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  • Essay / The Moral Dilemma in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a novel by Mark Twain

    Throughout The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck faces many dilemmas that test his morality. Initially, Huck behaves like a spoiled child, which is reflected in his lack of appreciation for the adult characters who care for him. When Huck is forced to make a decision that will determine Jim's fate, he wrestles with his own moral complexity for the first time and begins to understand that his actions have consequences. By the end of the story, Huck learns to make decisions based on his sense of right and wrong, regardless of popular opinion in society. Huck begins the story as an indifferent child who has little concern for the well-being of others, but he develops his own understanding of good and evil and how they influence others. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on "Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned"? Get an original essay In the story's exposition, Huck's lack of morality is manifested through his ingratitude toward the adult characters who watch over him like Miss Watson and Jim. . Miss Watson gives Huck lessons in manners, reading and religion. Huck is ungrateful for these lessons and when told about Heaven and Hell, he decides he would rather go to Hell because "I saw no benefit in going where she was going, so I decided to don't try. that” (Twain 4). Huck doesn't like Miss Watson's idea of ​​heaven and because he wants to get away from his life of "civilization", and he even says he would rather go to hell. Although Miss Watson is one of the few characters who tries to give Huck a better life, Huck remains ungrateful for her lessons and everything she does for his betterment. When Huck joins Tom Sawyer and his gang, he fears he won't be able to join him as the boys agree that if a member of the gang does something terribly wrong, their families should be killed. Even though the boys wouldn't actually kill their respective family members, Huck continues to panic and "was very ready to cry; but suddenly I found a way, and so I offered them Miss Watson—they might kill her” (Twain 9). Huck's attitude is terrible. He wants to get rid of Miss Watson and when the gang realizes that Huck has no family members they could kill, he offers Miss Watson as a substitute since she is the closest thing he has to a member of his family. It is quite clear at the beginning of the story that Huck is self-centered and does not consider how his actions will influence those around him. At first, Huck is shown to be indifferent to Jim's feelings, as evidenced by his constant lies and pranks towards Jim, but as he spends time on the raft, he begins to seriously think about the consequences of his actions. When Huck lies about the fog gathering on the raft, Jim finds out and gets upset. Although Huck has little remorse about the lie, he apologizes to Jim anyway. “It took me fifteen minutes before I could get ready to go and humiliate myself before a nigger” (Twain 73). While Huck still views Jim as an inferior person due to his race, he begins to develop a relationship with Jim to the point where he feels obligated to apologize to Jim for lying. Huck clearly feels his relationship with Jim getting closer. Soon after, Huck begins to question whether helping Jim was the right decision or not when Jim says he plans to steal his children as well. “Here is this negro whom I had helped to escape, who came out caught off guard and said that he would steal his children [...] it is not yet too late - I will row ashore.