Hi Everyone: For this post, choose a scene from Chapters 12-19 in
Huck Finn that stands out to you as significant or meaningful. In your post, explain what stands out to you in the passage and explain why the scene is essential or meaningful to the story so far. Include a line or two from the passage.
The scene that stood out to me was when Huck Finn was having a debate with his conscience about turning Jim in. He just heard Jim talking about his want to buy his wife back and take his children, and Huck thought along the lines of "If you give them and inch they take an ell..." He thought that it was the right thing to do, to turn him in, as his master wasn't that mean to Huck, and he ran off. But then, Jim tells him that he was the only white man to keep a promise to him. Huck then feels bad all over and keeps his promise not to turn Jim in after all. It's significant to the book, as it shows how Huck Finn feels about what the right thing to do is. It shows that Huck still has racist feelings (although not racist at the time), but he also feels a responsibility to Jim, one that most would just turn him in for the money. It portrays Huck's character development, and his internal conflict on what the right thing to do is. What stands out to me, is that although Huck is a troublemaker and mischievous boy, he has a very profound side to his personality. He has a strong moral compass and thinks very deeply about moral decisions and actions. It's surprising to me, because I'd think that a boy like that wouldn't have such deep thoughts.
ReplyDeleteA scene in Huckleberry Finn that I found interesting and important in chapters 12-19 was the scene when the ship is sinking. I Think this scene is very important because everyday Huck Finn encounters a new obstacle and this scene really shows how interesting his life can get. For example Huck is stuck on a sinking ship with three robbers, and two of them want to murder their friend. The robbers didn’t survive meaning Huck also saw their dead bodies that same day. Without scenes as exciting as this we as readers wouldn’t be able to realize how intense Hucks everyday life can be, with Jim. In this scene Huck and Jim also choose to kill the robbers by sinking them, and even though the robbers weren’t good people it takes a lot for someone like Huck to kill someone. This scene shows that Huck has gone through a lot for someone his age and is a really strong character in this novel.
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ReplyDeleteA significant scene, from chapter 13, is when Huck has a very strong moral crisis before leaving the sinking steamship with three robbers. Regardless of overhearing the two robbers’ plan to kill their third accomplice, Huck still manages to miraculously see good in the men. He even says “How would I like it”. He can't manage to just leave them there, so when he eventually reaches land and talks to the watchman, he goes through the trouble of convincing the man to go back and save them from the ship. Fake tears seal the deal for Huck and the man agrees. The robbers never do end up surviving, but this scene still holds a very important piece of insight into to Huck’s heart. It is truly amazing to read this scene knowing all of the adversity he has overcome with his home life, specifically his father. Pap, as seen in the early chapters of the book, has a terrible reputation and is genuinely a bad person. He would neglect Huck for days at a time, and his hypocrisy was clearly displayed during one of his rants. But despite being exposed to this behavior and lifestyle, and even the absence of a mother, Huck somehow has beaten the odds to retain purity and love deep within him. Although this side of him does not always come to the surface, it still exists and is a very important facet of his character. Huckleberry Finn is much more complex than the reader might first suspect, and this scene is a powerful example of that.
ReplyDeleteA scene that stood out to me as significant and meaningful in Huckleberry Finn was a scene that happened in Chapter 18. Huck says "I hadn’t had a bite to eat since yesterday, so Jim he got out some corn-dodgers and buttermilk, and pork and cabbage and greens—there ain’t nothing in the world so good when it’s cooked right—and whilst I eat my supper we talked and had a good time. . . .We said there warn’t no home like a raft, after all. Other places do seem so cramped up and smothery, but a raft don’t. You feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft.” At this point in Chapter 18, Huck has just escaped from the Grangerford and Shepherdson conflict and he is sickened by society. I feel as though the raft represents a hideaway from the outside world, a place of happiness and good friendship. Even the simple food Jim offers Huck is delicious in this feeling of freedom and comfort. Huck and Jim don't have to deal with anyone on the raft, and it shows a kind of ideal life for them. They try to keep this separation from society and its problems, but the raft makes its way southward and unpleasant contacts from ashore keep on disturbing the world on the raft. I found this scene important to the book because I understand Twain’s representation of life on the raft and the river, that it is a good one, but since the wickedness and problems of the world can not be avoided, it is weakened.
ReplyDeleteMany different and interesting conflicts and events happened through chapters 12 through 19. The most significant event that stood out the most for me happens in chapters 16 through 18. This event shows the first time Huck and Jim are separated by the steamship that crashes into their raft. Both jump off in time, but get separated, however Huck gets cornered by dogs and is saved by a member of the Grangerford family who invites Huck to stay with them for as long as he wishes, after they come to a conclusion that he is not a member of the Shepherdson family. Something I found interesting is how Huck never really looks for Jim and continues to live with the Grangerford’s (and is happy there when he says “nothing could be better”), until he finds Jim in a swamp and finds out that Jim followed him to shore that night, but was too afraid to call for help because he was scared he would be caught and unable to see his family again. We also find out that some slaves find the raft, but Jim is able to push them away by threatening them it is his master’s. Eventually, Huck decides to continue their journey together after Huck sees Buck and another Grangerford in a gunfight with the Shepherdson’s family. I find this to be one of the most interesting conflicts in the book and how Huck handles the situation by staying with them (most likely due to the fact that Huck didn’t really have his parents and thought it to be a good environment there).
