My theory is that Heck treats Jim as if they were siblings, whereas Jim acts fatherly to Heck, as In chapter nine, Jim and Huckleberry find a floating house while traveling down the river, In that house, they find a man who was shot and killed. Jim demonstrates a kind of parenting affection over Huckleberry. Jim says to Heck, “Come in, Heck, but Dona’ look at his face -it’s too galahs. ” He then covers the man in rags so that Heck won’t have to look at the dead, naked man. This demonstrates a parental, protective attitude towards Heck. Whereas Husk’s attitude toward Jim is entirely different. One night, Heck kills a rattle-snake and places it by Jims bed as a prank. Heck tells the reader, “l killed him, and curled him up on the foot of Jims blanket, ever so natural. Thinking there’d be some fun when Jim found him there” This shows that Heck views Jim as an equal, if not a sibling, because he flans it humorous to scare Jim. Is Heck really looking for fun by putting the snake in his bed or confusing him with the fog, or is he trying to attract attention because he feels alone?
I think that by doing this he Is really looking for attention from a person he considers as an equal. Which Is extremely strange In that day and age because of racial diversity and intolerance. We see that he uses the n;word quite casually throughout the text without batting an eye-lid: “It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself too but I done it”. In the day and time it was still regarded as demeaning yet Heck uses a demeaning word for someone he cares about in the book. Why does he euthanize Jim while still caring about him?
The use of the n-word and the tricks that Heck plays on Jim are proof of Husk’s uncertainty around his newfound friend. He doesn’t know how to act around Jim because he has never had a relationship that could be depicted as paternal because Heck had no love for his real father : “Pap hadn’t been seen in a year and that was comfortable for me; I didn’t want to see him no more”(61). Heck has lost touch with his biological father leaving a void. This void will be unexpectedly filled by Jim, Ms. Watson escaped slave.
Jim Is one of the major characters In the novel and one of the most controversial and trusting, to the point of gullibility. These qualities do not altered during the ours of the novel; instead, they are fleshed out and prove to be positives instead of negatives. Jims simple nature becomes common sense, and he constantly chooses the right path for him and Heck to follow. For example, when Heck and Jim are on Jackson’s Island, Jim observes the nervous actions of birds and predicts that it will rain. Jims prediction comes true as a huge storm comes upon the island.
The moment is an important one, for it establishes Jim as an authority fugue and readers recognize his experience and intelligence. Jims most important quality, however, is his “gullible” nature. As the novel progresses, this nature reveals itself as complete faith and trust in his friends, especially Heck. The one trait that does not fluctuate throughout the novel is Jims belief in Heck. After Heck makes up a story to preserve Jims freedom in Chapter 16, Jim remarks that he will never forget Husk’s kindness.
Jims love for Heck, however, extends past their friendship to the relationship of parent and child. When Heck and Jim come upon the dead man on the floating house, Jim warns Heck not to look at the man’s face. The main reason for these actions from Jim is his distance from society ND the way he has to put another person’s race before his own, his existence is restricted and controlled by others who he has no ties to. Jim is not participating in the monetary system yet his only relation with financial matters is the price on his head.
Whereas Heck develops an awareness of the effect of money on his trip down the Mississippi. For example his father captures him to get his daily income: “Then he went for Judge Thatcher in the courts to make him give up that money'(74) and the drastic effect it has on his patriarch: “Every time he got money he got drunkard(74). Heck learns quickly that money is not the answer to his problems, rather the source of violence and destruction in relationships. Husks moral orientation is expressed through his relationship with money.
Since having discovered the thieves treasure in the start of the book: “Tom and me found the money that the robbers hid in the caves” and his apparent love for worn out cloth and freedom: “When I couldn’t stand it no longer, I lit out. I got into my old rags, and my sugar-hogshead again, and was free and satisfied. ” therefore he expresses very little care for things of materialistic value. Heck does encounter many greedy characters, specifically two common who are driven by the hunt of money and deception.
The common, calling themselves Duke and Dauphin, progress from being comical characters too nefarious protagonist. Some could think that Heck would develop a form of greed for himself but instead demonstrates a sense of integrity. He develops a moral compass throughout the book despite expressing similarities between himself and the common earlier in the book: putting the snake on the bed and lying about the fog. This development is not studied, nor constructed but seems o develop naturally through his experiences on the river.
The “Duke” and “Dauphin” actually pursue what the band of “Robbers” had Jokingly planned to do. When reality hits Heck and he realizes that this isn’t fun and games anymore his moral compass is engaged and he attempts to fix what had been wronged. This development shows Husks maturity evolving and his values clarifying. He’s an honest and natural narrator. Heck escapes the grasps of money, evades the societal idiocy around racial relationships and explores freedom outside societies realm.
The problematic ending ay express Twain’s difficulty with going against societal norms as he does with the relationship through the relationship with Heck and Jim. “l endowed he was white inside, and I reckoned he’d say – so it was all right now’ (p. 349) Husks attempt to understand Jim as a friend is a bit of a copout. A prejudice yet deep statement that expands on the idea that this was the only way Heck could feel and understand his friendship with a free slave. What was Mark Twain’s purpose by provoking and angering the reader at the end of the novel with such an aggravating ending?
The ending of this novel is actually quite ironic in some ways. Some might think that after all of his adventures, Heck might be ready to settle down and be part of “society” again. However one of the central themes of the novel is the conflict between nature and “civilization”. As Heck and Jim voyage down the river they meet many different examples of society that disrupt their blissful and peaceful lives with nature – the wreck of the Walter Scott, the Exaggerators, the Duke and the King for example. These examples are Just a way to exemplify the difficulty of having a relationship.
