Some people assume that a greater power controls society. In society authoritative figures set upon younger people certain dogmas about their surroundings, and how to act about themselves and others. Critics argue that human nature and fate always overcome our society. Others yet argue the opposite, or that each of these works with synergy to promote growth with people. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain uses the river as a vessel to reveal how nature and society work together to provide physical growth, yet, at the same time, how society oppresses and molds the individual. Critics agree that individuals need society and support to survive. People gravitate towards these places in order to thrive, “The river was a like …show more content…
Copious amounts of rule help run society and manage the individuals who live in the system. In an attempt to control their citizens and ensure some tranquility for the lives of residents in society, society enacts expectations of people in order to influence a person to act a specific way. Twain wants to show readers these rules, and how these rules can provide balance, but forces an individual to act in an unnatural manner. Along the river people provide for their needs in a positive way, with more jobs, and a thriving economy, however, without the river, people resort to unnatural structure which does not provide much benefit to the individual. Twain and critics believe that the dogmas citizens derive from their society often corrupt the mind and prevent them from their goals at a utopia. In order to mold the mindsets of its citizens, society take the young and frail minds of children and exposes them only to what that society needs in order to function: “In facts “epidemiology is the root cause” for religious faith, he says, because the cultural memes that go into religious dogma (ritual, unquestionable authority, doctrine, and so on) are imposed upon naive young boys and girls and as consequence not subjected to rational debate,” (Quirk 107). Religion serves as a prime example for how society molds minds, as well as a vessel. Citizen’s minds follow their dogmas, however most of their exposure to how they should react to a given situation comes from their
In the novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain it is apparent that there are two different types of lives that can be led- the “sivilized” life on land or the free life along the river. Living on land is a more socially accepted way of life where there are a lot of opportunities, both good and bad. Life on the river is a lot simpler. Huck and Jim find their new lives to be free of conventional rules and regulations and they decide to live the way they want and not bow to societal demands. Twain contrasts life on the wide river to the often problematic life on the land through Huck and Jim’s experiences and adventures. “Twain’s
The act of questioning society is one that many maturing young adults go through as they try to understand civilization. In the novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, we as readers gain perspective into the mind of a young teenage boy who is conflicted between an uncivilized verse civilized way of life. Twain seems to suggest that going through life with a want to be uncivilized is more desirable and fulfilling. Through the language of Huck Finn, Twain suggests that leading a civilized lifestyle is not beneficial to us as human beings.
Mark Twain once described his novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, as “a struggle between a sound mind and a deformed conscience”. Throughout the novel, Huck wrestles with the disparity between his own developing morality and the twisted conscience of his society. In doing so, he becomes further distanced from society, both physically and mentally, eventually abandoning it in order to journey to the western frontier. By presenting the disgust of Huck, an outsider, at the state of society, Mark Twain is effectively able to critique the intolerance and hypocrisy of the Southern South. In doing so, Twain asserts that in order to exist as a truly moral being, one must escape from the chains of a diseased society.
In Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck struggles to conform to society’s views and expectations. Society pressures Huck Finn into earning a standard education, but through his worldly knowledge and common sense, he can view the world differently than the people around him. Through his perspective on Southern society, Huck struggles to accept the moral beliefs that have been instilled upon him at birth because he befriends an African American slave. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain effectively uses the motif of dead bodies to suggest that truth finally reveals the inconsistencies in society through Huck’s common sense.
The first aspect of society Twain ridicules is its attempt at respectability. Huck Finn, a boy referred to as "white trash," has grown up totally believing what society has taught him. Society attempts to teach the
In the fictional novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, the reader sees how society can change people but also how it can shape people and how it can sometimes turn out for the best. In the book,
Society can have a huge impact on an individual's moral growth. Sometimes the impact is positive but other times the learned habits and set morals of society have a negative effect. In Mark Twain's novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the main character, Huck, struggles with what society teaches him and with what he knows to be good and true. During different conflicts concerning either the king and duke, various women or Jim, Huck's sound heart wins the battle over his conscience, which the reader knows to be ill-formed.
