Friday, February 02, 2007
Mark Twain III
Katja
ENGL 48 B
Journal # 12, Twain III
2 February, 2007
"It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger—but I done it, and I warn’t ever sorry for it afterwards, neither. I didn’t do him no more mean tricks, and I wouldn’t done that one if I’d a knowed it would make him feel that way." (Mark Twain 272)
Huck’s conscience gets the better of him after playing a trick on his friend Jim, and eventually he musters the courage to apologize.
Mark Twain’s novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn came to define a new abolitionist path for the United States. Twain not only portrays Jim as a very human figure (as opposed to an animal or property) with human experiences and emotions but more importantly he portrays Huck as an individual who is beginning to come around to a new way of thinking about slaves and slavery. Huck’s newfound stance towards Jim is not based on knowledge—Huck is not a highly educated child—but experience. Due to his upbringing Huck just simply does not know that slaves are people. He seems rather astonished at the fact that Jim has deep feelings for his family, and even for Huck himself. By spending time with Jim, Huck comes to realize his friend’s various dimensions and qualities, which essentially makes Huck understand that Jim is a person, not a piece of property. It is this transformation of a slave from a valuable commodity to an equally valuable three-dimensional individual that Mark Twain wants to highlight in Huck Finn. By illustrating the creation of an unlikely friendship Twain stewards the nation into new territory.
The quote above shows a role reversal. Traditionally, Jim would have to acquiesce to Huck even if Huck is just a child, and one of low status at that. Here, Huck understands that he must try to undo the damage he has done and go apologize to the runaway slave Jim; certainly an event fairly unheard of in those days. The humble slave is a stereotype Jim refuses to fit into.
The fact of the matter is that this scene could never have taken place had Huck not had the opportunity to learn about Jim as a person and to develop a mutually caring relationship with him. Huck is driven to apologize not only out of his care for Jim but also because he realizes that Jim loves him, and he owes him an emotional debt of sorts. The psychological and emotional growth taking place in Huck’s young mind and heart is astonishing. Twain has created a coming of age story on an individual level that could easily be read as a national coming of age story.
ENGL 48 B
Journal # 12, Twain III
2 February, 2007
"It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger—but I done it, and I warn’t ever sorry for it afterwards, neither. I didn’t do him no more mean tricks, and I wouldn’t done that one if I’d a knowed it would make him feel that way." (Mark Twain 272)
Huck’s conscience gets the better of him after playing a trick on his friend Jim, and eventually he musters the courage to apologize.
Mark Twain’s novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn came to define a new abolitionist path for the United States. Twain not only portrays Jim as a very human figure (as opposed to an animal or property) with human experiences and emotions but more importantly he portrays Huck as an individual who is beginning to come around to a new way of thinking about slaves and slavery. Huck’s newfound stance towards Jim is not based on knowledge—Huck is not a highly educated child—but experience. Due to his upbringing Huck just simply does not know that slaves are people. He seems rather astonished at the fact that Jim has deep feelings for his family, and even for Huck himself. By spending time with Jim, Huck comes to realize his friend’s various dimensions and qualities, which essentially makes Huck understand that Jim is a person, not a piece of property. It is this transformation of a slave from a valuable commodity to an equally valuable three-dimensional individual that Mark Twain wants to highlight in Huck Finn. By illustrating the creation of an unlikely friendship Twain stewards the nation into new territory.
The quote above shows a role reversal. Traditionally, Jim would have to acquiesce to Huck even if Huck is just a child, and one of low status at that. Here, Huck understands that he must try to undo the damage he has done and go apologize to the runaway slave Jim; certainly an event fairly unheard of in those days. The humble slave is a stereotype Jim refuses to fit into.
The fact of the matter is that this scene could never have taken place had Huck not had the opportunity to learn about Jim as a person and to develop a mutually caring relationship with him. Huck is driven to apologize not only out of his care for Jim but also because he realizes that Jim loves him, and he owes him an emotional debt of sorts. The psychological and emotional growth taking place in Huck’s young mind and heart is astonishing. Twain has created a coming of age story on an individual level that could easily be read as a national coming of age story.
# posted by Katja @ 4:38 PM 