ReplyDeleteA scene in chapters 12 through 19 that stood out to me was when Huck was led out to Jim again after being separated and how Jim was able to keep the raft for himself and rebuild it. I find this interesting because of how Jim threatened the other slaves and said that the raft belonged to his white owner. The other slaves then left him alone. When Huck is led to the raft by one of the Grangerford's slaves he sees that the raft is rebuilt which shows him that Jim did something that also benefits him. Earlier in the book Huck is considering abandoning Jim and turning them in because of what he is saying about buying his wife and children back, which Huck thinks is outrageous. Huck also says something about him being greedy for wanting his own family back. I think Jim rebuilding the boat put the thoughts of abandoning Jim to rest because in Huck mind he wasn't being greedy and he was helping both of them. This is significant because without the friendship and partnership of Huck and Jim there would be no continuation of the book.
ReplyDeleteAn important scene that stood out to me was when Huck was invited into the Grangerfords house because of suspicion. When Huck walked by the Grangerfords house the Grangerfords thought that Huck was Shepardson which is almost like the Grangerfords rival. When they asked what Hucks name was Huck Said his name was George Jackson. After a while of talking the Grangerfords were convinced that Huck was not a Shepardson and they began treating Huck in a very polite way. The family tells Huck to grab some clean clothes and they also feed him. Huck really likes the house and he also enjoys the people around him, especially Buck. Buck and Huck first hit it off when Buckl tells Huck a riddle but Huck does not understand riddles. Buck tries to convince Huck to stay with them because they will have a great deal of fun. Since Huck was not so happy with that idea he creates an elaborate story about how he was orphaned. Bucks family tells Huck he can stay as long as he wants. Huck loves the house and the family and he is really comfortable there at the moment. Huck is used to living in a tiny house with Widow Douglas and when he steps foot in the Grangerfords house he sees it as a palace. Another thing in Ch.17 that I thought was meaningful was when Huck was Emmelines pictures. Emmeline is a dead family member of the Grangerfords and when Huck sees her artwork he is immediately impressed. Emmeline painted artwork that included people who had died in the past.
ReplyDeleteA scene from chapters 12-19 in Huckleberry Finn that stood out to me was in chapter 18 when Huck witnesses two Grangerfords get killed in a gunfight with the Shepherdsons just before leaving back on a raft with Jim. It really stands out since Buck’s death is a terrible moment, especially for Huck who was just making a good friend, who was also of his age. It seems to symbolize to me how Huck’s experiences really are adventures, and sometimes they will end badly. It also shows Huck having to move on, although how disturbed he still was spoke volumes. It is interesting to see the feud between the families going on, especially in that time period. The family honor, but also true and powerful hatred really stand out in this scene of the book, and especially how it all ended in death. I think this represents Huck’s series of obstacles and how his adventures end. The emotion Huck had after seeing someone die that became special to him in a short matter of time really came out here and gave him a powerful experience. When he saw him die it was significant for him to see as a kid how far they took things while they had the chance. Seeing how powerful the hatred was while there were no law to restrict the families must have disturbed Huck and should have probably changed him for the rest of his life. This scene really shows in a general way how complex the book is and I think really shows the adventure part of the title of “The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn”.
ReplyDeleteOne seen that stood out for me so far came at the end of chapter 18. It seems like a simple scene at first, Huck had just met up with Jim after escaping the Grangeford's and they are floating down the river on the raft. Huck says "We said there warn’t no home like a raft, after all. Other places do seem so cramped up and smothery, but a raft don’t. You feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft." After all they have been through onshore they finally find themselves at peace just the two of them floating along left alone to live their lives. It is ironic to think that complete desolation from society is when they find themselves the happiest. The society onshore is confusing and difficult to comprehend for Huck, but when they are afloat on the raft they don't have to deal with anyone. This could also be another racial statement by Mark Twain saying without the outside influence of society nobody is truly racist in their heart. You could also argue that this raft represents the perfect world in Twain's eyes. One in which people are in complete freedom unaffected by society. Jim and Huck have already gone through some crazy things in the book, but when out on the raft they are in a state of serenity. This scene stuck out to me because of the contrast of it and how it was much calmer then the other outrageous adventures Huck finds himself in.
ReplyDeleteAn important scene that stuck out to me was when Huck was in chapter 13 when Huck was on the sinking ship with the three robbers. Huck stole the robbers boat and left them stranded on the sinking ship. The robbers were murderers and it seemed justified to leave them to die on the ship but Huck couldn’t let himself leave them to die. Huck even puts himself in their place thinking how he would feel if he was stranded there “I began to think how awful it would be to be in their position, even if they were murderers. After all, I might become a murderer like them one day? How would I like to be stranded like that?” Huck’s developing moral compass tells he needs to do something to help the now stranded men. Huck gets a watchman to send help to the men on the boat but the men die anyways. The part of the quote above “After all, I might become a murderer like them one day?” really strikes me. At this point Huck seems to have no hope for his life, he doesn’t know what will become of him. Huck doesn’t know what’s going to become of him after he helps Jim find his family. For all he know he very well could become a murderer, he doesn’t see a light at the end of the Mississippi.
ReplyDeleteAn important scene from chapters twelve to nineteen was when Huck was debating if he should turn Jim in. This was a big internal delma for Huck. He was raised in a way that showed all African Americans portrayed very poorly. That he shouldn't assist them yet Huck feels as if he should help Jim. The two created a friendship that Huck didn't want to destroy. If Huck helped Jim he would feel condemned to hell because of the way he was brought up. It is sad that Huck would feel as doing the right thing would be doing the exact opposite. Huck was a young kid that wanted to change and to do the right thing but he was taught that the right thing was a wrong thing. Overall Huck kept his promise to Jim and didn't turn him in. This stood out because it shows that Huck is beginning to change. He was still a raised racist but he figured out the true right and moral thing to do. I think this is a turning point in the book where Huck is starting to discover that not everything people say are truly right. Huck is growing up and making his own decisions for life.
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