The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Reading Guide: CH. 28-31
Page
Term
Chapter 28
182
“I druther”
Summary
187
“erysiplas”
Misuse of erysipelas, a painful skin condition
187
“yaller janders”
misuse of yellow jaundice, a liver condition that causes
the skin to turn yellow-ish
187
“ketching”
Huck means catching, or contagious
187
harrow
A device for breaking up and smoothing out soil on a
farm. Looks like a giant metal comb pulled behind a
tractor.
188
“pluribus-unum mumps”
misuse of “e pluribus unum,” a Latin phrase on the Seal
of the United States meaning “Out of many, one”. Huck
uses it here to sound fancy and educated, as no one
would recognize the difference.
Chapter 29
190
candid
I’d rather
honestly, frankly
191
Tom Collins
In The Great Tom Collins hoax of 1874, as it became
known, the speaker would encourage the listener to
act foolishly by reacting to patent nonsense that the
hoaxer deliberately presents as reality.[1] In
particular, the speaker desired the listener to become
agitated at the idea of someone talking about them to
others such that the listener would rush off to find the
purportedly nearby Tom Collins. Here, the lawyer
refers to the duke as Tom Collins, or a fraud.
192
“complices”
misuse of accomplices
192
“misable”
misuse of miserable
192
“straw tick o’ my bed”
mattress
195
“throw up the sponge”
throw in the towel; give up
197
“might as well try to give Goliar
the slip”
Goliath, as in the story of David and the giant Goliath
from the Bible
Chapter 30
200
cravats
fancy neckties
Chapter 31
202
dasn’t
darest not (dare not or don’t dare)
203
“yellowcution”
misuse of elocution, the art of public speaking
204
doggery
a place where liquor is sold; saloon.
Recall the plot of these chapters in as much detail as possible. How are things getting more and more
complicated for Huck?
Locate and write down quotes (or paraphrase scenarios) that show Twain’s use of SATIRE or
IRONY. Include page numbers.