-Zachary Losak, Xiaoli Ma, skyler jone
Although the narrative of HF is told from the perspective of a young boy, a majority of the characters are far older than him. This allows Huck to see the acts of men from a more simplistic and wholistic view. However, this encompassing view would be sorely lacking if we were not first introduced to Huck and his interactions with his peers. Huckster rational manner when arguing over the naive ideas of Tom project a veil of authenticity that extends for the remainder of the novel. Hucks disinclination towards the embellishment of the truth is first introduced during this scene and is especially genuine when revealed amongst his peers- not influenced by any elder.
The paragraph at chapter 2 mainly highlights the things listed in Tom’s oath of joining his gang. Out of the list, the thing that strikes us the most is their superstitious belief. Tom says that if any gang member let their secret out, they should cut his throat and put a “curse” on his name. Tom’s oath was well believed by other boys, which shows their shared belief in the context of supernatural belief and superstition.Moreover, Huck is being drawn towards people that shares such belief in superstition and supernatural events. Just like he is drawn to Tom and the other boys, he will also be drawn towards Jim who also shares similar idea.This characteristic of Huck and the other boys brings up the possibility of a new theme or motif of the book.
Huck’s reason for staying in the civilized world and even to go to school was to have fun with his friends such as Tom Sawyer.However, this civilized world is constraining Huck and he would rather be free in the wild with nature. His knack to be unrestrained added to his motivation to take a journey down the river on a raft. When introducing the gang in the beginning of the novel, Huck is shown to possess the qualities of being above the authority; going with the immoral tasks of the gang. Ironically, Huck is introduced to the King and the Duke, two con artists who are robbers and he did not agree with their actions. By experiencing these actions, he is able to define his morality.
