Book Report of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Mark Twain's classic novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is always be regarded as one of the greatest books of American literature and civilization. Nobel Prize-winning author Ernest Hemingway claimed in Green Hills of Africa (1935), that "All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn. There was nothing before. There has been nothing as good since."The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which was first published in 1885, is a sequel to Mark Twain's another fiction The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Its theme is how to set the slaves free and how to come true one’s dreams. This is a social problem, so this novel influences American literature in American history, it can be said a revolution. The style of the book is quite simple. It is a local book which is written in the colloquial style, but it touches upon the human situation in a general, indeed universal way:humanitarianism ultimately triumphs.It tells a story which took place in the U.S.A. before the Civil War, along the Mississippi River, a boy named Huckleberry Finn who fled from his drunkard father, and encountered Jim on the island he hid. Jim was one of Miss Watson’slaves, and he was also running away from her. So Huck and Jim teamed up , floated on a raft down the Mississippi River together. The adventure started. During the course of their perilous and tough journey, Huck and Jim met diffculty, adventure, danger, and a group of people with various characters. And In the winding and adventurous journey, Huck and Jim built up a permanent friendship that broke down the barrier between the White and Black.In this novel, Huck is a motherless and homeless boy without education, sleeping in barrels, eating scraps and dressed in rags. He comes from the very lowest level of society. His father is a drunkard and treats Huck very bad. Huck don’t like civilized ways because he think they are personally restrictive and hard. After all, Huck is only a child, the world seems new to him. Everything he encounters is a crash for thought. Because of his background, however, he does more than just apply the rules that he has been taught—he creates his own rules. To some degree, it can be said that he is treacherous.But Huck is also a good and noble boy. All of his virtues come from his kind heart and his sense of humanity. On the way of floating in Mississippi river, Huck tries his best to help Jim and changes his prejudice about Black people. He concerns about the drunk man in the circus. He shows sympathy for the nieces of Peter Wilks and saves money for them. His sympathy even goes to those who are totally unworthy of his attention such as the stranded robbers and the king and the duke.Besides, Huck is smart, and has a sharp eye for details. Although he is uneducated and doesn’t always understand everything he sees, or its significance, nature teaches him a lot of things. Moreover, this quality helps him to avoid dangers and overcome difficulties during the travel.There w ere three important themes in this novel. One theme was “the pursuit of freedom”. Huck wanted to escape from the “civilized” society while Jim wanted to escape from the oppression and bondage of slaverythey. They were both seeking theirown freedom. The ot her theme was “growing”. Huck grew up and became mature from this journey. The journey was a voyage of growth in reality and morality, and a course of learning. On the personal and social level, he acquired knowledge and became a person of sound heart, and with democratic ideals. Jim’s growing means his progress of the idea and thought of himself. His pursuit was becoming the real human being. The third theme was the “racism and slavery”. It sets out the dissatisfaction of slavery. Mark Twain’s impressive p resentation of Negro slaves, such as Jim in the novel. Jim represents all that is good in man and Twain’s sympathy for the slaves and hatred towards the slave-society conventions are fully expressed in this novel. From them, readers could think more about life.Now, we come to a rather saddening fact. It may be reminded that back in the 1870’s, the slave law had not been abolished yet. In the range of the southern states, black people were still in slavery, waiting to be freed. Any slave who wanted to escape knew that it was impossible and a no-can-do. Mark Twain implies his disapproval of slavery gently, especially when Jim was caught as a runaway slave. Only until President Abraham Lincoln won the civil war, the slaves were finally free humans, with the ri ght to vote, and freely lived in “a country where all men are created equal”.There is no doubt that Mark Twain is one of the most celebrated persons in American literature. And his novel---- the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is also one of the best books in American literature. It influences American literature and history for a long time. If one wants to learn American history and literature, he or she should finish this novel.The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a great masterpiece of American writer Mark Twain. Mark Twain is one of the greatest American writers in the 19th century. He was one of the founder of American critical realism literature, and also the great master of the word famous