Five Things to Do with a Quotation
1. Analyze a word and/or image from the quote. Explain how the word’s
denotation and connotation reveal or reinforce the meaning of the passage.
Explain how the image’s sensory details reveal or reinforce the point the
quote illustrates.
Words to Know
 denotation--The denotation of a word is its specific dictionary meaning.
 connotation--The connotation of the word is its tone—that is, the emotions or
associations it normally arouses in people using, hearing, or reading it. Depending on
what these feelings are, the connotation of a word may be favorable (positive),
unfavorable (negative), or neutral.
 sensory imagery--Sensory imagery is details that appeal to your sight, taste, touch,
smell, and sound.
Prompt: Analyze the role of respectability in Tom Sawyer’s supposedly lawless
gang. Why is it mandatory for each member to have a respectable family? Examine
the idea that Huck, who has had more experience with breaking the law than any of
the others, comes close to being excluded from the gang.
What words or images would you need to explain or define from this prompt?
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2. Explain how the information in a quote relates to a significant action,
characterization, or idea from the text. You are pointing out an important
connection the reader might not have noticed.
Part of the prompt says: Examine the idea that Huck, who has had more experience
with breaking the law than any of the others, comes close to being excluded from the
gang.
Possible analysis: Of all the boys in the gang, Huck, himself, is the perfect representation
of the gang’s “wanna be” rebellious nature. He is an orphaned outcast of society who
lives on his own, swears constantly, and consistently lives on the fringe of society. So it
is ironic that of all the most qualified boys, who truly deserve to be in a gang, Huck is
almost excluded from the group for not having a “respectable” family. The majority of
the boys come from a traditional family of parents and siblings. While the boys strive to
be rebels and break with “respectable” morals and traditions of society, they
inadvertently reinforce the societal definition of “respectable” when they nearly exclude
Huck because he doesn’t have a father or mother.
3. Sometimes what a quote doesn’t say is more important than its surface details.
Explain how the information the quote lacks relates to a significant action,
characterization, or idea from the text.
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Five Things to Do with a Quotation
Here’s an example of where the importance of a quote lies in what is unsaid:
After Jim calls Huck “trash” for playing a cruel joke on him, Huck notes, “…It
made me feel so mean I could almost kissed his foot to get him to take it back. It
was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a
n-----; but I done it, and warn’t ever sorry for it afterward, neither” (86).
Analysis: While it’s clear, on the most literal level, that Huck apologizes to Jim,
the disdainful emphasis on the word “his” and the idea of Huck taking fifteen
minutes to go say that he was sorry shows this apology was reluctant and
insincere. This action ties into the theme of friendship and racism of the novel.
The real battle is a conflict of conscience over racist ideals. Huck fights
with the stereotypes about power and rights that white society taught him, and at
the same time, he struggles with the immediate emotion of guilt that he feels
when he learns that he’s hurt Jim. Essentially, Huck is surprised because property,
like Jim, isn’t supposed to have feelings. The phraseology that Huck gives to the
audience leading up to the actually admittance of wrongdoing is bothersome.
Huck notes that he must “work [himself] up to go and humble himself to a n-----“
(86, brackets added). This “lowering” of oneself is clearly an example of a power
struggle between superior and inferior social statuses. Huck, a superior white
man, is “swallowing his pride” in order to “lower” himself to a level of a slave
just to apologize. Never once does Huck acknowledge that he’s hurt “Jim the
man,” “Jim the person,” or “Jim my friend.” Instead, he uses the racial slur
“n-----.“ He uses this slur when he wants to generalize about slaves and create
emotional distance between him and Jim. It’s a generic affront that takes away
Jim’s individuality and importance—essentially it’s like apologizing to a dog
that’s been kicked. It’s a subhuman word and an emotionally malignant way to
refer to anyone.
Finally, Huck’s last thoughts reinforce the air of insincerity about this
scene. His words are obstinate and are directed at other whites. He states, “…but I
done it, and warn’t never sorry afterward neither” (86). “..but I done it” refers the
unmentionable act of conciliation before a slave. Huck’s tone is defiant and
unsettled. He is affronting anyone who would dare to question him on breaking
the social taboo of fraternizing and befriending a “n-----.“
4. Discuss the symbolism of an object mentioned in a quotation.
“sivilze” versus “civilize”
Response: The thematic duality of respectability is first represented by the
different spelling of the word—“sivilize.” In the novel, Huck talks about how the
Widow Douglas tries to “sivilize” him (1). Huck views this style of living as
rough when he describes having to say grace before meals, wearing stiff, starched
clothes, sleeping in a bed, and going to school for “book learn’n.” Twain uses an
unconventional spelling of the word to make fun of the traditional ways of life
and to present it in a new light, suggesting that “civilized” life is artificial and
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Five Things to Do with a Quotation
meaningless. According to Huck’s values, “respectable,” easy living is sleeping
on the ground, smoking, cussing, and never bathing. Essentially, Twain flip-flops
the norms of civilization with Huck’s definition of “sivilization.” This creates an
inversion of values.
5. Explain the irony of a quotation. Discuss both the literal level of the
quotation, and its ironic implications.
Think about
 Surface Questions: These are questions that address a word’s denotation.
 Under the Surface Questions: These are questions that address a
passages’ denotation of words, images, symbolism, satire, irony, or
allegory.
Example #1: When Jim realizes the Huck played a cruel joke on him, regarding their
separation being a dream, Jim scolds, “En all wuz, thinkin’ ‘bout wuz how you could
make a fool uv ole Jim wid a lie. Dat truck dah is trash; en trash is dat puts dirt on de
head er dey fren’s en makes ‘em ashamed” (85) Translation: (That trick is trash; and trash
is what puts dirt on their friends’ head and makes them feel ashamed)
Your commentary should begin like this:
 Jim’s reprimand towards Huck shows…..
 In this scene Jim shows…
a. What is the literally meaning of trash in this quote?
b. What is ironic about this quote?
Example #2: As a result, Huck feels remorseful and apologizes to Jim, promising not to
play anymore mean jokes. But before Huck carries out his conciliatory act, he tells the
reader, “It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to
a n*****…” (86).
Your commentary should begin like this:
 Huck’s reluctance is a result of….
 What is literally occurring in this scene?
 What ironic implications exist here?
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