Huckleberry Finn: A Trip
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A Trip Within’ The Heart Of A Colorless Boy
In Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the main characters take a trip within the heart, not just a trip down the Mississippi River. Throughout the trip down the Mississippi River, Huckleberry Finn’s, a homeless waif, thoughts about racism change from a racist unwanted boy to a true human being with a sense of his own destiny. Throughout the novel, Huck narrates his adventure and thoughts upon racism and inequality between “niggers” and whites. Huck and “nigger” Jim, runaway slave, float down the Mississippi River as unequal individuals, but towards the end of the novel Huck distinguishes that even African-Americans are as equal as white human beings.
Huck never respects the “niggers,” especially Jim since Huck and Tom Sawyer, a romanticized friend, continuously play tricks on Jim so they can feel superior to the “black” race. Even though Huck escapes society and his abusive father, Pap Finn, he continues to play tricks on Jim, since Jim ran away from slavery. For example, when Jim explains that he ran off Huck disapproves but promises not to turn him in even though “people would call [him] a low-down Abolitionist” (50). This demonstrates that Huck is a kind trustworthy racist boy; however, Huck’s superstitious character “curled [a rattlesnake] up on the foot of Jim’s blanket” as a joke, although in the night the rattlesnake’s mate bit Jim (59). In addition, Huck “warn’t going to let Jim find out it was [his] fault” nor apologize because he did not want to feel low to a “nigger” (59). This incident demonstrates that Huck still views himself as superior to Jim because of his skin color. At this point of the novel, Huck is helping Jim escape which makes him feel low down to civilization; however, he continues to trick Jim so he can be better quality. Huck maintains to treat Jim with little respect and even though he suffers for the trick, he never apologizes to Jim.
As they progress down the river, Huck begins to realize the true character of Jim as an equal man with greatness and kindness in his heart. During their ride down the river Huck decides to play another trick on the so-called unintelligent Jim. The final trick Huck plays on Jim while they are in the fog is making Jim believe that everything that has happened in the storm after they broke-off from each other only occurred in Jim’s mind. However, Jim notices the rubbish and the broken oar from the storm and “when he did get the thing straightened around he looked at me steady without ever smiling” (89). After figuring out what has happened Jim enlightens Huck that “[his] heart wuz mos’ broke bekase [Huck] wuz los’, en [he] didn’ k’yer no’ mo’ what become er me en de raf’. En when [he] [woke] up en find [Huck] back ag’in, all safe en soun’, de tears come, en [he] could ’a’ got down on [his] knees en kiss [Huck’s] foot, [he’s] so thankful. En all [Huck] wuz thinkin’ ‘bout wuz how [he] could make a fool uv ole Jim wid a lie” (89). At this point of the book is the climatic turning point of Huck’s thoughts on equality between “niggers” and whites since “it made [him] feel so mean [he] could almost kissed [Jim’s] foot to get [Jim] to take it back” (89). It took Huck “fifteen minutes” before he could work up the courage to go apologize and “humble [him]self to a nigger,” which demonstrates that Huck changes his views on slaves. In addition, Jim confesses he smacked