Essay About Hucks Internal Battle And Hucks Father

Huckleberry Finn Book Report
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Will Mullin
Per. G/H
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn:
Hucks Internal Battle
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was written by Samuel L. Clemens, who is also
known by his pen name Mark Twain. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was Twains first book
relating to adventure stories for boys. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn stars Tom Sawyers
comrade, Huck. Huck is rough around the edges but a real good kid and softy at heart. Huck had
good morals despite all his lies and sometimes cruel jokes and tries to do the right thing.
Throughout the story Huckleberry Finn has an internal battle with racism and whether his morals
or those imposed upon him by society are the right to follow. Huck is a victim of his time and
influences.
Huck is a rebel always defying and opposing authority throughout the book and his
constant need to break his restrictions and be truly free would be preferable. “She put me in new
clothes again, and I couldnt do nothing and feel all cramped up (12). Clothing are used to try
and civilize Huck but this makes him feel restricted and he would rather not conform to what
society believes correct. “I got to light out for the territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally
she is going to adopt me and sivilize me and I cant stand it” (283). Huck feels that in order to
flee society he must move out west alone. “I been there before”(283). Hucks quest to escape
civilizations grasp is an one going one. What is interesting is that he despises society yet society
admires him and he is the ideal “lone ranger”.
In this point in time blacks were not viewed as equals by the whites and were some times
they were convinced that they were truly
of a lower class which could explain Jim putting up
with Toms ridiculous plans for so long. “Theres ben a dozen a-helpin that nigger, n I lay Id
skin every last nigger on this place but Id find out who done it, sI; n moreover, sI….
A dozen says you!- forty couldnt a done everything…”(270). People of the town thought of the
slaves as good for nothing pieces of property and could never have thought up anything so
complex and intricate. But of course it had to be blacks because no white person could do such a
low thing. The man mentioned skinning them as if it were no big deals and it was normal. With
Huck growing up under such conditions it is a wonder he even so much as talked to Jim the way
he does. Huck is a victim to this period in time where racism and white supremacy are as
strongly believed in as God himself.
Huck not only has to grow up in a world that believes in white supremacy but a
household that cares for him no more than any other black slave. His household consisted of him
and his Pap, a racist man with no heart for anything but drinking and getting drunk. I used to be
scared of him all the time, he tanned me so much”(27). Hucks Father appeared to be a man of
little substance by the way Huck had described him, “…most fifty, and he looked it, hair was long
and tangled and greasy, and hung down… long, mixed-up whiskers. There warnt no color in his
face, it was white; white to make a body sick…. make the flesh crawl…tree toad white…his
clothes – just rags”(27). The feeling of the whole description is not one someone would think a
fathers own son would give him but this is how Huck viewed his. I think that there was so much
dislike and hatred towards his father that Hucks strong feelings may have caused him to stretch
or exaggerate the truth. His father not only beat him but discouraged school just as a slave owner
would to his blacks in order to make sure they do not get smarter than him. ” They say-can read
and write. You think youre bettern your father… because he cant?.. foolishness… who told you
you could?”(28). Huck did not enjoy school because it was another restriction however one has
to wonder wether it was his father and him saying how his mother and other siblings could not
till