In chapter 31, the opportunity arises for Huck to make his escape back to the to the raft - and Jim - so that they can run away. When he actually gets to the raft, Jim is nowhere in sight. Cue the worrying. A random townsperson tells Huck that a runaway slave was caught and sold for forty dollars. (Cheap, huh?) Common sense tells Huck this slave has to be Jim. Huck is torn in the situation. Option A: He writes to Miss Watson and she gets angry that he helped “steal” Jim. Option B: -Insert conflicted face here- Huck eventually decides to go get Jim. This is the exact moment that his character development is clear. He is no longer having a battle between his idea of right and what other’s idea of right is: rescuing Jim is the right thing. Social responsibility is no longer on his mind because all he knows is that Jim is in trouble and he needs to help him. This is the moment we’ve waited for the whole novel - the point in which Huck decides, “To hell with society and racism! Jim needs help and I’m going to help him!” (Not his exact words, but whatever.)
I like the point that you made about Huck's personality finally being developed because I did not really think of it that way. I figured that after that moment there would be more shenanigans to come associating with Huck's development. And now I think Huck finally realized that he should just go along with his own social responsibility and make decisions for himself and not for other people.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both you and Rita in a way. I believe maybe Huck was actually going against society, but then again he was actually doing what society should. Jim is a human being and even though he is not white, Huck knows him to be a good man and goes to help him. Society should be teaching people to be caring to all, yet they are not. Maybe Huck represents the new generation of thinkers. Maybe its a foreshadowing of what is to come in life, when blacks and whites are truly equal... Just some food for thought :)
ReplyDeleteAll three points are really great, I didn't think about it that way. Nice paraphrasing at the end Raven. And I dont know if it is so much foreshadowing as Mark Twain's wish for the future. Since Twain is an abolitionist he was probably trying to make the point that slavery was wrong through the entire book (but that is not our part so i dont really have a clue).
ReplyDeleteI think that as Huck realizes slavery is wrong he is going agains social expectations.