Slavery is the owning or keeping of slaves as a practice or institution. Depending on the time, location, and situation, slaves are required to perform different tasks with an all too similar distaste. Slavery can be traced back to the Roman Empire, the deserts of Egypt, and the fertile lands of the eastern United States. Although years and worlds apart, the people of these locations instituted slaves to perform tasks often inhumane, or back breaking. This atrocious practice has been a part of cultures all throughout time and still shapes some cultures of today. For instance, although slavery is not instituted within the United States, the idea of slavery and the idea of racism that comes with the term still cause controversy among the people. One piece of literature that emphasizes the universal theme of slavery is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn written by Mark Twain. Twain uses the theme of slavery to develop the main characters, and to satirize the view of slavery held by the Southerners during that time. The universal theme of slavery lives and has flourished all throughout time, as well as in the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. .
The theme of slavery in the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn helps the characters' true personalities leap off the page, and help develop Huck and Jim's relationship. Huck Finn was just one of the few characters that were brought to the reader via the theme of slavery. Huck was brought up living in an "uncivilized- manner. However, he was brought under the caring wing of the widow Miss. Watson who attempted to "sivilize- him. Eventually Huck is ordered to be under the custody of his father. Loathing the experiences of practically being enslaved by his father, Huck escapes his father's tight grasp and sets out on an adventure of a lifetime. There is irony in the fact that Huck felt the dire need to escape the captivity of his father, because many slaves felt the necessity of escaping from their enslavement.
