Preview

Huckleberry Finn Society Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
848 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Huckleberry Finn Society Analysis
Nathan Jarm
English 11, Period 3
March 18, 2016

How Twain criticizes society

Everyone has a conscience that should be their guide "morality." A conscience is there to tug someone on the shoulder to pull them in the right direction, on what is "right" and what is "wrong." Mark Twain writes a book called "The adventures of Huckleberry Finn" about a delinquent child named Huckleberry Finn that faces challenges throughout the story, deciding what is "right" and "wrong" which makes the character twist and turns at some situations. Mark Twain points out how the story is full of hypocrisy with his characters representing how corrupt things are in the book, by using Huck, some minor characters, and Pap
Society is a group of people living together in a more or less ordered community. Living in a
…show more content…
He had the whitest shirt on you ever see, too, and the shiniest hat; and there ain't a man in that town that's got as fine clothes as what he had; and he had a gold watch and chain, and a silver-headed cane—the awful- est old gray-headed nabob in the State." (Chapter 6) Pap is belligerent racist drunk that is astonished, that African Americans have the rights to vote also there not allowed to have fine things because of the way he skin color is. Pap is the type of character that everyone dislikes with a passion in this book, also the readers. "It's so. You can do it. I had my doubts when you told me. Now looky here; you stop that putting on frills. I won't have it. I'll lay for you, my smarty; and if I catch you about that school I'll tan you good. First you know you'll get religion, too. I never see such a son." (Chapter 5) Pap is clearly jealous of his own son, fathers should be proud that their children are eager to learn and not make mistakes like they did. In this case pap is the opposite of caring, Pap is the type of man that has no integrity and willing to sell his own son for

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    The epitome of society is symbolized by the Widow Douglass’s home. After all, it is there that Huck is forced to wear civilized clothing, eat and speak in a civilized manner, and act civilized in all possible ways. He runs away from this symbol of civilization to the freedom of the river. Then, of course, there is Jim, the symbol of all enslaved people in the South. He is downtrodden, looked down upon by all of the other characters in the book, and desperately seeking his freedom. In contrast to the rest of society, however, he is loyal and honest. Huck Finn, the protagonist of the book, contains an element of symbolism as well. He symbolizes the struggle between a person and his conscience, as well as between society and free-thinking. Throughout…

    • 296 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In the novel “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain, societies boundaries and expectations are pushed to their limits not only by the actions of the main character, Huck, but in Twain’s controversial writing style. Though the book is often claimed to be offensive, it was actually a parody of the times. Mark Twain was ridiculing the racist tendencies of mid-1800s society and their views of the poor/lower classes. Through reading “Huck Finn” it is apparent Twain is challenging the reader to rethink society’s…

    • 86 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    and Miss Watson try to "sivilize" Huck by making him stop all of his habits,…

    • 727 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The themes of society and of being civilized are ever-present in Mark Twains “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”. Taking place in the late 1830s, positions concerning social structure and political correctness are in stark contrast to those held today. With this in mind, it makes it difficult to determine which character would be considered the most “civilized”.…

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    This story is about a boy who pretty much has a front row seat to witness the horrible things that we see being broadcasted on the news today; such as racism. Huck knows that the racists situations that he is witnessing around him are wrong in the eyes of society, but in his heart he knows what's right, which is why he chose to help Jim. Throughout the adventure , Huck struggles with the thoughts of turning Jim in, not because he knows it's the right thing to do but because he knows what could be the consequences for himself and Jim. The only thing that is holding Huck back from turning Jim in is their friendship and what he feels in his heart.…

    • 287 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    "It is not what an author says, but what he or she whispers, that is important."…

    • 460 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Mark Twain’s book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck Finn was a troubled kid who grew up and matured in several ways. Huck ran away and had to learn how to make it on his own, and as he went on that journey of going from boyhood to adulthood he learned so much about doing the right thing.…