short stories. His original name is Samuel Langhorne Clemens. During his life he enjoyed a international fame that has probably never been equaled by any other American author. William Faulkner even called Mark Twain" the father of American literature". William Dean Howells praised him as "the Lincoln of our literature,"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is Twain’s representative work. Hemingway declared in his Green Hills of Africa (1935) that "All modern American literature comes from" Huck Finn, and regard it as "the best book we've had." However, this novel has been one of the most controversial and frequently banned books of American literature since its publication in 1884. During the course of one hundred years after its publication, this novel has still very famous, and frequently discussed all around the world. It proved to be one of the greatest books in the world literature.This novel can be regarded as an American initiation stories. “An initiation story may be said to show its young Protagonist experiencing a significant change of knowledge about the world or oneself，or a change of character，or of both，and thischange must Point or lead him towards an adult world. It may or may not contain some form of ritual，but it should give some evidence that the change is at least likely to have permanent effects.” (Mordecia Marcus). The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn is commonly acknowledged as the classic initiation story, because he experienced a lot of danger and difficulties during his journey, and learnt a lot of principles and rules of the world. He grown up and choose his own life style. The Adventure is also the same. I will mainly talk about the process of his growth in mind in this report.The first period, there is no happily family for him, for both home of his father and the adopted family were failed to give him tender love or right guide. They raise him all for the little boy’s fortune. Meanwhile, Huckleberry Fin is eager for free and unrestricted life. However she just wants to civilize him and made him live a respectable life. He felt rather depressed and stressful so that he even wished he was dead. During this period, he is mainly influenced by the south ideology which will affect his mind in his later life.The second period, finally he can’t bear his father and kin, he pretend to be dead and escape from home and go to an island. At this time, he know Jim, they have adventure together. At first, Huck was not willing escape with him, because he was a black. However the situation was very danger and he feels lonely. So he had to accept Jim. As a white child, born in south, he look down upon black and didn’t want to involved himself in helping a black slave escape. at this moment, his minds was not been liberated.Third, the period of confusion, is the most important part of the novel. He played jokes on Jim and hide him hat, sitting aside to laugh at him. He still didn’t recognize or accept him. As a white boy growing up in the society where slavery was widely practiced, Huck accepted the conventional ideas that the blacks were born to be inferior to the white. There is always a confliction in Huck’s mind. Sometimes he wanted to betray him and take him back to Miss Watson. However, when the hunters were coming, he protected Jim not to be hurt. In his later experience, they were deceived by the “king” and “duke”, what’s worse, they sell Jim to another owner. At this time, Huck decided to save him from the tragedy. We can see his humanity shining. But when they escape, Huck was hunt and can’t go much farther. Jim didn’t escape himself, instead, he risk to be caught and take care of Huck. He is also a kind-hearted man and has his own character. He is a positive role for Huck’s grown-up.The last period, Huck finally learned there are too much preposterous and hypocritical in the society, especially the racial discrimination towards the black. He understood that the black also have the humanity and right. They should be respect, loved. Now he was awake and grown up. He choose to live a free life. His heart has no conflict any more.By analyzing the text of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, My report focuses on the stages and progress of Huck’s initiation; how does Huck’s raft journey influence his initiation; his inner conflicts and growth. Through Huck’s adventures, Mark Twain shows us a vivid picture of the prewar American society. at the same time.Huck just a child, he can learn the hypocritical of the modern human, and the absurd of racial discrimination. A adult should learn more. So this novel has a great significant in the history. It is really worth to reading.The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnMark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, 1835-1910) was brought up in a small town of Hannibal, Missouri, on the Mississippi River. Owing to his father’s death, he had to leave school at the age of twelve. He was successively a printer’s apprentice, a tramp printer, a silver miner, a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi, and a frontier journalist in Nevada and California. All of these experiences gave him a wide knowledge of humanity. Mark Twain is a world-renowned literary giant and a gifted humorist. As a prolific writer, he makes great achievements in novels and short