The Unsorted BBS Collection/thegreatunsorted.tar/thegreatunsorted/texts/term_papers/huckfinn.txt

Text File | 1996-04-08 | 4KB | 62 lines

Huckleberry Finn written by Mark Twain is a resilient child who has lived through
a troubled childhood and come out on top.  Some of the following traits were born
into Huck and others were developed at an early age.  The travels of this boy are
accompanied by an ex-slave who is referred to only as Jim.  Together they must
deal with many strange and ominous characters such as the Duke and King who
are best summed up as frauds.  Through the turmoil of dealing with right and
wrong Huck shows such resiliencies as insight, independence, initiative, creativity,
humor, morality, and the ability to build strong relationships.  This essay is going
to focus on these important qualities of Huck and how he was able to put them to
use through out the novel.
    In many occurrences Huck uses his insight to question society and
individuals.  Huck questions the Duke and King repeatedly through his journeys
with them, and is able to conclude that they are frauds to a tee.  Huck also
questions Tom Sawyer who he seems to idolize but at the same time doubt his
ideas.  This occurs frequently during the plot to steal Jim back where in Tom has
many outlandish ideas of what a prisoner has to do to escape.
    In addition to showing insight Huck also frequently demonstrates
independence.  This quality is apparent when Huck leaves his abusive pap and
goes out on his own to fend for himself.  Huck also shows independence when he
decides to befriend Jim who due to the color of his skin was not accepted by
society.
    Not only does Huck show independence but he also shows initiative by
taking control of his own fate and leaving his go no where life with pap.  Huck was
able to plan his escape and get out of the cabin on his own in order to lead his own
life.  Huck also showed initiative when he was able to rid himself of the Duke and
the King after he became overly disgusted with their behavior and deceptive acts.


Another good quality of Huck, in addition to initiative, is creativity which Huck
exhibits on many occasions.  One of these such occasions was the way in which he
escaped from his pap.  Huck went into great detail to convince everyone that he had
been killed and dragged into the woods.  Huck also used his skills of creativity to
convince many people that he was someone who he wasnÆt such as the time he
went into the town dressed as a girl in order to find out what was going on in the
town.
    In addition to being creative Huck also had an undeniable sense of humor.
Huck would use humor to get him through some of the rougher parts of his trip,
such as when he decided to play a joke on Jim by placing a dead snake in his bed.
Unfortunately this joke did not turn out as well as planned for Jim became angry
and terrified.  Through out the novel Huck exhibits such behavior as making fun of
society and its flaws which adds a touch of humor to the book.
    HuckÆs great sense of humor was accompanied by an even greater sense of
morality.  Huck had a sense of compassion for Jim and Huck knew that what was
happening to him was wrong and offered to help.  Huck also relied on his morals
when it came to the Duke and the King and how they were attempting to steal the
only money the Wilks family had after their uncle died.  Huck managed to get the
money back to the girls and defraud the Duke and King at the same time.
    Aside from HuckÆs moral beliefs, his skill at building strong relationships
will never die.  Huck has created a bond with Jim that is unbreakable, through their
journeys and hardships, they are friends for life.  Huck also has a less potent bond
with Tom.  Unfortunately this is more of an idolizer-idolize bond, which is difficult
to bring to the next level of a one-on-one relationship.


All in all Huck is an extremely well rounded individual who has shown skills that
are neither demanded nor possessed by young men of his age in any time period
whether it be in the 1800Æs or the 21st century.  When we look back at Huck and
see what he has had to go through and still managed to come out on top, it is
commendable.  After explaining these resiliencies and giving evidence to support
each, I hope that you will come to the conclusion that Huck was and is a truly
resilient child now and forever.