Response #15: Review of Huckleberry Finn

I really enjoyed reading this book. Mark Twain has the talents to move people because he understands human nature. Throughout the course of the book, I've been through many different emotions. I've been so mad that I wish I was in the novel so I could personally kick the butt of those frauds. The king and the duke annoyed me THAT much. How could anyone stand to be so heartless? I also admired Finn for treating them like Kings and Dukes even though he KNEW they weren't, he just did so because he wanted everyone to be happy. That's something I would never be able to pull off. I mean, it depends on what situation. But I would never satisfy two stranger/frauds just so we could all 'get along' and be a big happy family.

There were also very heart-warming parts. The lady that Finn came across as a 'girl' remains vividly in my memory. She didn't ask why or how and treated Finn with love and care. Even when she realized that she was being lied to, she poured her heart out to help Finn. The dose of humor inserted towards the end was also very entertaining. That's what makes the book so interesting. It shows that no matter how cruel people are, how evil this world is, there will always be some good. That's comforting. Certain characters in the book would go OUT of their way to help others, while certain character would go OUT of their way to HURT others. This theme was very well illustrated.

Another theme tied into the book was Huck's relationship with Jim. I think that might also be a reason why this book might be banned at some schools. The word "nigger" was used quite a lot and I guess some schools are uncomfortable having kids read it even though ultimately, the message portrayed would be quite positive. It might also be because of the "gangster-ness" of the book, like how Tom and his gang is always up to no good. Certain schools might be sensitive about that and in a way, it could be viewed as bad influence on kids. However, I don't see any reason why high schools would ban it, I would assume that most people at high school reached certain maturity levels, but then again I could be wrong.

This book is also controversial to some degree because a lot of actions of Huck illustrated his unsteadiness. Even though he evetually made up his mind about rescueing Jim, when he was with Tom again, he seemed to have gone back to Tom's philosophy. He thought someone like Tom would never rescue a runaway slave, and he only felt that it was ok at the end because Jim was already set free by Mrs. Watson. In a way, that's like saying Huck never really made up his mind about siding with Jim. His conscience was still unclear.
- posted by Maria Gao @ 8:57 PM