Essay topic: At times, Huck's adventures on the Mississippi give him a strong sense of freedom and happiness. But they also leave him feeling lonely. Find a passage in Huckleberry Finn in which Huck seems both pleased with the freedom the river offers but also lonesome. Write a brief essay about this passage. In your essay, explain what you think Huck is going through, what he does next, and why you think he takes the action he does at this point in the novel.
(written for Pre-IB English II class).
Chapter Eight Analysis.
Very few authors can tactfully blend more than one tone into a single settling. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain uses his impeccable way with words to perform this feat. He conveys a blithe atmosphere, while hinting at a sense of yearning buried beneath the other lighthearted tone. With his careful use of stylistic elements such as visual imagery, simplistic details, and diction, Twain paints the image of a newly free Huckleberry while balancing his feelings and actions upon realizing the desolation of his situation.
To escape his drunkard fahter, Huck cleverly devised a plan by means of faking his own death. He takes great pride in his accomplishment, thus gaining an unfamiliar freedom. Twain uses simplicity to capture perfectly the emotional excitement of a thirteen-year-old boy who has just opened his eyes to the world, and all its infinite possibilities. The reader is shown a jubilant Huck who finds pleasure to sleeping "after eight o'clock"(36), something the Widow Douglas never permitted him to do. He takes the time to luxuriate in the natural beahty of the island: the "cool shade"(36) provided by the trees, the serenity of "a couple of squirrels"(36).
who "jabbered at [him] very friendly"(36) as he laid back, "powerful lazy and comfortable"(36). Also, instead of constantly being forced to behave properly while staying with the Widow Douglas, or having to do all the housework for his father, Huck receives time to do as he pleased.