AHF essay q.8

In the novel ‘The adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ Mark Twain introduces several themes and personal opinions. One main theme he explores is fatherhood. Twain uses Jim’s character and Huck’s father as a foil to reveal a true father’s role, Fatherhood requires great responsibility and selflessness. They need to have the ability to love, care, provide and teach their child. We see Twain contrasting Jim and Huck’s true father. While Jim takes care of Huck in numerous ways throughout their adventures, Huck’s father is only after Huck’s money, so what is a true father?

Huck’s narrative in the beginning of the novel portrays a very clear image of Huck’s father. The abuse Huck suffered under his father’s “care” was very great. Near the end of the novel Aunt Sally punished Huck several times, yet Huck did not mind the her lickings because the pain he felt from those were nothing compared to the pain of one of his father’s beatings. On numerous occasions, his father would whip him until he had welts all over and was black and blue for no apparent reason. Huck’s father was constantly drunk; he would lock Huck in the cabin for days at a time and hold him for ransom there so he could obtain money to continue drinking. He also made Huck do all the work around the house such as the cooking.

Jim on the other hand played the role of a father Huck never had. Jim took care of Huck and loved him enough to stick with him. Throughout the entire novel Jim’s actions are those of a loving father. He calls Huck, Honey and various terms of endearment. When Huck got lost and ended up at the Grangerfords, Jim followed him and hid to keep an eye on Huck without getting caught. There were many times Jim risked his freedom to make sure Huck was safe and happy. The scene where Jim scolds Huck for playing the mean trick on him is the most telling way Jim expresses his fatherly love for Huck. In this scene we see that Jim loves Huck so much he is on the verge of tears when Huck was lost. His relief of seeing him again was so great he could have kissed Huck’s feet in happiness. As Jim is telling this to Huck, he is teaching Huck a very valuable lesson.

Throughout the novel we see that Huck learns a great deal from Jim. He learns life lessons on morals and values. He also thinks about religion, uses his conscience and matures as he struggles in his mind between societies’ norms on slavery and his personal knowledge and experience with a slave. The relationship Huck has with Jim is very unique. It is very interesting that Twain wrote about such a sensitive issue at the time. Huck’s status in the social ladder is the lowest of the sow in the white community, Jim’s status is even lower than that. Despite this, their relationship is very close as Jim plays the role of a father figure in the novel, a role with authority and respect.

Jim certainly plays the character of Huck’s father throughout the novel. Jim fulfills the role of a father much more effectively than Huck’s own father. Jim’s actions reveal a genuine fatherly love, which all fathers should have for their children.