Huckleberry Finn is a character in Mark Twain’s novels, first introduced in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and later in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The latter is celebrated for its commentary on slavery but also controversial for its language and subtext. Huck’s character is a rough, illiterate boy who helps Tom solve a mystery and discovers buried treasure. In Huckleberry Finn, Huck helps a slave escape and becomes eloquent about the nature of slavery, but the ending is troubling and reduces his effectiveness as a spokesman for abolition. The novel is written in Huck’s slang language, making it a major novelty in American literature.
Huckleberry Finn is perhaps one of the most identifiable characters in American literature. He is first introduced as a supporting character in Mark Twain’s 1876 novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, but takes the lead role in the 1884 novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This second work has been celebrated as a novel of exceptional bravery, especially in its commentary on slavery. It has also been considered controversial, in its use of language, and some argue that the story’s subtext mocks, rather than celebrates, slaves. It has remained a book that evokes controversy and books that are more likely to be banned in school environments. The character of Huckleberry Finn evokes equal debate.
In Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn is a boy who is generally seen as tempting Tom to avoid work. While Tom is raised politely by his aunt, Huckleberry Finn is a rough, illiterate, and tempting “wild child” Tom in the wilds of the natural world. Together, Huck and Tom end up solving a mystery and discovering buried treasure. Tom Sawyer is more of a children’s book than its sequel Huckleberry Finn, although it is certainly true that both are critically read.
Twain’s sequel is written in the first person from Huck’s point of view. It clearly departs almost immediately from typical kid fare of Huck ranting about how he doesn’t mind being “civilized” by his keeper, Widow Douglas. Good for nothing, his alcoholic father comes to this point to try to get Huck to get his hands on the treasure that Huck found in Tom Sawyer
Huck finds himself drawn to the plight of the slave, Jim, owned by the widow Douglas’ sister. He overhears a conversation about Jim being sold and decides to help Jim escape north. Huck drives Jim and himself south to the Mississippi River instead. The journey Huck takes with Jim involves numerous encounters with various colorful characters, all set against the backdrop for Huck’s conscience-crushing and becoming eloquent about the nature of slavery, the worth of a black person, and people’s rights to be free. In a way, Huck’s attempts at “civilization” by the widow and his desperate need to escape to be himself are like a distant mirror of Jim’s much more difficult situation.
While the middle part of the novel can be seen as a powerful critique of slavery and an argument that all people deserve freedom, the ending of the novel is troubling, confusing, and often drives critics mad. Tom Sawyer re-enters the scene, and both Tom and Huck decide to enslave Jim, locking him up so that the slave hunters won’t capture him. Unfortunately by this point, Tom knows that Jim has indeed been set free. Huck’s willingness to play the slaveholder is troubling and reduces his overall effectiveness as a spokesman for abolition.
Perhaps Twain meant to suggest that the Southern mentality is so strong that it is impossible to take an abolitionist position for long. Alternatively, Huck’s moral dilemma on the Mississippi River can be seen as a joke. Either way, it’s not hard to see why some people argue that the tone of the book is overtly racist.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, when viewed as a novel, represents the first major novelty in American literature. The story, as told by Huck, is told in the slang (vernacular) language of a poor Southern boy, rather than by an omniscient narrator in more correct English. Since the book is controversial, it is perhaps worth reading so readers can form their own opinions about the relative value of Twain’s effort and Huckleberry Finn himself.
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