    • 785 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mark Twain’s The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn is an American masterpiece. Contrary to The Algerine Captive Mark Twain‘s satire and irony is emphasized through the style and the use of the American “vernacular” dialect for the first time as well as the use of the African-American dialect. Therefore Huckleberry Finn remains the work that elevates this onetime rustic humorist into the ranks of literary genius. It is considered by Satirist Dick Gregory once said that Twain “was so far ahead of his time that he shouldn’t even be talked about on the same day as other people Huckleberry Finn is considered as the first American Novel and aimed at forging an American identity independent from the European one. The Novel, hence, satirize the paradoxical issues of slavery and the hypocrisy of the society as well as the deep intuitions of America.…

    • 1160 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Twain shows Jim’s experiences of suffering for Huck in this novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to demonstrate Jim’s humanity even as a slave. During this time period, African Americans were regarded as property in accordance with text in the Old Testament. In this novel, the equality was only apparent on the Mississippi river. The river represents equality wherein Huck and Jim treat each other as equals. It is not until they reach land that they are bound by societal norms that limit their interactions. Even then, Jim and Huck still have a caring relationship, with Twain’s use of the novel as his medium showing his contempt for society.…

    • 664 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot.” This notice at the beginning is controversial; some people say that it is a warning that was written for readers at the time when slavery was a sensitive issue to talk about, while others interpret it as a satirical comment about the way literature is scrutinized to find means and morals in a book. But I believe what Mark Twain is trying to say is: “Don’t try to analyze the book, just read it for fun, no pressure! “ In the book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, the lifestyle of the Southerners in the mid-1800s are depicted through the eyes of a 13 years old boy Huck Finn living along the Mississippi River. It is a book about the search for freedom. Main characters in the movie seek freedom from social and moral constraints. Throughout novel, Huck learns to follow his own morals and values over what society deemed to be acceptable in the 1800 s. He eventually achieved what he desires the most-freedom. In Twain’s opinion, it is the "closed mindsets about slavery of the society prohibited the development of personal morality and social justice."…

    • 1693 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Twain uses Pap, an unethical, abusive, drunken father, in order to expose racism and ignorance in Southern white society so that the audience will understand Twains’ position on these issues. During Pap’s rant about the government, he tells of a freed African American that came into town and, “had the whitest shirt on…and the shiniest hat [too]…he was a p’fessor in a college…and he could vote” (29). Pap shows his contempt towards the fact that an African American is better dressed and better educated than himself. I believe that Twain emphasizes racism in the excerpt to show its crudeness brought on by the people in Southern white society, and is trying to open the eyes of the people to what is really happening, or what he thinks is happening. In using Pap to project this ideology, satirical irony is prominent in the fact that Pap, himself, represents the lowest class in society. Furthermore, after Pap describes his pushing the free black man off the sidewalk, he states, “I says to the people, why ain’t this nigger put up at auction and sold? – that’s what I want to know” (29). Pap exhibits animosity for the rights that the black man possesses. Twain attempts to attack the idea that white people deserve more rights than the blacks, and that an African American man has no rights to education or wealth.…

    • 520 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The constant use of the epithet “nigger” is what makes critics most outraged at Huckleberry Finn. In fact, multiple people have taken action and protested the use of this epithet because of its offensive and crude nature. According to Carey-Webb, In November 1991, “black student and parent concerns during the teaching of Huckleberry Finn led to a decision to immediately remove the text from classrooms…. Teachers were prohibited from further discussion of Huckleberry Finn or of reasons for its removal until “more sensitive” approaches were found”(Carey-Webb 23). To remove Huckleberry Finn from our literary canon would be to deny students a clear explanation of the struggles America went through and is still going through to overcome racism.…

    • 306 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain morality is often questioned. The main character Huck is in a constant battle of right and wrong. Huck’s journey throughout the book shows how morality can come from anything, things like church, family, and society, but most importantly, from one’s self. The community in the novel states that slavery and the conditions that follow it are acceptable and that African Americans are not equal to its white counterpart.…

    • 640 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A society is a social group with a distinctive cultural and economic organization. It is a complex whole that the members have to communicate or interact with…

    • 378 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    SOCIETY is defined as a voluntary association of individuals for common ends; especially for an organized group working together or periodically meeting because of common interests, beliefs, or profession…

    • 4425 Words
    • 18 Pages
    Better Essays