Thesis: Twain compares life on land to life on the river by having all of Huck and Jim’s adventures and trouble making on land while the river is the peaceful retreat from
We all struggle to fight against society’s rules. Whether it’s getting up to go to school or obeying a curfew, in some way we all rebel against the expectations of our society. In Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, there is an overwhelming battle against society, especially through its main character, Huckleberry Finn. Though he knows in his heart what he is doing is right, everyone says that he deserves to go to hell for his action.
Society skews the truth. Each day individuals are given the choice to accept or decline twisted absolutes. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn takes the reader on a journey through a boy’s struggle between society and himself. This boy, Huck, learns of superstition, religion, and the worth of each human being. At every turn, he is given a choice to accept or decline what he is being told about each of these things. His reaction and choice challenge the reader to examine himself or herself; Mark Twain, the author, wants to know if the reader is comfortable being swept along the current of the day’s culture or if they are brave enough to swim against when someone should.
Mohandas Gandhi once said, “Morality is rooted in the purity of our hearts.” However, it may not hold true in Twain’s novel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In the novel, the protagonist Huck Finn’s morality and perception of others is shaped by the society he lives in, demonstrating that an individual’s morality or the epistemological sense of right and wrong can be largely influenced by society and the living environment. Yet despite strong traditions of the 19th century south, Huck is able to live away from the “civilized” world, leaving behind his hometown and travelling down the Mississippi river with Jim, a runaway slave. Huck’s unusual experiences with Jim contrast with his predetermined notions of race and power in the midst of the Jim Crow Era, thrusting Huck into a great crisis of morality dictated by his consciousness instead of his intellect. Through Huck’s journey in the search of morality, Twain conveys the theme that that morality is dictated by society, despite the goodness of an individual’s consciousness, it is difficult for and individual to intellectually challenge societal paradigms.
Imagine a child in the south, during the late 1800’s. There was certain manners and values that a child would have been raised with. One of the most important of these values was to respect one's elders. A child raised in these values would listen to an adult and think that they're right no matter the circumstance because they are older. Also, a child would have been raised to accept certain social injustices like slavery. This was mainly because the adults said it was alright. Mark Twain wanted people to realize the immorality of society during the 1800s.
Throughout the book, Twain uses various themes such as social ostracism to comment on human nature and its role in shaping society. Sometimes mainstream society is not as right and moral as it believes, and when individuals try to justify it they push away their own humanity. Twain demonstrates this through the various lifestyles, comparing the intellects and beliefs of different social classes, and Huck’s conforming
Life on the river for Huck and Jim is very peaceful. Jim built a snug wigwam to keep their belongings dry, they could just lay looking up at the sky, and they good weather. Huck says, “We catched fish and talked, and we took a swim now and then to keep off sleepiness” (Twain, 64). The river provided Huck and Jim many things, not only food, but also a way to escape. For Huck, the river provided him an escape from his life with his father and the Widow. For Jim, the river provided an escape from being a slave. On the river they were both free from their past lives. Mark Twain, in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, shows us how nature can offer an escape from society’s restrictions and evils. Even though nature has changed immensely since this book was written, it still provides an escape from society. In today’s world, nature can be utilized as a thinking place or as a place to recover from pain. There are many more themes that we can see in today’s society. Several themes of Huck Finn are still relevant today, including “Nature offers an escape from society’s restrictions and evils,” “People tend to act cruelly or irrationally in groups,” and “Discrimination causes pain and suffering for many people”.
Close relationships can affect many individuals, allowing them to see different perspectives on society. Morality plays a significant role in how people act, and also provides reason behind how they treat others as well. In addition, individuals can find freedom through forgiveness and honesty. People who face harsh circumstances may suffer, but end up taking a high moral ground even after these hardships. Hence, the people with hardships often have superior principles to those without several problems in life. A person’s position in society does not determine his or her moral or ethical status. In Mark Twain’s historical novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Jim plays a significant role by representing a moral figure while he also