The way in which emotion, logic, loyalty, and morality may conflict in the mind can be seen by the chapter “The Rattlesnake-Skin Does Its Work” in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In this chapter, Huck, the main character, ponders the results of his actions as he and Jim journey down the Mississippi river and effectively into Jim’s freedom. Huck, plagued by feelings of loyalty to both Jim and Miss Watson and morality and the law, tries to the best of his ability to reason through the situation in order to remove blame from himself, but, in some ways, he ultimately cannot.
To be sure, Jim, Miss Watson’s black slave, is fleeing from his master and is therefore breaking the law. In some ways, Huck feels then that he is, in fact, aiding a criminal:
“But you knowed he was running for his freedom, and you could ’a’ paddled ashore and told somebody.” (113-4)
Perhaps then, through the simple action of not turning Jim in, Huck feels that he is, in some ways, responsible for the continuance of the journey to Cairo, where Jim will finally be free. Yet, at the same time, Huck tries desperately to remove blame and therefore guilt from himself:
I tried to make out to myself that I warn’t to blame, because I didn’t run Jim off from his rightful owner... (113)
Still, “it warn’t no use, conscience up and says, every time” (113). No matter how often Huck tries to use his characteristic, pragmatic logic, he still gets “trembly and feverish” whenever Jim makes any mention of Cairo, his freedom, or the events taking place, because, in some way, he is still responsible (113).
Besides Huck’s dilemma about actually turning in Jim, loyalty plays an important role in his decision making process—loyalty to Jim versus loyalty to Miss Watson. On one hand, Jim has been a companion and a father to Huck during his trip, but on the other, Miss Watson did raise him. “‘What had poor Miss Watson done to you...” Huck says, “that you could treat her so mean? Why, she tried to learn you your book, she tried to learn you your manners, she tried to be good to you every way she knowed how. That’s what she done’” (114). Yet, Huck could still see the importance of this journey to Jim, his new friend.
Either way, such a mental, internal debate made Huck sick, until he eventually decided to side with Jim in the episode with the men searching for five lost slaves. Whether Huck protected Jim out of loyalty or friendship, or whether he simply did not want Jim turned over to these men in particular is never clearly stated, but it is clear that Huck does show some concern for Jim’s well-being, despite the struggle he went through in making his decision.
English
Huckleberry Finn
Mark Twain
Emotion vs. Reason:
The way in which emotion, logic, loyalty, and morality may conflict in the mind can be seen by the chapter “The Rattlesnake-Skin Does Its Work” in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In this chapter, Huck, the main character, ponders the results of his actions as he and Jim journey down the Mississippi river and effectively into Jim’s freedom. Huck, plagued by feelings of loyalty to both Jim and Miss Watson and morality and the law, tries to the best of his ability to reason through the situation in order to remove blame from himself, but, in some ways, he ultimately cannot.
To be sure, Jim, Miss Watson’s black slave, is fleeing from his master and is therefore breaking the law. In some ways, Huck feels then that he is, in fact, aiding a criminal:
“But you knowed he was running for his freedom, and you could ’a’ paddled ashore and told somebody.” (113-4)
Perhaps then, through the simple action of not turning Jim in, Huck feels that he is, in some ways, responsible for the continuance of the journey to Cairo, where Jim will finally be free. Yet, at the same time, Huck tries desperately to remove blame and therefore guilt from himself:
I tried to make out to myself that I warn’t to blame, because I didn’t run Jim off from his rightful owner... (113)
Still, “it warn’t no use, conscience up and says, every time” (113). No matter how often Huck tries to use his characteristic, pragmatic logic, he still gets “trembly and feverish” whenever Jim makes any mention of Cairo, his freedom, or the events taking place, because, in some way, he is still responsible (113).
Besides Huck’s dilemma about actually turning in Jim, loyalty plays an important role in his decision making process—loyalty to Jim versus loyalty to Miss Watson. On one hand, Jim has been a companion and a father to Huck during his trip, but on the other, Miss Watson did raise him. “‘What had poor Miss Watson done to you...” Huck says, “that you could treat her so mean? Why, she tried to learn you your book, she tried to learn you your manners, she tried to be good to you every way she knowed how. That’s what she done’” (114). Yet, Huck could still see the importance of this journey to Jim, his new friend.
Either way, such a mental, internal debate made Huck sick, until he eventually decided to side with Jim in the episode with the men searching for five lost slaves. Whether Huck protected Jim out of loyalty or friendship, or whether he simply did not want Jim turned over to these men in particular is never clearly stated, but it is clear that Huck does show some concern for Jim’s well-being, despite the struggle he went through in making his decision.
English
Huckleberry Finn
Mark Twain
Emotion vs. Reason:
The way in which emotion, logic, loyalty, and morality may conflict in the mind can be seen by the chapter “The Rattlesnake-Skin Does Its Work” in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In this chapter, Huck, the main character, ponders the results of his actions as he and Jim journey down the Mississippi river and effectively into Jim’s freedom. Huck, plagued by feelings of loyalty to both Jim and Miss Watson and morality and the law, tries to the best of his ability to reason through the situation in order to remove blame from himself, but, in some ways, he ultimately cannot.
To be sure, Jim, Miss Watson’s black slave, is fleeing from his master and is therefore breaking the law. In some ways, Huck feels then that he is, in fact, aiding a criminal:
“But you knowed he was running for his freedom, and you could ’a’ paddled ashore and told somebody.” (113-4)
Perhaps then, through the simple action of not turning Jim in, Huck feels that he is, in some ways, responsible for the continuance of the journey to Cairo, where Jim will finally be free. Yet, at the same time, Huck tries desperately to remove blame and therefore guilt from himself:
I tried to make out to myself that I warn’t to blame, because I didn’t run Jim off from his rightful owner... (113)
Still, “it warn’t no use, conscience up and says, every time” (113). No matter how often Huck tries to use his characteristic, pragmatic logic, he still gets “trembly and feverish” whenever Jim makes any mention of Cairo, his freedom, or the events taking place, because, in some way, he is still responsible (113).
Besides Huck’s dilemma about actually turning in Jim, loyalty plays an important role in his decision making process—loyalty to Jim versus loyalty to Miss Watson. On one hand, Jim has been a companion and a father to Huck during his trip, but on the other, Miss Watson did raise him. “‘What had poor Miss Watson done to you...” Huck says, “that you could treat her so mean? Why, she tried to learn you your book, she tried to learn you your manners, she tried to be good to you every way she knowed how. That’s what she done’” (114). Yet, Huck could still see the importance of this journey to Jim, his new friend.
Either way, such a mental, internal debate made Huck sick, until he eventually decided to side with Jim in the episode with the men searching for five lost slaves. Whether Huck protected Jim out of loyalty or friendship, or whether he simply did not want Jim turned over to these men in particular is never clearly stated, but it is clear that Huck does show some concern for Jim’s well-being, despite the struggle he went through in making his decision.