend. Twain is showing the reader the gross injustices of slavery in this little incident, as well as his moral opposition to slavery. Twain…

    • 936 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Huckleberry Finn is a young boy who struggles with complex issues such as empathy, guilt, fear, and morality in Mark Twain's "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn". There are two different sides to Huck. One is the subordinate, easily influenced boy whom he becomes when under the "guide" of Tom Sawyer. His other persona surfaces when he is on his own, thinking of his friendship with Jim and agonizing over which to trust: his heart or his conscience. When Huck's ongoing inner struggle with his own duality forces him to makes difficult and controversial choices, the reader sees a boy in the throes of moral development. And it is, indeed, a struggle. Although Huck believes in the rules of the harshly racist society in which he lives, a deeper and sounder part of him keeps making decisions that break those very same rules.…

    • 1735 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    As Huck travels further with Jim, their bond grows stronger. He realizes how Jim and others are being mistreated and taken advantage of. Despite this, Huck was still bombarded with the idealisms proposing slavery. When faced with the options of turning Jim in or not, it was a difficult choice for him to make. With his decision to assist Jim in his escape, he was overcome by guilt and remorse, when in fact, morally this was the honorable and right choice. Unfortunately Huck only came to this conclusion from his feelings of guilt towards Jim. "Dah you goes, de ole true Huck; de on'y white genleman dat ever kep 'his promises to ole Jim." (page 124). Jim's loyalty to Huck was infinite and he put so much faith in Huck that he could not bear to betray Jim like that.…

    • 909 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Adventures, kidnappings, slaves oh my! The theme portrayed in the thrilling book; The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is freedom. The author develops this theme by using the river as a symbol of freedom for Huck and Jim. Both Huck and Jim are searching for two separate freedoms, but are striving for the same goal; living their own lives as themselves. In The Adventures of Huckleberry and Finn the characters experience quite a bit of turmoil and differences but they are united by their similar goal; freedom. Freedom is a privilege, but for some it’s not even an option.…

    • 516 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays