Huckleberry Finn – Controversial Novel
A well-studied piece of American literature was written by Mark Twain and is known as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It is an adventure story, as the title suggests, about a boy who escapes his abusive father and finds himself in the company of a runaway slave as they head down the Mississippi together to find freedom. Along the way, they become equals in their venture and Huck's belief system that was formed by the society he lives in is shattered. Not only is this book, one of the most controversial novels of all time, but it is true American ideals and flaws. The fact that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is one of the most widely taught books in American literature classrooms across the country speak of its greatness. But what exactly is it about the book that makes it so great?
First, the use of satire throughout the book gives different parts of action irony. Satire is a literary work in which vices, follies, stupidities, abuses, etc. are held up to ridicule and contempt. Twain uses satire through the story to poke fun at the society in which he grew up. Satire is useful because it makes the readers truly think about what Twain has said, and at the same time, the irony of it is based on truth and can be used to force the readers to think about society today. By stepping back, they realize the modern irony that they live by. The examples that Twain used in Huck Finn range from Jim, the runaway slave calling Huck white trash, to the people on the river abandoning Huck when they think "his father" is ill with small pox. But the best use of satire in the book is when the Grangerfords and the Shepardsons go to church:
Next Sunday we all went to church, about three mile, everybody a-horseback. The men took their guns along, so did Buck, and kept them between their knees or stood them handy against the wall. The Shepardsons done the same. It was pretty ornery preaching-all about brotherly love, and such-like tiresomeness; but everybody said it was a good sermon, and they all talked it over going home, and had such a powerful lot to say about faith and good works and free grace and preforeordestination, and I don't know what at all, that it did seem to me to be one of the roughest Sundays I had run across yet. (111)
These two families went to church with their guns ready to kill each other at any second while they listened to this sermon about brotherly love. These people were deceiving themselves by "knowing" that they were doing no evil. Twain used satire to show what a sad existence they were living. It's small parts that the reader catches that make the book great.
Next, the book expresses the time period of America, in which Twain was writing, realistically through the way the people speak, the way people act and are treated, and through the background of society. One of the biggest challenges and most unique aspects of Huck Finn is the dialogue. The dialogue would make any high school student cringe the first time he attempted to read through Jim's speeches. The words are spelled incorrectly, cut off, and slang is used repeatedly. Funny though, the hardest thing about the book is to read through it, when people actually speak like that. Speaking is so much a sub-conscious thing that readers are forced to look upon the reality that is their true language. Twain took how the people of that time talked, and slap them in the face with it. The time period itself, that society was stuck in makes this a great piece of literature. Simply being set in the days of slavery gives the novel historical significance. The book takes place in the early 19th century when cotton was king of the blacks and the white slave masters. The character of Jim alone was a historical reference. Jim is a runaway slave in the book. He runs away after he finds out he is going to be sold. He plans to make money when he is free so he can buy his family. Other events that reflect the time period are the capture of Jim and the people's fear of disease when they abandon Huck on the river. Twain also portrays the people of the era as if he was writing a non-fiction novel. He displays their life as being surrounded by religion, family, and of course, personal well being. The people were formed by the society they were raised in and corrupted by those they viewed as moral characters. Even today, it is the same. The use of the "n word" was acceptable back then, because it was how blacks were viewed. Now the word is not accepted and people find it damages self-esteem. Society has changed its views of people just as Huck does at one point in the book. Huck goes against all his beliefs and his entire view of morals and decides not to turn Jim in. Huck had just written a letter to Miss Watson telling her where Jim is. He thinks it over and says, " `All right, then, I'll go to hell'-and tore it [the note] up." (207) Huck, at this point, really thinks he is going to the fiery underworld, yet he lets his heart decide for him as his mind is failing to register exactly what he has just done. The people of that time were very religious with a belief in Heaven and Hell that would cause people today to find them simply plum crazy. Twain uses this piece of literature to get across the feeling of the time through the society displayed and its people.
Last, Mark Twain's personal beliefs and struggles are shown throughout the book. True authors use aspects of their own self-characters to create great works that readers admire. Throughout his life, he struggled with moral issues, religion, and he fought against the formation that his society had made him into. Religion was a major aspect of life that Twain expresses in his text. Mrs. Watson's idea of civilizing Huck is education and religion. The feuding families, no matter how many times they killed one another, went to church, and all the other civilized white southern families went to church. Twain expresses that they based their religions around false hope and belief that a mighty being controlled their lives. Compared to Jim's religion, based on common sense and the belief that he himself could make his own destiny. Throughout the adventure, whatever Jim predicted seemed to come true. During his life, Twain faced a turning point such as his character of Huck did. Twain was raised surrounded by slavery with the idea that it was an acceptable thing. This was until he met Uncle Dan, a black slave who Twain became friends with. He was influenced again by Uncle Dan; but now he held the belief that slavery was wrong and immoral. The belief of blacks as lower beings had vanished. His views are seen overall if the reader takes a step back and separates the characteristics of the white characters and those of the black characters. Such examples are the King and the Duke; both of these men are con men who cheat others out of their money and homes. Another example is Huck's father, who beats him during his states of drunkenness, and kidnaps him only to hide him in the woods in a small cabin. Even Huck, no matter how he changes morally, still has his flaws, such as his habit of the pipe. If the reader then looks at the black character of Jim, there is a complete difference. Jim is a runaway slave who has his mind set on freedom. He plans to earn enough money to buy his family and live as a free American. One time when Jim and Huck are talking, Jim tells Huck about his daughter, " `Oh Huck, I bust out a-cryin' en grab her up in my arms, en say, `Oh, de po' little thing! De Lord God Almighty fogive po' ole Jim, kaze he never gwyne to forgive hisself as lon's he live!' Oh, she was plumb deef en dumb, Huck, plumb deef en dumb-en I'd ben a-treat'n her so!' " (154) No other white characters in the book express so much compassion for their own family. Jim also helps Huck stay on his path down the Mississippi by standing guard, becoming Huck's friend, and by protecting him when necessary. Jim is a truthful character who is also very innocent and naïve. He trusts Huck and Tom when they form the plan of his escape. The reader would never see Jim as someone to hold a grudge and kill others based on it, like the Grangerfords and the Shepardsons. The portrayal of these characters and their morals shows Twain's view through the actions of others.
Greatness is defined as much above the ordinary or average, expert, skillful, excellent, splendid, and fine. All of these words cannot truly describe the book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. As "great" as the book is, no other piece of literature is or will be more American than this novel. Twain was like a puppet master, using his characters to not only entertain, but to get a message across. He was a master of literature, because it still lives on. People enjoy it, it is discussed, good or bad, and it still influences our modern world. The book is alive as ever and will continue to be. Its characters and events will continue to thrive. Teachers continue to hand students this book and make them write essays about the characters, the satire, and whatnot. There is no proper way to dissect this novel, and there is no bottom to the hole that readers and critics create as they delve into the meaning of the book. The fact that the book is still living, after Twain's death over 100 years ago, speaks for itself.
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