Preview

Religious Hypocrisy In Huck Finn

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
512 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Religious Hypocrisy In Huck Finn
In “the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” society exemplifies religious hypocrisy. Twain speaks to the audience of religious southerners, like Miss Watson, who feel they know the Bible yet remain blind.
Twain uses the archetype goggles, “Her sister, Miss Watson, a tolerable slim old maid, with goggles on” in the characterization of Miss Watson. This was to say she cannot see clearly and is oblivious to reality. With the irony of Miss Watson seemingly knowing all when it comes to religion, even though she is very blind to reality and her hypocritical actions, Twain seems to use Miss Watson’s views of heaven in a satirical manner, “She said it was wicked to say what I said; said she wouldn’t say it for the whole world; she was going to live so
…show more content…
Is it right to reveal a Jew hiding in your home during the Holocaust? Morally speaking, sending someone to his or her inevitable death does not seem to be intuitively good, even though lying is a sin. Huck is an antithetical character to Miss Watson. Huck believes hell would not be so bad if it meant Miss Watson would stop nagging, and Tom Sawyer would be there too. I can see Miss Watson’s idea of heaven as simply “to go around all day long with a harp and sing, forever and ever” sounds much like a fairy tale. There is good reason Huck “didn’t think much of it”. I believe with religion, you cannot equate the wrongdoings of a believer to a non-believer. Miss Watson does the opposite when it comes to Tom Sawyer. She believes Tom Sawyer will not be invited to the “good place” after we all die. Who wants that kind of heaven? It seems to be derived from hypocritical rules of Miss Watson’s faith. Miss Watson’s notions of good lack the moral thinking we intuitively have in modern day. After speaking of heaven determined by good actions, Miss Watson brings in the slaves for dinner prayer. Twain uses irony with Miss Watson being a “humane” slave-owner. These seem to be mutually exclusive. Evidently, Mark Twain uses the hypocrisy of Miss Watson to shed light on character flaws in religious southerners at the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Similarly, Twain uses situational irony to depict and to satirize Miss Watson and Widow Douglas' religious beliefs as well as the hypocrisy of Miss Watson’s guidance. Miss Watson educates Huck about religion and how to act appropriately through telling stories such as “Moses and the Bulrushes” (2), where Moses freed the Hebrew slaves from captivity. However, Miss Watson owns Jim, a slave, contradicting the moral of the story, Moses freeing slaves. Also, it is ironic that Miss Watson brings her slaves in for evening prayers: ”fetched the niggers in and had prayers”(3).Despite against the moral character of Christianity of having slaves, Miss Watson continues to teach these “righteous” behaviors to Huck, creating an ironic situation. Although…

    • 150 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mark Twain wrote the renowned nineteenth century novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as a humorist, with intentions solely entertain the reader. Although the author warns at the start of the book, “persons attempting to find a moral in this narrative will be banished”, he submerses the reader into Southern society to evaluate their values (Notice). Satirists seek to find motives behind people’s actions and by dramatizing the contrast between appearance and reality; they strive to aware readers of the unpleasant truths within society. With both satire and irony, Twain exposes the selfish qualities of Southern society and their unreligious morals through his realist perspective.…

    • 920 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The conflict between society as well as religion against the individuals ability to see past the mold that we live in, is a theme that is portrayed throughout the Huckleberry Finn. The book begins by creating a scenario in which a young boy, brought up in a regular South American society in the early 1800's and goes on to have him fight his way through a complex, internal, moral struggle caused by his love and friendship for a runaway slave. He had to figure out at a weather “right” was defined by what is correct in the eyes of society, or by what he felt was “right” in his heart, and then make a major decision. Huck Finn's inner struggles included; differentiating between religious, governmental, and societal rules which taught to him what is acceptable and what is not from the day of birth,and his own moral instincts. When it came time for huckleberry to make up his mind he took all that he was taught by society and his own ideology in to account and then he declared “Alright then, I’ll go to hell”. This indicated that Huck believed that following his own moral compass was more important than following the moral compass of others, or even G-d for that matter.…

    • 670 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Set in a pre-civil war time period, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is overall controversial and symbolic of a greater moral that is heavily present in this society. During this time was a large separation of North and South over the ethics of slavery and the morals of the enslaved population. During this story the protagonist, Huck Finn, makes a very important ethical decision upon whether he should or should not turn in Jim, a runaway slave. Huck has a moment of moral liberation and searches the social and religious principles of society. By having to think about these things when making a decision such as this, it can be said that this society is backwards. Mark Twain suggests that society is morally wrong with what they believe is right, their opinion of civilized and has a faulty logic.…