stories. However, what makes him popular are mainly his novels, in particular, his masterpiece, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In 1884, he wrote this book, one of his most enduring books, it has not only delighted generations of readers but made history exciting. It has always been regarded as one of the great books of western civilization.The story happens along the Mississippi River. On both sides of the river there was unpopulated wilderness and a dense forest. Along the river floats a small raft, with two people on it. The protagonist of this story is Huckleberry Finn, a little uneducated white boy of about thirteen years old. He comes from the lowest level of society. His father is a poor town drunkard. The other boy Jim is an ignorant, uneducated black slave named Jim. The book tells the story of Jim’s escape from slavery, and, how Huckleberry Finn tries his best to help Jim. At the beginning, Huckleberry Finn cannot see Jim as a proper human being. He was told that that black are by nature lower than white, they are inferior animals. He always plays jokes on Jim. But, at the process of helping Jim to escape, Huckleberry Finn gradually changes his mind, his prejudice toward black people. At last, He treats him as a man and a close friend. Huckleberry Finn’s inner struggle between his sense of guilt in helping Jim to escape and his profound conviction that Jim is a human being was vividly described in the book.Underlying Twain's good humor is a dark subcurrent of antebellum cruelty and injustice that makes The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn a frequently funny book with a serious message.This is the first time that I read this book, when I finished it, was lost in contemplation. It takes me back to a children’s world. Finn’s unique personality, only the children can really understand. One the one hand, it’s a description of children’sworld, they are naughty, innocent, and they have their own dreams. Huckleberry Finn and the group of children always want to do something big. I love the protagonist very much .Even though he is only a small boy, he can do something that adults dare not to do .Huck is a kid who naturally loves freedom. He grew up homeless and had no chance to receive family, school and church education. He liked independent life, hated life around the stagnant and hypocritical courtesy. He did not go to church to pray, not wear dec ent clothes, and not learn from these “civilized” and the “gentle manner”. In the beginning, kindhearted widow Douglas, adopted the poor little Huck, and attempted to teach him and transformed him into a “civilized boy”. However, Huck soon tired of this de cent, and felt that the days of “too sulk” is simply all day long, “a pain”. So “I put on my body worn clothes and drill down to my empty sugar barrel by myself. Then I feel free and satisfied”.Huck distained the “civilized” society’s enlightenment, and e ven questioned the sacred religious tenets: If a person can pray to get what he wants, then why still the loss of Wayne’s by selling pork do not come back? Why the widow’s galactic disk which was stolen do not come back......”So he constantly played hooky,and ran into the forest to have some “fresh air”. Even together with the “noble” person, he felt “itch”.Huck finally could not stand the stagnant life and the enlightenment of civilization, and he escaped to seek for his ideal free life.On the other han d, it’s the author’s autography. Mark Twain’s three years’ life on the Mississippi left such a fond memory with him that he returned to the theme more than once in his writing career. Mark Twain------The half savage, tender, god-worshipping, believing boy, playing with rivers and man, ending on the Mississippi on the broad river that is the great artery flowing out of the heart of the land. It’s the miniature of real Mark Twain. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn tells a story about the United States before the civil war, around 1850, when the great Mississippi valley was still being settled. America was overwhelmed by violence and cruelty, but the virtues of “some simplicity, some innocence, some peace” still not disappeared. The machine and worship if money were on their way in, but the river-god, with its sunlight, space, uncrowned time, stillness, and danger,” had not been forgotten.The image of children belongs to be the comparatively special image among the i mage in literature. People usually treat ch ildren’s thought and behavior with themselv es eyes .Reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which can let us pass the voiceof the children’s heart to hear the children’s reality, see a fresh and clear reality of chi ldren’s image-----exploration, resistance, escapism, desperate. In this book, serious problems are being discussed through the narration of a little illiterate boy. Such as, the loafers of the town of Brickville, amusing themselves by torturing animals, pouring kerosene on dogs and setting them on fire, democratic citizens quickly changed into violent mobs, ready to take the law into their own hands and lynch people, or to seize people and pour hot tar over them and ride them out of town on a rail, the fact that the blacks being sold in the market places like animals. The society at that time is in chaos. The people half wild and half civilized, many