Emma Haas
May 21, 2014
Professor Oster
Huckleberry
Finn and His Psychological Journey
“ I thought them poor girls and them niggers would break
their hearts for grief; they cried around each other, and took on so it most
made me sick to see it. The girls said they hadn’t ever dreamed of seeing the
family separated or sold away from the town. I can’t ever get it out of my
memory, the sight of them poor miserable girls and niggers hanging around each
other’s necks and crying; and I reckon I couldn’t a stood it all but would a
had to bust out and tell on our gang if I hadn’t knowed the sale warn’t no
account and the niggers would be back home in a week or two” (Twain, 196).
Without
a doubt, the story of Huckleberry Finn brilliantly depicts a typical Bildungsroman as we mentioned in class. Throughout
his journey, Huck is faced with many questionable events that he must justify
as right or wrong in his head. We know that he has already begun to disregard
the moral code of the law, and is living by his own code instead. This passage
demonstrates the conflicting ideologies that Huck is currently trying to make
sense of.
He is beginning to
see slaves as “real humans” who feel and hurt just as much as any white person.
They value the same things as any “righteous” white person, such as their
families. Huck has observed this when listening to Jim mourn over being
separated from his children and wife. Huck resolves that, “ I do believe he
cares just as much for his people as white folks does for their’n. It don’t
seem natural, but I reckon it’s so” (Twain, 167). This thought resonates with
us readers again in observing the Wilks’ slaves be auctioned off and separated.
We immediately feel for them as we do for Jim, yet it is unclear if Huck makes
that same connection. He feels for Jim and his family because Jim is a close
friend he has gotten to know. However Huck might not generalize these feelings
to all slaves and black people.
Either way, it is
obvious that this moment is something that deeply haunts him. Huck has become
so morally conflicted on his journey that it is actually making him physically
ill to endure parts of it. He frequently wants to do the “right” thing, but
doing the “right” thing could lead to negative repercussions for Jim. If Huck
doesn’t play into the Duke and King’s scams then he runs the risk of them
selling out Jim for the reward money. Even for us readers it is hard to
conclude what the best option for Huck would be. He basically has to pick the
lesser of two evils, because no matter what, someone will get hurt.
I
also found the last line of this passage very intriguing. I believe Huck
genuinely buys into the idea that this family he has just allowed to get separated
will be together again in a week or so. If he didn’t think that, he would go “tell
on our gang” (Twain, 196). This shows he has grown enough to sacrifice his own
well being, to do right by these girls he has met. By default, it also shows he
would risk losing Jim to help them. If the girls weren’t involved in the
scenario, I couldn’t see Huck worrying as much about getting the slaves back
together again. There is still a fog clouding Huck’s mind as to what is morally
right when it comes to slaves.
While
Huck’s perception of black people has definitely evolved over the course of his
Bildungsroman, it is important to
look at the context of it. Every positive insight Huck gains is directly
associated to Him. We have to make sure not to generalize Huck’s progress towards
all blacks, because it may just be a directed towards his friendship with Jim.
Works Cited
Twain, Mark. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Dover Thrift Edition ed. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, 1994. Print.
Nice pointing out the difference between the way Huck views Jim compared to a generalization to all blacks. I hadn't thought about that before! I tend to think that it is mostly just applied to his relationship with Jim and helping him gain his freedom. There isn't that much textual evidence of Huck and his interactions with other slaves, so it's hard to say.. But this is definitely food for thought!
ReplyDeleteI think your post touches on the same ideas in my post. I think that Huck is growing up and switch from the idea of right and wrong and instead just living by his own moral code which allows him to feel sympathy with slaves. I like how you propose the idea that he is projecting his feelings for Jim onto this family that got separated instead of just overgeneralizing his sympathy to all slaves.
ReplyDeleteHey Emma, this is a very strong and broad topic that we covered quite a bit in class. Huck's battle between his "Sound Heart and Deformed Conscience" as Twain would put it, is one of great controversy and struggle. Focusing on your examples you presented, I think it is true that the conflict he has is fueled by his love and friendship for Jim, and you pointed this out nicely. It is safe to say that the 13 year old isn't portrayed as a rising abolitionist, however he starts to believe that Jim, someone who is supposed to a subordinate species, is actually a human that experiences feelings and love. Huck looks past the color, and that's all enough to prove that he has turned his back on a corrupt society and stayed true to what he believes is the morally sound choice. There are several examples throughout the story of Huck trying to justify his actions whether they are seen in society as "right, or wrong." When writing your paper, try to show his development chronologically. Just remember that this is a very broad topic so you might want to consider that when deciding what to focus on whether it just be about Huck overlooking race, or his fight against society's "sivilization" in general.
ReplyDeleteThis might be helpful!
http://community.weber.edu/WeberReads/sound%20heart.htm