[F] Noah: Chapters 35-37

These three chapters, just as most chapters so far, test Huck’s morals and his ability to stand up to the bad judgment of others. The difference between these chapters and others are found not only in Huck’s response when influenced by others in an important situation, but in the subtlety of the morals which Huck questions. In other chapters, these differences were found in characters such as the “duke” and “king”. Their actions were clearly immoral, as they live by tricking others out of their money. Throughout the course of his time with the two con-men, Huck realizes that what they are doing is wrong, and begins to take actions to prevent them. Once Huck has finally escaped from them, Tom takes their role as a bad influence on Huck. Neither Tom nor the con-men completely accept in reality, pretending to be things that they are not. The immorality of Tom’s actions is more subtle than that of the con-men; he appears to be working towards a positive end, but does so for the selfish reason of his own boredom. The question presented is whether Tom is a morally sound character, and why Huck’s reaction to his actions is different from his reaction to the actions of the con-men earlier.

Tom’s actions are clearly immoral, although they are due not to his own bad intention but to his upbringing; he does not see the urgency in the situation. Despite this, Twain obviously is not using Tom as an example of a moral character. Tom is used instead as a way to show that Huck has not become a perfect character. Instead of convincing Tom to help him without trying to turn the situation into an adventure, or simply running away with Jim and leaving Tom behind, which he certainly has the chance to do; Huck plays along and eventually seems to enjoy delaying Jim’s escape as much as Tom does. The positive changes which Huck has gone through throughout the novel have been reversed. However, if it was this easy to change Huck, then one can see that he might not have been changed at all. There are a few possible explanations for this. Twain could simply be making an attempt at realism through this: that a boy of Huck’s age who was raised in a racist society could not miraculously change into a righteous man. It is important to remember that the last time that Tom had an idea of this type, Huck was relatively quick to dismiss it (i.e. in the beginning of the book, when Tom forms his gang). In this case, when more is at stake and Huck is supposedly a changed man since the first incident, Huck does not dismiss the plan. As he had predicted earlier, “the pinch comes there ain't nothing to back him up and keep him to his work, and so he gets beat” (Chapter XVI).

Huck has forgotten Jim’s humanity at some point between setting out to free him and meeting Tom Sawyer again. Even when he does attempt to convince Tom not to overcomplicate Jim’s rescue, he says “when I start in to steal a nigger, for a watermelon, or a Sunday-school book, I ain’t ways particular how it’s done so it’s done” (Chapter XXXVI). This sentence implies that Huck views Jim as comparable to a watermelon or a book; in this case it seems that he is saving Jim for his own sake, as opposed to Jim’s sake, viewing Jim as property. It is even clearer that Tom views Jim this way; he thinks that because “Jim’s a nigger … he wouldn’t understand the reasons [for sawing off his legs]” (Chapter 35).

Questions for Discussion:

1. What is Tom’s role in these chapters? (Remember how unlikely it would be for Huck to run into him like this)
2. Why is Tom used as opposed to a new character?
3. How does Tom compare to the king and the duke?
4. Does Huck not want to free Jim? Does he not want to lose Jim as a father figure and a friend, or as a slave?
5. If Tom is not acting morally in these chapters, should he be considered a bad person?
6. Should Huck be considered a bad person for going along with Tom’s plan?
7. Compare the situation at Tom’s Aunt Sally’s house to the situation at the house of the Grangerfords and the Wilks’s.
   

A few important passages:
“when I start in to steal a nigger, for a watermelon, or a Sunday-school book, I ain’t ways particular how it’s done so it’s done”, page 186
Page 188-189
Page 185
Page 169 “being Tom Sawyer was easy…”