Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn, A Book Essay, Research Paper
Seilgrank (seilgrank@schoolsucks.com)
American Literature
Huck Finn Thesis
10-8-97
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a book. It is not a comparison of the
hypocrisy in society. It is not a story about escaping from that hypocrisy. It is not a
metaphor for life. It is certainly not a symbolic comparison for the metaphoric simile of
the literacy of Mark Twain’s pet earthworm Jim. It is a book. A book written to create
enjoyment within the reader. Trying to analyze Huck is like when you’re touring a
museum and you hear some know-it-all in the back of the group stop and say, “Look at
the distinct curves, the flowing form, the complete contrasts of the reds and blacks.
Obviously the artist of this piece is trying to convey the deep hypocrisies in our
sociological circle.”
“Actually, sir,” the guide says, “it’s just a fire extinguisher.” That is all Huck is; it’s
just a fire extinguisher. (And, yes, I know I’m using a Huck-fire extinguisher metaphor
and practicing hypocrisy myself, but don’t even think about trying to analyze me or you’ll
find yourself missing a limb.)
The reason Huck is simply a good book and not a metaphor or analysis of
anything is because it more than likely is. Have you ever sat down to write something and
thought to yourself, “Hey, I like this part right here. It reminds me of the conflicts that are
occurring in today’s society. I think I will cleverly keep that idea as the underlying thread
that holds my piece together!” Of course not. No one thinks like that (At least, no one
who is at least halfway sane). Possibly you would think that the part you just wrote was
kind of funny, and you like that way it fits in the story. And, OK, maybe somewhere deep
in your subconscious, a little voice says, “Hey, I like this part right here. It reminds me of
the conflicts in today’s society.” But of course, that’s just a small part of why you wrote it.
You wrote it because you hope you
what Twain did. He wrote a funny story that he got a kick out of, and simply hoped that
we would like it too. He didn’t want us to over analyze it and pick it apart; he wanted us
to laugh!
True, this book contains many examples of hypocrisy, such as society saying that
all men are equal, but it’s OK to own slaves. Like that preacher who told the Sheperdsons
and the Grangerfords of brotherly love, which they wholeheartedly agreed with, and then
proceed to pick up their rifles and blaze away at one another after the sermon; Huck
finding it OK to steal from complete strangers, yet when it comes to “stealing” Jim from
Miss Watson he considers it wrong; and the Duke and Dauphin preaching temperance
and great Shakespearean dramas and drinking while they perform “Royal Nonsuch” are
all examples of the hypocrisies in the book. I can see how someone could conclude that
Huck is a metaphor for the hypocrisy in society. Of course, give me a good half-hour to
work and I bet I could convince you that Huck is actually a representation of Genghis
Khan, and Jim was Washington crossing the Delaware. It’s back to the fire extinguisher:
if you really want to, you can find evidence in anything to support your ideas, whether it’s
there or not.
Twain declared at the front of the book: “NOTICE: Persons attempting to find a
motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will
be banished; persons attempting to find a plot will be shot.” It simply states that Twain
does not want you to spend time looking for things in the book that are not in there. It
may seem like the book contains many morals, comparisons, and other tidbits of juicy
genre to be chewed up and spit back out is ferocious analysis, but that is simply not the
case. This is a classic example where the book can be judged by its cover. The cover says
?The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn? and that is all that the book contains. Nothing
more, nothing less.