Huckleberry Finn Society Analysis

Throughout time, it has been socially dangerous for someone to move against the norm of society. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck is considered an outcast for these very reasons. The values of American society in the nineteenth century are illuminated by the character of Huck Finn by his refusal to conform to those expectations. Christianity was a major part of the common American’s life. Almost every child read the Bible and learned it’s lessons, and it was expected that everyone would attend church on Sunday. Although Huck believes in heaven and hell, he questions many aspects of Christianity. He does not find religion practical because he does not believe that it can help him in any way. Miss Watson tells Huck that

At the beginning of the book, he explains how the Widow Douglas decided to take him in and civilize him. Huck, who has been raised to do whatever he wanted without worrying about consequences, has now been thrust into a life of monitoring everything he does. “Miss Watson would say, ‘Don’t put your feet up there, Huckleberry’; and ‘Don’t scrunch up like that, Huckleberry - set up straight’” (2). Huck is not quite sure why these rules are in place; he just knows that he will be scolded if he does not follow them. Even though his father is a dangerous drunk, Huck still prefers to live with him because he has the freedom to do what he likes without having to worry about whether he is following the rules. Twain is making a point that it is a bit strange that one is required to follow so many rules to be accepted into society, which contributes why Huck is an outcast. He prefers to follow the beat of his own drum, even though that means he is not a respected member of society. Huck, however, is okay with that because he feels that American society is not

“The judge and the widow went to law to get the court to take me away from [Pap] and let one of them be my guardian; but it was a new judge that had just come, and he didn’t know the old man; so he said courts mustn’t interfere and separate families if they could help it,” (21). The new judge did not take the time to know or assess Pap, so he figured that Huck better stay with his natural born guardian. Huck is then forced to stay with his drunk and abusive father who imprisons him in their cabin. Because Huck can no longer rely on other adults for help, Huck decides to fake his own death in order to escape. The idea that he has lost faith in adults depicts a picture that is not very optimistic towards the American people. Children are supposed to look up to adults and let them be their guide as they come of age, so Huck is showing that sometimes adults dismiss matters so quickly that a child must take them into their own hands. Another example would be the family feud between the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons. The families do not exactly remember why they are quarrelling, but they do know that they have to fight because they have been battling each other for many years now. Twain, through Huck, is showing how absurd these family feuds are because they are rather pointless, especially if neither of the