Examples Of Human Nature In Huckleberry Finn

The theme of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn is that the ideas of society can greatly influence the individual, and sometimes the individual must break off from the accepted values of society to determine the ultimate truth for himself. In Huckleberry Finn's world, society has corrupted justice and morality to fit the needs of the people of the nation at that time. Basically, Americans were justifying slavery, through whatever social or religious ways that they deemed necessary during this time.

On the first Sunday, Huck goes to church with the Grangerfords. He explains that, “It was pretty ornery preaching - all about brotherly love, and suchlike tiresomeness; but everybody said it was a good sermon, and they all talked it over going home and had such a powerful lot to say about faith and good works” (140). Twain uses the Sunday service to make fun of and criticize the thoughtlessness of the Grangerfords. He has the Grangerfords preach brotherly love and talk about good deeds while at the same time they are killing off another family based on a lawsuit that happened more than thirty years ago. Because they have so much pride in themselves and truly believe that what they do to the Shepherdsons is correct, they never think that what they preach completely contradicts everything their family has done during the feud.

A major theme of the novel is the hypocrisy and double standards that are evident in the society surrounding Huck. This trait is found especially within Christian and religious types in the novel. Twain shows almost every good Christian in the novel as having a generous and kind side, which completely contradicts much of their actions. Twain believes that this hypocrisy is the underlining element that makes religion skeptical. As it is seen in the book, almost every good Christian contradicts himself or herself in some way. Perhaps Huck's first example of this was when the Widow Douglas did not allow him to smoke, as it was a mean practice. However, “she took snuff too; of course that was all right, because she done it herself” (Twain 2). Another example was the Grangerfords. Huck described this family as very nice and kind and even considered Buck a good friend. But once again, the hypocrisy of religious types was bound to come into play. These same people are slave owners and have a feud with a similar family, the Shepherdsons for reasons they don't remember. Perhaps the biggest example of this hypocrisy was when Huck went to church with the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons. As Huck explains, “the men took their guns along, so did Buck, and kept them between their knees.... it was pretty ornery preaching all about brotherly love” (Twain 83). It is obvious that the two families had their guns in their laps while the preacher talked about

When Twain was a child he spent every summer at his Uncleś nearby farm where he and his cousins would go to ¨the cabin of an old slave they all called "Uncle Dan'l" who thrilled them with ghost stories and introduced them to spirituals and jubilees ¨(Aftunion). Ron Powers once stated that 'race was always a factor in Twain's consciousness' partly because black people and black voices were the norm for him before he understood there were differences. ¨ (Aftunion) When he was younger these voices were ¨the most powerful, the most metaphorical, the most vivid storytelling voices of his childhood.¨ (Aftunion) Twain had grown up with black people who he respected and he seemed to actually see them as people. He helps incorporate his beliefs about slaves, that they should be treated the same as others and that they have feelings, throughout the story. In the story Twain demonstrates his beliefs on religion when the king goes to the church ¨And then he busted into tears, and so did everybody. Then somebody sings out. ´Take up a collection for him, take up a collection!¨ Wel, half a dozen made a jump to do it, but somebody sings out, ´Let him pass the hat around!´ Then everybody said it, the preacher too¨ (Twain 133). Twain wanted to show the church as gullible. Once the king told them the story and started to cry they were quick to try to help him even though it was just

In the appropriately titled novel, "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn", by author, Mark Twain, a young boy, named, Huckleberry Finn's life is completely changed. The story is basically that, Huck is sent to live with his strict relatives that try to conform him into someone he isn't, but, sequentially ends up traveling down the Mississippi River, with an escaped slave, Jim. As the novel progresses, Jim and Huck develop an extremely close friendship, which makes him change his views on slavery. Despite numerous chances, Huck never turns Jim in, because of his new outlook on slavery. Although slavery is a main theme in the book, it is not the only one. Because, author, Mark Twain creates a social critique by juxtaposing the

Huck Finn, a narcissistic and unreliable young boy, slowly morphs into a courteous figure of respect and selflessness. After Pap abducts the young and civilized Huck, Huck descends into his old habits of lies and half-truths. However, upon helping a runaway slave escape, Huck regains morality and a sense of purpose. Throughout The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck lies to characters, casting the authenticity of the story into doubt but illustrating Huck’s gradual rejection of lying for himself and a shift towards lying for others.

Religion is one of the most constant targets of Twain's satirical pen. In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain portrays contemporary religion as shallow and hypocritical. He criticizes the hypocrisy of conventional religion by comparing it with the true religion of Huck.

    Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn is perhaps one of the most controversial novels the North American Continent has ever produced.  Since its publication more than a hundred years ago controversy has surrounded the book.  The most basic debate surrounding Twain's masterpiece is whether the book's language and the character of Jim are presented in a racist manner.  Many have called for the book to be banned from our nation's schools and libraries.  Mark Twain's novel is about a young boy who was raised in the south before slavery was abolished, a place where racism and bigotry were the fabric of every day life.  The novel is the account of how Huck Finn, who is a product of these

Sometimes making a stand for what is right, especially when it is totally against the customary beliefs of your society, is not an easy accomplishment. In the novel Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, the main character Huck encounters many situations where there is a question of morality. Considering the traditional protocol of his society, Huck has to choose either what his conscience feels is right versus what the customary public views are. In many cases Huck goes with what his conscience feels is right, which always is the proper selection. Ironically, what Huck believes in, unapproved of in the 19th century, is the basis of accepted beliefs in our modern world. Huck lives with the

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a novel full of racism and hypocrisy of the society that we know. Huck continually faces the many challenges of what to do in tough situations dealing with racism and what the society wants him to do. With the novel being written in the first person point of view gives us insightful information into the challenges the Huck is facing and gives us a look into Huck’s head. Huck uses many different techniques to deal with his problems and he gets through them with the end result always being what Huck believes is right. Through Huck’s perspective we see how he deals with all of the racism and hypocrisy of society to form him into the character that he is and to serve the themes of the

As human beings, we all have the right to be our own independent individuals; we are all entitled to our own beliefs and rights under the constitution and declaration of independence. Throughout all the writings studied by different authors, they all reflect the spirit of individualism in the wake of cultural and political change. Depicted in Mark Twain's satiric novel,The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn (1885), the 14 year old advocate huck exposes the hypocrisy of white society's morals during his childhood in the Antebellum South widow douglas his care taker attempts to civilize him by trying to save his soul, because she believes that she has to help him live a better mannered life like herself but, he will not conform to society he rather be himself. The author's purpose for authoring his writing is to inform individuals about racism also to show individuals that it is wrong and how people use religion as an excuse to justify it. Illustrated in Walt whitman's poem ¨Song Of Myself¨ from book Leaves of Grass the poet explains that every individual has a purpose and a journey they must follow and find, also that every individual is made up of the same things so there should be no reason for anyone to feel belittled.the author's main purpose for writing this was to get individuals to enjoy life and not fear death. James McPherson published a nonfiction novel called What We Fought For to help Americans understand why Union soldiers fought against the

Through the theme of rebellion against society, Huck demonstrates the importance of thinking for oneself and embodies the idea that adults are not always right. This is highlighted in his noncompliance when it comes to learning the Bible and in the decisions he makes when it comes to Jim, decisions that prove to be both illegal and dangerous. By refusing to conform to standards he does not agree with, Huck relies on his own experiences and inner conscience when it comes to making decisions. As a result, Huck is a powerful vehicle for Mark Twain’s commentary on southern society and

The Grangerfords, who allow Huck to stay with them for as long as he would like, have been involved in a murderous feud with the Shepherdson family for decades, only halting their incessant fighting to attend church with one another on Sundays. Page 109 describes this, stating, “Next Sunday we all went to church...The men took their guns along and kept them between their knees or stood them handy against the wall. The Shepherdsons done the same. It was pretty ornery preaching-all about brotherly love...everybody said it was a good sermon.” Once more, Twain uses irony to highlight the hypocrisy of human beings, specifically of Christians, by describing how the rival families put their differences aside long enough to listen to a sermon on brotherly love, only to attempt to kill each other the very next day, undermining the message of the sermon. Through the implementation of irony, Twain succeeds at criticizing the hypocritical nature of many Christians and of the societies in which they live.

The moral development of Huckleberry Finn in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is constant. As the novel progresses there are many situations and examples of Huck’s moral development as his journey goes on. Huck struggles to decipher between right and wrong when it comes to protecting Jim, leaving his father, and dealing with the con-men. Huckleberry Finn is faced with the decision of agreeing with society's views on african americans or treating Jim as a real human being. Huck has spent his entire life being raised to believe african americans are less important than others and was constantly submerged in the culture of slavery.

Although The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an exciting and seemingly light-hearted story, Mark Twain wrote the book to expose the systemic flaws in antebellum American society. One of its major themes is hypocrisy. Twain used a satirical approach to uncover the racial and religious hypocrisy of the South.