adventures of
Huckleberry Finn
---Themes, motifs,
Issues, and Miscellany
Feraco
American literature
17 january 2008
As You Finish Huck
Keep an eye on the topics we
discuss today
I strongly, strongly suggest rereading the text before the final
– You’ll be amazed by what you can
discover on a second pass
– It’s a good skill to develop
You’ll need it for college!
Realism
A Response to Romanticism
– Think Trans. And Anti-Trans.
Post-Civil War
Tried very hard to capture life exactly
as it was, rather than romanticizing it
– Rather than focus on emotion or prize it,
realists tried to prevent their works from
being filtered through their emotional lenses
Characters came from poorer, superrural or super-urban backgrounds
– Included workers at factories, people living
in slums, etc. – the types of people who never
showed up as romantic heroes
R&R
How is Twain’s Novel Romantic?
– In what ways does it defy
romanticism?
How is it Realist?
– Shows the country/society as it
exists, versus the idealized
portrayals in other books (such as
the ones Tom reads)
– It’s very pratical, but it can come off
as harsh
Twain as a Realist
Twain is one of the greatest realists
– possibly The greatest – of all time.
One of the reasons he’s so great is
that he dares to examine the “whys”
– why does society have problems?
Why do characters experience
conflicting emotions? Why do we act
the way we do?
Satire
”a literary work holding up human
vices and follies to ridicule or
scorn” – Merriam-Webster
Satirical Authors usually use humor
or Sarcasm to study an issue, or to
attack something they feel needs to
be fixed
the point of satire is often to help
point out a way for us to improve.
Think Stephen Colbert, “South Park,”
“The Simpsons,” etc.
Satire In Huck
“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.” – twain’s
notice on the first page
Think of all of the things Twain takes on
and portrays as silly or exaggerated –
realism, honor, society itself!
Do you really believe there aren’t any
messages, meanings, or storylines in the
book?
Racism
This hovers over the text at all
times, most obviously when Jim is
featured.
How does the text deal with racism?
is huck Racist?
Check out the hypocrisy of the
slaveholders, many of whom are
supposed to be upstanding citizens
Twain published this after slavery
was abolished, but set the action
before the war
Innocence
Huck is innocent in a sense; if
nothing else, he is deeply naïve
However, his naïveté is very
different from tom’s, which is
usually destructive and smacks of
ignorance
Contrast living in nature with
living in society
Development
Because Huck is Young, He has the
opportunity to grow and change
– Contrast this with Pap, who is old,
ornery, and ignorant
How are we reminded that huck is
young? What does huck’s youth
contribute to the book?
Honor/Pride
Honor has its place in the novel; Huck
often behaves honorably (although
you’ll see by the end of the book that Tom
Sawyer doesn’t follow his example)
Jim is also honorable, in a lot of different
ways – he’s the only decent male figures
Huck “Sets aside his pride” when Jim
rebukes him, which shows a lot about him
However, the Grangerfords and the
Shepherdsons kill each other off over a
misplaced sense of wounded pride & honor
Disappointment – and the
failure of society
People often lie to huck
His hopes are dashed, but he
bounces back
His prayers go unanswered
No one protects him from pap
He doesn’t belong in school