of them are vulgar and brutal.The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an exposure of the society at that time. Though a local and particular book, it touched upon the human situation in a general indeed “universal” way: Humanism ultimately triumphs. At that time, the social and intellectual climate of the country provided a stimulating milieu for the growth of local color fiction. The United Stated, still expanding westward, had not had time to solidify itself into a cohesive cultural whole. The local colorists formed an important part of the realistic movement. Mark Twain’s truthful depiction of the commonstrength to the fight for realism. The book has been banned from time to time, beginning with its publication in 1885, when it was deemed too subversive for children, until the late 20th century when, despite its compassionate attitude toward blacks and is violent denunciation of slavery, it has been branded racist because of Twain's use of dialect and "offensive" language. In addition to its message of tolerance and understanding, Huckleberry Finn continues to be read, talked about, and loved by readers of all ages because it's a cracking good coming-of-age story full of vivid characters and hilarious events, and because Twain's relentlessly clear-eyed angle of vision sees beneath the foibles and absurdities of humanity to the common ground that we all share.An Analysis of the Classical Initiation Novel----The Adventures ofHuckleberry FinnⅠ. IntroductionMark twain is one of the greatest writers in the 19th century, known as “the father of American culture”, and also named as “the Lincoln of American culture” byHowell. His masterpiece the adventures of Huckleberry Finn is even remarked as “the place where all modern American literature comes” and “the best book we have ever had” by Ernest Hemingway. There is no denying that it is still a very popular book nowadays, and many people are still studying it, while it’s difficult to search out an article discussing about its initiation theme of the youngster and concerning about the development of the youth’s characteristics. Therefore, it is not unnecessary to dig out the deeper meaning about the development of the youth in the curtain social background.Ⅱ. The definition of the initiation novelThe initiation novel begins at the 18th century, first in Germany, and then prevails in Europe, in the 19th century, it comes to America. Though many scholars are trying to definite it, the best definition of it is still not established. Among all the definitions now we have, Marks’ is most accepted：the initiation novel is to show after suffering a lot of traumas both in physical and mental, the young hero changes his previous world view, or transfigures his disposition, or he changes the both; this change makes him get rid of his innocent childhood, and will finally leads him to the complicated adult society.Since there are a mount of initiation novels in American literature, the initiation novel must play a very important role in its history, from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s the Scarlet Letter and Young Mr. Brown to Herman Melville’s Moby Dick, and when it comes to mark twain, it comes to it’s a pex, twain’s two initiation novels the Adventures of Tom Sawyer and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn could say clearly for it.In the initiation novels, although the people and the stories may be very different, the formations are similar: the story always starts with the young hero’s sufferings or observations of the villainy, and losing his innocence; these experiences would inevitably shock his little heart, so the youth could transform from a naïve child to an adaptable and mature man. Huck is not an exceptional one.Ⅲ.An Analysis of Huck’s initiation process in the novelHuck is a typical American boy, he is clever and naughty, seeming impolitely and rude, in fact, full of innocence and kindness. At the beginning of the novel, he adopted by the widow Douglas, a kind but stifling woman who lives with her sister, the self-righteous Miss Watson. There he has to obey all kinds of rules and doctrines, and get education, and learn how to be a good person, and also how to live a graceful life. However, this life is just like a fetter for Huck’s unconstraint heart and longing for freedom’s mind. Besides, his drunkard father comes into being again and kidnapped him and treats him violently. Altogether, the loneliness, oppression, his father’s persecution, and his yearning for freedom make him at last choose to run away from the so-called “civilized society”, and start his adventures in the society, and therefore start his developments in his heart.On his way for running away, Huck happens to meet Jim------one of Miss Waston’s slaves, running away from Miss Watson. Huck determined to help Jim to get freedom. However, during the course of saving Jim, Huck experiences vehement mental clash, his thoughts and heart get a sublimation during the process, he abandons the traditional social prejudices, and turns to more mature. Although at the very beginning, Huck promises not to blow upon Jim, he is not completely sure for his decision. He doesn’t treat Jim as the person who has the equal rights as himself; he does n’t respect Jim and always laughs at Jim’s thoughts, and frequently plays jokes on Jim. In the chapter 