Jim Dilemma Questions

Hey Guys! Sorry I'm late. Here are my 5 questions:

1. How does the equation change for Jim when "Tom most lost all patience with him"?

2. Do you think that Jim ever "takes off the mask", and if so for what reason? Or, is he simply just a good person who doesn't ever need the mask?

3. How does Twain depict his realist values in the story and how does that change the way we read the book.

4. Do you agree or disagree that this end section "painfully and carefully depicts the thorny path that African-Americans" had to tread? Why?

5. Do you agree with CJ's thought that there is "untapped potential" for the Southern society during Reconstruction? Why or why not?

Morrison Intro To Huck Finn Questions

Sorry guys! Meant to post it last night!

1.At a very young age, Morrison said that she read the novel "without guidance or recommendation" and was "deeply disturbed" (1).  Later, she noted that she understood criticisms from other writers "better than the novel... because they helped me see many things I had been unaware of" (1). With the important and very necessary use of the n-word, what is the most appropriate age that a reader should be in order to understand all of Twain's concepts? Should children read this book in Junior High like Morrison? Why or why not?
2. Do you agree with Morrison's analysis of "silence" in the novel?
3. Does the use of "silence," explained by Morrison, relate to Romanticism? Transcendentalism?
4. What does Morrison say is the negative part of Jim and Huck's relationship? Do Huck or Jim ever think about this throughout the novel? If so, when?
5. Morrison claims that, "Twain's black characters were most certainly based on real people" (4). Based on what we know of Jim... do you agree? Why or why not?

Chadwick Joshua Jim Dilemma Questions

Hey everyone. My five questions are:

1. Does Jim putting on 'the mask' (of a slave) show that he is becoming a slave because he puts it on or that he is independent because he chooses to put it on?

2. How does Tom represent the unreconstructed South and Huck represent the reconstructing South?

3. Do you think that Jim was merely just an optimistic runaway slave?

4. Is Twain being racist by showing that Jim left his freedom for a white boy? Does it show that Jim is becoming an Uncle Tom?

5. Do you agree or disagree that Twain's unsatisfying ending is supposed to depict a real life failed attempt to reconstruct the South? Why?

Morrison Article Questions

1) What are the three matters that Twain addresses in the novel that Morrison claims are why she found the book so troubling?

2) What do you think about Morrison's ideas about the "n-word"?

3) Do you agree with Morrison's idea that Huck views Jim as a father figure?

4) What does Morrison claim is the novel's "genius"?

5) What sort of tone does Morrison create at the beginning of the article?

Hi everybody! So for my questions I was wondering:
1. What do you make of Huck's saying, "I knowed he was white inside" (174) about Jim at the end of the novel? Do you think this ultimately ends Huck's chances of being a moral hero?

2. Do you think that Twain's own conflict of how to view the society in which he grew up in Huck Finn adds to or detracts from the novel, and why?

3. Do you see Jim as a positive father figure for Huck, and what significance does this have on the overall novel?

4. What do you think about the fact that Huck and Jim part ways? Is it necessary for Huck's independent development and Jim's ability to experience freedom, something that will leave them worse off, or just something that couldn't be avoided?

5. Do you see Huck's running away to the "territory" in the end as a sign that he hasn't developed/been able to come to terms with his problems any more than at the beginning of the story, or a sign that he is breaking away from society and developing morally?

Smiley Article

Hey everyone! I was reading Smiley's article about Huck Finn, and honestly, I thought most of what she was saying was shoddy. I didn't think she backed up her statements with very good evidence, and disagreed with almost all of her arguments, especially when she attacked Huck and Jim. However, how do we all feel about this? Is there some truth to what she is saying, such as Uncle Tom's Cabin being a better book then Huck Finn?

Final Chapters

So I found myself getting very frustrated with Tom in the final few chapters of the book. He knew that Jim was already free but he risked a lot just to have some fun by making Jim his prisoner! And the fact that he is excited when he gets shot in the leg made me so angry! Like at what point will he realize life is not a game and he might die?! Also, was I the only one who went back and re-read chapter 9 to see if Twain gives any small hints that the dead man in the house was Pap? All I found that suggested that the man was Pap, was that there were empty whiskey bottles on the floor. It was odd how Huck was not even upset to find out his father was shot and killed. Even though he was never a very good father to Huck, he was still his dad so you would think Huck would feel a little upset. Instead he just goes on to say "Tom is most well, now".

After finishing Huck Finn over the weekend, I think I definitely agree that the ending is frustrating! It seems as if in the end, everything works out too cleanly, between Mrs. Watson leaving Jim his freedom, Huck's being adopted by Uncle Silas and Aunt Sally since his Pap is dead, and Tom Sawyer getting away with his crazy plan for Jim's escape with no serious consequences for Jim or Huck. Do you think that Mark Twain does this on purpose, maybe to point out how improbable this ending is so that we realize how terrible the ending could have been if Jim hadn't been freed before he was caught the second time?  Also, I know when we read the part about Tom Sawyer's gang at the beginning of the story, we talked in class about how Tom Sawyer's character could represent romanticism, and how Twain makes his character ridiculously fanciful and childish to show the flaws in romanticism. If this is the case, do you think that Twain is trying to make a point about romanticism by having Tom's crazy plan not actually lead to any serious harm to Jim, when it actually would have ruined Jim's chances if Ms. Watson hadn't freed him first?