    • 634 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    However, the novel was not a merely a basic story, it was a powerful mean of political propaganda, and had Twain left out what makes the book so controversial, the significance of said propaganda would have completely fallen flat, as there would have been no controversy to carry it. An example of anti- religious propaganda from the book would be: “When we got back to the raft and he come to count up he found he had collected eighty-seven dollars and seventy-five cents. And then he had fetched away a three-gallon jug of whisky, too, that he found under a wagon when he was starting home through the woods. The king said, take it all around, it laid over any day he’d ever put in in the missionarying line. He said it warn’t no use talking, heathens don’t amount to shucks alongside of pirates to work a camp-meeting with” (Twain 129). This shows Twain’s mockery of the religious, and how they are fooled into giving an obvious con-man (at least from Huck’s perspective) money. This is also satirical because it the King is an apparent con artist to the reader, but the devout Christians can barely look beyond the religious veil that covers their eyes. During the 1840s, religion was thought to make one see the world clearer, so satire is played out by this. His abolition propaganda is demonstrated when Aunt Sally asked Huck if he was late because his boat had grounded. He responded with, “It warn’t the grounding—that didn’t keep us back but a little. We blowed out a cylinder-head.” Aunt Sally said, “Good gracious! anybody hurt?” Huck replied, “No’m. Killed a nigger.” Aunt Sally’s response was a prime example of satire and propaganda: “Well, it’s lucky; because…

    • 1757 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    In the beginning of the novel Huck Finn is not able to “see” with his heart because he is taught how to see every other way possible. Therefore he is conflicted and unable to see things for what they actually are. Miss Watson is Huck’s teacher and she symbolizes conventional education. She teaches Huck to view things based on societal norms, this is exemplified by her teachings of Christianity and etiquette. Christianity in its simplest form is a religion based on love, forgiveness, and purity. Overtime the religion was misrepresented and misinterpreted by many people. Heaven, or according to Huck, “the good place”, became some kind of a finish line to the competitive mindset of humans, and also sinning became a very shallow part of the religion. Not meeting the proper standards of society was considered a sin. Mark Twain uses satire to mock how people have changed an innocent sanctity into a competitive and shallow establishment. Miss Watson is reprimanding Huck and explains to him the “good” and “bad” places, and how if he always misbehaves then he will not be able to go to the good place. He thinks to himself, “Now she had got a…

    • 1337 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the beginning of the novel, Mark Twain shows his disdain for the blind faith of religion through Huck’s confusion. For example, when Huck states; “I says to myself, if a body can get anything they pray for, why don't Deacon Winn get back the money he lost on pork? Why can't the widow get back her silver snuffbox that was stole? Why can't Miss Watson fat up? No, says I to myself, there ain't nothing in it,” (14) he cannot comprehend how the answers to prayers can be selective. Twain uses Huck to show his own opposition towards the blind faith people put in prayer, when they rarely receive what it is they are praying for. Twain also shows his distaste for the gullibility of religious people. In chapter twenty, when the King and Huck visit a church, the King pretends that he is a pirate, who after hearing this sermon is now reformed, and will try to convince his fellow pirates to follow in his footsteps. The people of the church believe his story with no hesitation and even go as far as to take up a collection for his quest to reform the other pirates. “And then he busted in to tears, and so did everybody else. Then somebody sings out ‘Take up a collection for him, take up a collection!’ ...So the King went all through the crowd with his hat, swabbing his eyes, and blessing the people and praising them and thanking them for being so good to the poor pirates away off there;...and he was invited to stay a week; and everybody wanted him…

    • 947 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout the world-renowned novel of Huckleberry Finn, one can argue that religious satire plays an instrumental role for the overall plot. This satire does not only make the book more humorous but is the main way Twain can convey his message about conventional religion. Through out the first chapters, one can conclude that Twain disagrees with traditional religious views. This becomes critically clear to the reader through Twain’s comical inferences of satire in the first chapter that run the gamut from disregarding the authenticity of the Bible to plainly mocking the common core beliefs of Catholicism. After reading the novel, one can agree that Twain completely communicates his message through humorous satire.…