15, they two go astray on the river, in order to find Huck; Jim almost risks his life, while Huck deceives Jim that’s just a dream. When Jim becomes sober, he, as an equal person as Huck, interrogates Huck seriously, and criticizes Huck’s immoderate joke strictly, while at the same time, with a deep affection. At that time, Huck realizes his fault: “This really makes me feel pretty despicable, I wish with the mouth to kiss his feet”. Finally, he nerves himself to apologize to Jim. Till then begins Huck’s development of characteristics and mind. He realizes the position and respects of a man, and gets to know that the black Jim is as the same as the white, he is equal with him, and should share the same rights with him.Huck’s deeper understanding of the people and the society happens after twomuch more tortuous mental sufferings. In the chapter 16, when Jim feels hilarious for he thoughts he would soon be free when they reach the free town, while Huck starts his heart’s contradiction and mental clash again. Because of his background, Huck thought that slavery is good and right, and he is also taught that the black is the property of the white and that run-away slaves should be reported, and helping a slave to run away is even flagitious. Thus, when he knows that Jim will soon get freedom with his own help, he feels very anxious, and also feels sorry for kindhearted Miss Watson. So he decides to report Jim when they get on board. However, when Huck sees Jim’s happy face and recalls his kindness, Huck hesitates again; he gets into a dilemma, and doesn’t know what to do. At this crucial time, there come two men looking for the runaway slave, and they want to examine Huck’s raft, but Huck plays a trick on them, and let them believe on the raft lies a patient suffering from smallpox, thus protecting Jim. Here Huck strides a big step to cut through social prejudices and social discriminations, and also a big step to his moral and mental mature.Till the chapter 31, Huck completely breaks up with the slavery and traditional social prejudices. Until then, the conflict about if to report Jim raise to the climax, and his conscience tells him that “helping the black to run away must get into the eighteenth layer hell”. Therefore, he writes to Miss Watson, and tells her where Jim is. Huck again remembers his raft travel with Jim, they take care of each other and share both the happiness and sorrow, Jim is that loyal, kindhearted, and honest, and he regards Huck as the only friend, and then Huck realizes that Jim is not only an equal person as himself but also his best friend. So Huck’s heart tells him that he should not report Jim, and what he should do is to help Jim to get freedom. At last, Huck’s heart defeats his conscience, and he says: “well, then, hell is hell!”, and then he tears up the letter. Just as Mark Twain’s own comment “in this book, a sound mind and deformity conscience produce clash, conscience suffered a defeat”. “Huck’s tearing letter”shows that Huck has utterly ascended the huge gap of the racialism, and defeated the social bias. According to his own heart, Huck makes the right decision and choice, and therefore becomes mature in both moral and mental.Huck’s initiation process also shows in his gradual recognition on society and humanism. During the development of Huck’s disposition, he recognizes himself more and more clear, and gradually understands his real pursuit. To start with, Huck seems like a loyal attendant to Tom whatever he does he wants to does like Tom, he always submits to Tom, and has no confidence in himself, and also holds negative believes on himself. However, with the story’s happening, Huck gradually gets rid of Tom’s influence, and begins to oppugn Tom’s deeds, and believes Tom’s conducts are unpractical. After experiencing lots of adventures and risks, Huck learns how to face the hardship alone, and knows how to solve problems. He gradually comprehends his ability, and find back his confidence and ego. In the chapter 33, in spite of Tom’s wrong thoughts about him, Huck makes his mind to save Jim out. He says to Tom: “I know what you want to say. You should say it is despicable thing, but what's the matter? I must steal him out”. Moreover, on the issue about how to save Jim, Huck doesn’t follow Tom any more. He has his own thoughts then. He knows that he has the same rights, ability, and wisdom as Tom. Huck has already become a independent and self-assured person. What’s more, the novel’s ending ---Huck refuses to be Sally aunt’s godson，forms a fierce contrast with the novel’s very beginning that Huck returns to the widow’s home under Tom’s persuade.Ⅳ. ConclusionFrom above, it is clear to see that during the raft adventures with Jim, Huck, from an innocent, happy, ignorant follower, becomes a brave, independent, confident, responsible, and intelligent person. The process of finding himself is, however, not smooth at all, but full of contradictions, puzzles, and conflicts. His shaping process can represent all the human beings’development of their nature and individual characteristics.There’s no denying that initiation process is no favoring thing at all. It consists of many kinds of mental clashes, heart’s maturing and the understanding of the society and human nature. Hope Huck’s growing experience can be beneficial and helpful for the contemporary teenagers.。
