[F] Brandi: Chapters 20-22

Chapter 20 starts off with the introduction of the Duke and the King- and the first thing that caught my eye was something the Duke when giving up his comfort because the King outranked him. He said, “‘Tis my fate to always be ground into the mire under the iron heel of oppression. Misfortune has broken my once haughty spirit; I yield, I submit; ‘tis my fate. I am alone in the world- let me suffer; I can bear it.” Later we come to see how much more intelligent and clever the Duke is, how much more educated he is. This struck me as so interesting because one would think the smarter of the two would be the King, and the lesser would be the Duke- but it was reversed. I found it also comparable to Huck and Jim’s situation in that Jim is still really under the control of Huck, not really being a freedman after running away, though Jim is older and more compassionate. Is it Jim’s fate to be under oppression too (though I question whether the Duke is actually oppressed)?

In Chapter 21 we begin to see how well educated the Duke is, as he refers to works of William Shakespeare, and how remarkable he would seem to people of the South- being uneducated and unworldly. But I wondered why Twain would make the Duke so smart, and yet when he recites what is supposed to Hamlet’s soliloquy- the whole thing is just a mess of bits and pieces from a bunch of different plays. If the Duke is so intelligent and learned, and clearly has the potential to do more with his life, why does Twain make him a bum and a con man? And why is it important that Huck meets the Duke, who is like this? What do the Duke and the King do to/for Huck that Twain would find essential for them to be a part of his voyage?

In these two chapters, Huck knows that the Duke and King are frauds- and Jim even recognizes it too, and shows his concern for their presence. They have the potential and ability to mess up the whole plan. So why would Twain put them in the story at this point, when the stakes are so high, and it puts Jim’s freedom and life on the line? What about Huck’s morals, are they unaffected by the Duke and King’s antics? Will Huck reach a point where his conscience will start to conflict him- about Jim and his threatened freedom? About the poor people that have put some trust in Huck and he just lied to them? About all the people the Duke and the King conned?

Chapter 22 is focused around the murder of Boggs by Colonel Sherburn, and the Colonel’s speech after words to the entire town. And undoubtedly, the most important part of the whole fiasco was the Colonel’s speech to the whole town- speaking of cowardice, self courage, and what a real man is. He says that a “real man” of the South would lead an angry mob to lynch a man the right way, with masks on in the dead of night. He claims that the leader of the mob, Buck Harkeness isn’t a whole man, and the mob that followed him did it so not to look like cowards- and otherwise, no one would have come to Sherman. And that the South isn’t any braver that any other people because they aren’t brave enough to purvey justice with courage, but gives the responsibility to a “real man” to lead others to do it. What I wonder is if this speech changed Huck, and is image of what a “real man” is, and maybe impact his conscience and in what way?