    • 641 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This was a society which for Twain was shrouded in a veil of self-deception and where its practitioners preached hypocritical and absurd religious values. These traits, which are exemplified in characters such as the Widow Douglas, Miss Watson and Silas Phelps are munificent and satirically exposed throughout the novel. These people are all well-intentioned Christians, but their religion has deceived them into thinking that slavery is perfectly acceptable, and that slaves are something less than people. The Watson sisters are one of the most prominent examples of this type of hypocrisy. Early in the novel, Huck observes that the sisters represent two different versions of heaven “I could see that there was two Providences.” (p. 21). The fact that Huck observes and notes this indicates that his awareness of the hypocrisy around him is increasing. Inevitably, he realizes that both places seem dull and undesirable. The Widow Douglas’s version of heaven, Huck observes, can make a “body’s mouth water” (p.21). Of the two versions of Providence, hers has the greater appeal for Huck; and in chapter 3, he admits that he would prefer to belong to the Widow’s providence “if he [God] wanted” (p.21) him. There is, however, a certain hypocrisy and moral emptiness in the widow's religion. In chapter 1, when she chastises Huck for his “mean…

    • 1108 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Huck Finn Essay

    • 680 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In Jane Smiley’s essay titled, “Say It Ain’t So, Huck”, she thoroughly criticizes Twain and his novel. Throughout her essay, Smiley carries a skeptical and judgmental tone. Her first argument is that the last twelve chapters of the book was a complete “failure”. She supports this, by quoting Leo Marx who stated that, “In the closing episode, however, we lose sight of Jim in the maze of farcical invention.” The problem that Smiley and Marx have (and that “many readers sense intuitively), is that the novel strayed from its central focus, the relationship between Huck and Jim. She claims that because Twain did not really know the actual meaning of racism, the novel had no deep meaning. However, Smiley’s argument could not be more inaccurate. It is at the end of the novel, where Huck and Jim’s relationship truly strengthens and Huck begins to show his true love for Jim. Towards the end, Huck finally begins to understand his own moral conscience and how he must use it. The conclusion shows just…

    • 680 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Navonne Johns once expressed, “A person’s character is shown through their actions in life not where they sit on Sunday” (Quoted in “Quotes About Misleading” 1). Mark Twain shows this religious bigotry through his depiction of the Grangerford and Shepardson family. The two families come to church, and listen to a sermon on brotherly love, while in the next day, kill one another. Contributing to this example, Twain mocks religion through The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn with his satirical attacks on organized religion versus religious beliefs, which contributes to the theme of spiritual hypocrisy.…

    • 929 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Huck Finn Paper

    • 605 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Satire occurs many times in this novel which adds a very entertaining aspect to the novel. One of which is in the beginning where Huck says “By and by they fetched the niggers in and had prayers, and then everybody was off to bed.”(Twain, 8). He points out the fact that Miss Watson wants to be a better Christian and a better person. But she owns slaves and says that they are property which by the definition of a good person she is not one. This a good example on how Twain uses satire to describe the hypocrisy of some people during that time.…

    • 605 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Huck Finn and Racism

    • 924 Words
    • 4 Pages

    to look past conformist and the effects of his environment. Huck was born into a…

    • 924 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mark Twain’s satire consistently addresses the shortcomings of man, as seen in both his commentary on the hypocrisy of slavery within The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and the juxtaposition of humans with “primal” animals within “The Damned Human Race.” By taking characteristics generally considered to be superior aspects of humans, such as patriotism, religion and reason, and revealing inferiorities instead, Twain satirizes humans’ assumption of superiority based solely on augmented intellectual capabilities. Twain views religion not as a path toward enlightenment, but as an excuse to butcher members of opposing faiths. Combining a positive characteristic and its antithesis in a single sentence— “He is the only animal that loves his neighbor as himself, and cuts his throat if his theology isn’t straight”—allows Twain to reveal inconsistencies within mankind’s “spotless”…

    • 548 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Huck Finn

    • 415 Words
    • 2 Pages

    . Humans believe that certain aspects such as religion are what separate humans from animals. But, Twain argues that religion is what makes animals above humans. Differences and discrepancies between religions have throughout history caused many conflicts, wars, and deaths making mankind seem senseless and violent. In both pieces of literature, religion and its effects on humans is discussed. In The Damned Human Race, Twain writes, “Man is the only Slave. And he is the only animal who enslaves.” Ms. Watson, from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is a very religious character. She prays every day, goes to church regularly and insists the Huck do the same. Yet, she owns several slaves. Ironically, she devotes herself to upholding the morals of her religion while defying them at the same time.…

    • 415 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays