Huck Finn blog 2-- through chpt 22

The first topic of discussion includes Huck’s father, Pap. Being an extremely hypocritical man, he adds to the theme of judgmental and disoriented society. He is definitely not the definition of a good parent since he is a drunk and usually stays out of Huck’s life. Most parents would want their child to be in good care and receive a good education, but Pap is the complete opposite. In chapter five, Pap shows up complaining about Huck’s “starchy clothes” and also tells him, “you drop that school you hear?” Pap will never learn to be a father and will always be a drunk. In fact, the judge states that the only solution to fixing Pap would be to shoot him. He could easily represent the poor morals of society since he has no idea how to be a good parent and is continuously drunk and getting into fights. He also is very hypocritical since he tells Huck how he should be living his life, yet he hardly stays in contact with Huck.

Other characters that also represent hypocrites in society were the Grangerford and Shepardson families. Both families are frequent church-goers and also believe they are very religious, yet they are continuously fighting each other as if they are battling in a war. Even though they go to church, they hardly follow the Commandments or beliefs of the church. The families kill one another as if killing is not a horrendous crime at all. They always brought their guns everywhere, even to church, as backup if the families were to get in a feud. These families are considered hypocritical since they believe they are extremely religious, yet they commit sin after sin and still believe they are perfect saints.

Adventures of Huck Finn contain multiple superstitions that Jim always tells Huck throughout the reading. Jim is always introducing new superstitions. A few examples are on page 61, where Jim tells that the birds flying overhead are a sign that rain is coming and also to not count the things you cook for dinner or else it will bring you bad luck. Bad luck will also come with shaking a tablecloth. On page 63, Jim tells one of his superstitions and states, ‘”Ef you’s got hairy arms en a hairy breas, it’s a sign dat you’s agwyne to be rich.” Jim has hairy arms, and tells Huck that he used to be rich at one time and eventually will be rich again, making the appearance that the superstition is true. Jim’s superstitions tend to help Huck at times too. When Huck and Jim see a dead body floating down the river, Jim recognizes that the body is Pap, but does not want Huck to see so he tells him to look away while Jim covers the body. Later, Huck has the urge to see the body, but Jim tells him that looking at the dead body would bring bad luck. Jim is saving Huck from having to see his father dead. So, whether all of Jim’s superstitions are true or not, some of them can help Huck in a way.

What theme is Twain building in this chapter when Huck chooses not to turn Jim in for the reward money? Once Huck found out that people are searching for Jim and even including a reward for whoever finds him, Huck is in a predicament. He has to choose between turning Jim in or being a true friend and not telling a soul about Jim.  Even though Huck knows that he is making the wrong decisions by not turning him in, he still chooses to do it. He thinks he will go to Hell for not turning Jim in, but he also wants to be a companion. This situation adds to the theme of morals. Even though Huck knows that turning Jim in would be the right choice, he goes against his will and does not tell anyone about Jim. Huck repeatedly choosing to not tell anyone about Jim proves that he has poor morals and goes against his gut in what he should truly do.

The Duke and the dauphin were introduced in chapter 20 when they come aboard Huck and Jim’s raft. They have a knack at tricking people into believing their lies. A few situations include the dauphin receiving money donations from people when he tells people that he is going to be a missionary. Another situation is when the duke comes up with the plan of tying Jim up whenever they see other people on the river to pretend as if they caught the runaway slave (Jim) and will receive the $200 reward. The Duke and dauphin should eventually add to a theme and might teach others not to believe everything they hear.