Kennedy once said, "A man does what he must - in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers, and this is the basis of all human morality."" This statement rings true to Mark Twain's novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Throughout the story Mark Twain uses the character of Huckleberry Finn as a moral compass to illustrate an ideal way of thinking for mankind. This is shown through the immoral acts of lying, stealing, and murder; also reactions Huck has to these acts that he witnesses or does on his journey down the Mississippi River.
"You can't pray a lie - I found that out."" Huck Finn said this after attempting to pray to God that Jim, a runaway slave, would have no more miserable things happen to him. When Huck knelt down to pray the words just would not come out. Twain uses this in the novel to show that Huck feels guilty that he would be lying to God. To show that Huck has a moral conscience Mark Twain has Huck Finn admit that he is lying. Huck said, " deep down in me I knowed it was a lie, and He knowed it."" .
Another example is after Huck and Jim got separated in the fog on the river. Jim tells Huck the truth about what happened and Huck blatantly lies to Jim. Huck tells Jim that he was dreaming and that he was wrong about what happened. After Jim complies with Huck's explanation of the fog, Huck starts to feel remorse for lying to Jim. "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 afterward, neither."" said Huck. In slave states in the early 1800's white people were not supposed to apologize to black people. Page2.
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Huck apologizing to Jim for lying, Mark Twain gets across the point that lying to anyone, no matter what the color of their skin is, is immoral.
