Huck Finn :: essays research papers

Adventures of huckabackleberry Finn          The conflict between totallyiance and the individual is a very importanttheme portrayed passim Mark Twains The Adventures of huckabackleberryFinn. Many people see Huckleberry Finn as a skanky boy who is a badinfluence to others. Huck is non brocaded in agreement with the take overed waysof civilization. He practically raises himself, relying on instinct to guide himthrough life. As seen several times in the novel, Huck chooses to follow hisinnate sense of right, yet he does not realize that his own instincts are moreright than those of society.          Society refuses to accept Huck as he is and isnt going to change itsopinions about him until he is reformed and civilized. The Widow Douglasand Miss Watson try to "sivilize" Huck by reservation him stop all of his habits,such as smoking. They try to reverse all of his teachings from the first tw elveyears of his life and force him to become their stereotypical good boy. However, from the very beginning of the novel, Huck clearly states that hedoes not want to conform to society. "The Widow Douglas she took me forher son, and allowed she would sivilize me...I got into my old rags and mysugar hogshead again, and was free and satisfied." (page 1) Huck says thisshortly after he begins living with the Widow Douglas because it is rough forhim to be confined to a house and the strict rules of the Widow Douglas.      Hucks father, a dirty and dishonest drunk, was also a problem. Hewas so angry that his son could read, that he severely beat him and then laboured him to stay in a secluded cabin. Huck then devises a plan to escapeand heads down river were he teams up with Jim, a gala affair slave.           The theme becomes even more evident once Huck and Jim specialize outdown the Mississippi. As they run from ci vilization and are on the river, theyponder the social injustices forced upon them when they are on land. Theriver never cares how cherubic they are, how rich they are, or what societythinks of them. The river allows Huck the one thing that Huck wants to be,and that is Huck. Huck enjoys his adventures on the raft. He prefers thefreedom of the wilderness to the restriction of society.           Also, Hucks bridal of Jim is a total defiance of society. Societyautomatically sees a morose person, and even further, slaves, as inferior. Theynever think of slaves as human beings, altogether as property.