Huck's mentality (Ch. 31)

In the beginning of chapter 31, Huck "loaded up with joy, and sung out: 'Set her loose, Jim; we're all right now!' but there warn't no answer" (88). Oh no! After realizing that Jim was caught as a runaway nigger, Huck was disappointed after making the long journey.  Huck said that Jim will be made a slave again "for forty dirty dollars," realizing that Jim's life is worth more than money's value (contrasting how slaves were viewed as money not men). However, Huck's self reflection reminds him of Sunday school, which would've taught him that his acts, such as helping a nigger, resulted in everlasting fire! Mrs. Watson would've been very disappointed, right? Huck thought so. As a result, Huck turned to prayer (which we haven't seen him do?).  After admitting his "sins," Huck claimed that he felt good-- he believed that he saved himself from being lost and going to hell! Should he feel good? Was this the right thing?  In the past, Huck implied that hell sounded more fun than Heaven. Whenever he thought about turning Jim in, he realized that Jim was a good man with a good purpose. After all, Jim didn't mean any harm; Jim and Huck were bestfriends who enjoyed talking, singing, and laughing all night long. Since Huck doesn't decide to send Mrs. Watson a letter about Jim, is he doing the wrong thing? Do you guys think Huck will find Jim?

Changes in Huck (24-29)

Hey everybody! So Mrs. Kloser told us to look for changes in Huck in these chapters we had to read over the break. So I noticed that in chapters 24-29, Huck FINALLY listens to his conscience and does the right thing. He says "Well, I says to myself at last, I'm a-going to chance it; I'll up and tell the truth this time, though it does seem most like setting down on a kag of powder and touching it off just to see where you'll go to" (chapter 28). I think part of the reason for this change is that he sees how the duke and the dauphin act and he is sickened by them so he realizes that he does not want to be like that as well. I was wondering if this will continue in the next few chapters and if Huck has completely moved away from lying.

Hey everybody! While reading chapters 23-29 I noticed that Twain seems to have a lot of funerals going on in his book. So far there have been three major instances that he writes about funerals: once when he talks about Emmeline Grangerford and how she makes up poems for funerals; another time when Boggs died when being shot by Colonel Sherburn; and now Peter's funeral. Are there any ideas about why Twain might be writing about so much death? Could there be some type of symbolism?

Hi guys! So I read the articles that Mrs. Kloser posted on the homework website about the use of the n-word. I found these articles very interesting because Charles Barkley and Adrian Peterson, two very respected African-American athletes, supported the use of this word. I understood where they were coming from because you hear the word used pretty often in today's society, but even though it is commonly used today and is not necessarily considered an insult, I still don't agree that people should be able to use it whenever they want. I don't think the use of the word is necessary; why couldn't they just use a different word instead? If it was once used as an insult to their own race, why would they think it's okay to use it whenever they pleased? I would consider that disrespectful to their heritage and an ignorance about where they came from.

I was wondering if anyone had thoughts on whether there were any changes in the relationship between Huck and Jim in chapters 11-15? Specifically, do you think that they see each other as equals, now that both are relying only on each other to survive and make their escape down the river possible? Do you think that Huck's saving Jim from the people coming to the island to hunt for him, and Huck's taking the lead in deciding how to escape and capture the men on the wreck show that he still sees himself as superior? Do you think that the relationship between Huck and Jim will affect whether they stay permanently together once they escape somewhere safe, or split ways once they reach the free states?

I think that while it's true that a lot of Huck's prejudice towards Jim seems to come from the society he has been raised in, it's also true that he generally forms his own decisions and has no problems defying social norms such as formal education and religion. In spite of this, he personally sees Jim as inferior. He doesn't do this completely mindlessly, but actually makes several statements about Jim's quality as a servant based on his own judgment. For example, after Huck and Tom sneak past Jim and take his hat the night they start their gang, and Jim superstitiously interprets their prank to think that he was flown around the country by witches in his sleep, Huck remarks that  "Jim was most ruined for a servant, because he got stuck up on account of having seen the devil and been rode by witches." Thus, Huck is observant of the way Jim acts and is treated, yet he still seems to take Jim's status for granted. When the two of them meet on the island later on, Huck almost immediately orders Jim to start a fire and help him make something to eat. Yet despite this, he also immediately agrees to keep Jim's secret of running away and listens to Jim's input to some extent when trying to decide how they can best hide and survive on the island. I think the fact that Huck can look objectively at Jim's status and in some ways treat him as an equal, yet still take the fact that he has the right to order Jim around for granted shows how ingrained slavery is in the society Huck has grown up with. Because of this, I think the only way Jim can stay free is to flee to one of the free states such as Illinois and make a permanent break with everyone in his old life. The culture of slavery is too ingrained even a fairly independent-thinking person such as Huck, for Jim to have an opportunity of keeping his freedom while returning to the area he lived in before.
 

Hey everybody!! I thought I would start the ball rolling by discussing one of the obviously apparent themes of Huck Finn: slavery. The town that Huck lives in, St. Petersburg, resides in a slave state and therefore, it appears that almost everybody owns slaves. However, what struck me was the seemingly hypocritical nature of slavery, because even the Widow Douglas, described as a pious Christian, owns slaves. Do we have any thoughts on the relationship between owners and slaves, or even the "household" type of slavery that Twain seems to be focusing on?