Social Issues In The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn

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Mark Twain set a new standard for American literature when he wrote the novel “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” Mark Twain was a prolific writer during the late 1800’s and has been described as the “Father of American literature”. “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” is arguably one of the greatest American works of literature written and after two centuries it is still read throughout the world. This novel is about a young boy named Huckleberry Finn and the different adventure that he goes on with a runaway slave named Jim. Together they learn that society is flawed in all of its rules and they should be free from oppression by running away and living away from society. Over the course of the story Huck experiences many of the social problems that occurred during that time period and it was way of Mark Twain voicing his opinion on it. One of the social issues that was presented was the role of the father figure within a child’s life. Huck mother’s was nonexistent in the book, so he was always with his father. His Father, Pap, was a serious alcoholic and would often beat on Huck when he was drunk. This lead to feelings of
During this period of time the family structure was different from what it is today. During this time period the father were characterized as the head of the house and a strict authority figure. Father during this time were, “described as distant, morally instructive, and condescending, as too much affection was believed to lead to parental indulgence, ruining the character of children.” Morever it was the fathers’ job to prepare the children instead of being an active member of their lives. Twain captured much of this theme of parenting in Huckleberry Finn, but he also put his own twist on how Pap’s behavior. Ultimately, because of Pap, Huck saw the world in a different light than other characters in the story, such as

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