Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Hair Ball Essay

Submitted By Ibarra3
Words: 452
Pages: 2
Open Document
ugiiugiuhihihuihiuhih pkgdnbipjefovrjpv

fbvoirobjogboijgboijgoibjoifgjboijfoigbjoifjgboijfgoibjoifgj- boifjgoibjoifjgboijfoijoifjgboijfoigjboifgboijfogijboifjgobi gboifgoibjoifjgobijfoigjboijfgobjofigjboirjgoibhrtghrehgomed- f9herfnfvinfdohv foivnodifjvoijdfoijvoidjfoivjodifjvod did9uvhiuk,mff,c,c,mc Superstition is a running motif in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It is used as an example of how the dogmatic ways of civilization can be nonsense. Just as the superstitions have the basis, the prejudices also have no purpose or reason.
In chapter 4, Huck consults a hair ball to find out what his father’s plans are.
Miss Watson's nigger, Jim, had a hair-ball as big as your fist, which had been took out of the fourth stomach of an ox, and he used to do magic with it. He said there was a spirit inside of it, and it knowed everything. (ch 4)
Obviously, something does not have magic powers just because it was in the stomach of an ox. For Huck to ask the hair ball for advice, and for Jim to give it to him, is just plain silly. Is that any sillier than thinking a person can be owned because of the color of his skin? Jim may use the hair ball, but he is not the only one who thinks it has powers. In this case, Huck thinks it has powers, and Jim is more or less fleecing him.
There are other examples of superstitions used to hide a person’s true intentions. When Jim and Huck find a dead man in the floating house, Jim tells Huck that looking is bad luck. He really does not want Huck to know it was his father, and does not want him to see his father in that condition. Huck is looking out for Jim.
For example, when Huck kills the snake and leaves it as a joke
Show More

Related Documents: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Hair Ball Essay

Examples Of Superstition In Huckleberry Finn

Throughout The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn there are clearly seen superstition in this book. Most of the superstitions are bad luck but there is also karma, good luck, witches, and just plain ole weird things that Huck Finn and Jim think are a superstition’s. The first sign that Huck finn thinks is superstition is when the spider is crawling upon his shoulder and he flicks it off and it lands in the candle and dies “Pretty soon a spider went crawling up my shoulder, and I flipped it off and it…

Words 752 - Pages 4

Should Huckleberry Finn Be Taught In Schools

“The adventures of Huckleberry Finn”, by Mark Twain is arguably the most controversial book ever written. The book has been banned from schools and libraries for different reasons. The repetition of the word nigger is the main issue for most of the critics, teachers and students who do not like the novel. In my opinion one word can make a book bad or racist. This book should be taught anywhere the students can fully grasp the concept and are mature enough to understand the novel. Huckleberry Finn…

Words 1521 - Pages 7

Huck Finn Essay

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is recognized as Mark Twain’s paramount novel, as well as one of the finest American stories. Twain, formerly known as Samuel Langhorne Clemens, grew up along the Mississippi River in Missouri around Civil War time. Before becoming an author, Twain originally was a steamboat pilot and navigated through the Mississippi. The escapades he encountered while piloting became inspiration for the stories he wrote later in life. During Twain’s era, America was in disagreement…

Words 1300 - Pages 6