Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Hucklberry Finn (and hereafter referred as Huck) is the protagonist who is one of the burning examples of the anti-racism and anti-slavery. At first, Huck did not show any respect of his black companion, as it was not a human being! But as the time passed, he thought “He” is not “It”, and also “I knowed he was white inside” (Mark Twain , Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, 174). While his friendship was growing with Jim, a black-complexioned slave, the friendship compelled him to query about the learning he had received before the relationship.

They showed some instances which clearly exposed the friendship between them clearly.

1. The growing relationship between Huck and Jim was like two caring friends, and Jim, as the father  rose in him, so he cared for Huck, so that Huck might not got frightened by seeing a dead body and covered the dead body so that the dead body would not scare Huck. As in text, “…..Jim says: “De man ain’t asleep - he’s dead. You hold still--I’ll go en see.” He went, and bent down and looked, and says: ”It’s a dead man. Yes, indeedy; naked, too. He’s ben shot in de back. I reck’n he’s ben dead two er three days. Come in, Huck, but doan’ look at his face--it’s too gashly.”(Mark Twain, 33)

”All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called ’Huckleberry Finn. If you read it you must stop where the Nigger Jim is stolen from the boys. That is the real end”(Ernest Hemingway, 1935).

2. “ Huckleberry Finn knew, as did Mark Twain, that Jim was not only a slave but a human being [and] a symbol of humanity...” (Rlaph Ellison).

The reaction of Jim when he heard that Huck was dead was very distressful for him as he loved him so much. As in the text the thing appears,” I’uz powerful sorry you’s killed, Huck, but I ain’t no mo’ now” (Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, 29) .When he came to know that Huck was alive, He was in ecstasy. “Goodness gracious, is dat you, Huck? En you ain’ dead- you ain’ drownded -you’s back agin? It’s too good for true, honey, it’s too good for true. Lemme look at you chile, lemme feel o’ you. No, you ain’ dead! you’s back agin, ’live en soun’, jis de same ole Huck--de same ole Huck, thanks to goodness” (54)!

3. “It is Huck who gives the book style. The River gives the book its form. But for the River, the book might be only a sequence of adventures with a happy ending” (T.S. Eliot, 1950).

When Huck was freeing Jim, he was in a paradox and it should be calmed with the most importance, but Huck did not do that. Being one of the “Whites”, Huck was not listening to what his racist blood that run in his vein insisted him to do. As it appeared in the text, “Jim said it made him all over trembly and feverish to be so close to freedom. Well, I can tell you it made me all over trembly and feverish, too, to hear him, because I begun to get it through my head that he WAS most free--and who was to blame for it?” (57) Also, “…It was a close place. I took it up, and held it in my hand. I was a- trembling, because I’d got to decide, forever, betwixt two things, and I knowed it. I studied a minute, sort of holding my breath, and then says to myself: ”All right, then, I’ll GO to hell”--and tore it up.” (134) The feeling also showed the caring of Huck for Jim though he actually believed Christian view on slavery.

4. The mutual understanding and the fellow feeling is a must in any relationship to be the close to a closer one and finally be the closest. Huck believed only Jim and same to Jim, he believed Huck alone. Also they have the same supporting role to each other as they thought in the same way. As the text describes it, ”… Jim said he reckoned I would believe him next time. And he said that handling a snake-skin was such awful bad luck that maybe we hadn’t got to the end of it yet. ... Well, I was getting to feel that way myself, though I’ve always reckoned that looking at the new moon over your left shoulder is one of the carelessness and foolishness things a body can do. ”(35)

Works Cited

Hemingway, Ernest. ”The Green Hills of Africa”, New York, Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1935.

Eliot, T. S. ”Introduction to Huckleberry Finn.” From The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, vii–xvi. London: Cresset Press, 1950.

Ellison, Rlaph ,“Change the Joke and Slip the Yoke.”,Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. An Authoritative Text Backgrounds and Sources Criticism. Ed. Sculley Bradley, et al. 2nd ed. New York: Norton, 1977. 421-22.

Twain, Mark. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Charles L. Webster , The United States, 1885(29,33,35,54,57,134,174).