Help us like Huck Finn

[Kfamily]

So my daughters and I are reading Huck Finn and we're nearly finished with it. I think my high school teacher did a great job of leaving me with the impression that it had important elements in it to discuss such as race, slavery/liberty, etc. along with my own faint memory that I wasn't crazy about the story but couldn't remember why exactly. I don't know how but I was left with a more noble impression of the story in my mind...one that remembered their time together on the raft more than the rest...discussions together at night, Huck learning from his friendship with Jim...but reading now I feel disappointed. The time with the Duke and King was much longer than I remembered and then all of these chapters on Tom and Huck's convoluted staging of Jim's rescue. Hmmm, I think that maybe my girls and I are taking this too seriously. Is this why we are all having trouble enjoying this? They both have found the story very disappointing in that Huck is so easily influenced by others and how much poor Jim is made to suffer at the expense of these silly, arrogant boys looking for drama in their lives. I hope that Huck Finn lovers out there are not offended by our take on this and will help me find some larger themes to save this book for both of my girls. I know about the symbolism of the Mississippi and of the raft, but I'm not sure if these will go over so well in the face of the story as a whole.

 

Help me save this story for my girls... :) Or is this just one of those books that we recognize as one that didn't reach us but that still may reach others?

 

 

Edited May 5, 2016 by Kfamily

[2_girls_mommy]

We read it this year (or listened to it on audio) too.  I had never read it, only Tom Sawyer.  It wasn't a hit with us, so we didn't do much with it except listen.  At least when it comes up in discussions later, they'll be familiar with it.

[KrissiK]

I just finished reading it to my12 year old DS for school and we loved it. I don't know what to tell you. I'm not English teacher or literary critic, so I can't help you out from that standpoint, but I can tell you we both loved that book. Huck's a poor boy growing up in a harsh world without any positive influences. He is what he is. DS enjoyed it for the adventure and carefree aspect of it. I think that really appealed to him. We discussed the conflict Huck had between the ingrained societal influences regarding slavery and his attachment to Jim (who seemed to be the only person in his life he had an attachment to). I think Mark Twain is an amazing writer.

[MEmama]

Idk. DS HATED Tom Sawyer, it just bored him to tears. I won't be asking him to read Hick Finn. ;)

 

I don't think there was a single thing he could remotely relate to. I never got anything out of it either, to be honest.

 

There is so much good modern literature I'm not convinced we have to love all "the classics" just 'cause. Exposure is great and certainly valuable, but I wouldn't sweat it if they don't connect with it.

[GailV]

I recently read that part of what Twain was writing about was a Jacksonian view of the future of the United States vs. a Jeffersonian view -- and that this was a popular theme in literature of the era, contrasting rapid development vs. staying rural.  When they're on the river they're safe and rely on each other as two independent human beings; when they're on the shore they are encountering the more civilized, industrialized culture and get into trouble.  

 

This never even crossed my mind! I wonder what else I've been missing.

 

I didn't read the above in SparkNotes, but I've decided I need to read SparkNotes more often to help me see more possibilities in the books I read.

 

[Lori D.]

It is okay if not every classic resonates strongly with you or your students. 🙂 And, yes, I agree: it can be esp. hard when some classics are so "front-loaded" with the praise or commentary and deep analysis of others -- and we are really let down when we don't have the same experience with the work.

That was Pride and Prejudice for me. I had seen 5 different film versions, understood the times and social mores, had read plenty of other 19th century British lit., prepped myself with background info on author/work/times, and was very excited to actually, finally READ this fabulous classic¦ Only to be very underwhelmed. It seemed so... bland¦ and from a writing stand point, it is weak -- Austin "tells" second hand rather then "shows".

I've also read two other Austin novels (one of which I esp. enjoyed) and had seen several TV/film versions of those first before reading, and did not have the same "let down" reaction. For me, P&P just didn't live up to all the hype. Sometimes that happens.

 

One thing you all might enjoy doing now that you are winding up Huck Finn, is to read/discuss The Day They Came to Arrest The Book (Hentoff), which is a quick YA read, set in contemporary times, of a high school and community discussing all the arguments about censorship, triggered by The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn being a required work in the high school's English class.

Our DSs were fine with Huck Finn -- sort of fell in the middle of their scale of excitement of lit (lol) -- but they *really* got discussing/debating into ...Arrest the Book.

 

Everyone's experience of Huck Finn will be different. Maybe "salvaging" the story for your girls means everyone being okay with just one scene, or one image, or one statement by a character standing out to you, whether positively or negatively. 🙂

 

For me, what stood out in Huck Finn was how very striking and surreal the image was of finding the abandoned steamboat on the sandbar in the middle of the night, all lit up and still churning, and in danger of blowing up. Just simply amazing, unexpected, and surreal...

That got me thinking how much that journey down the river seems very representative of a journey into America's psyche (historically/socially). Much of America's wealth, expansion, and progress was built was built on slave labor, and America's Southern upper class/civilization "ran aground" after the Civil War and the failed attempts of Reconstruction -- you definitely see that in the journey down the Mississippi: the deeper south they go, the crazier the ethics, choices, and "civilization" gets. Twain wrote Huck Finn around 1884, in his own middle age (when you start looking at life differently). As well as writing the novel coming after seeing the failure of the US to recover socially from slavery and the Civil War and Reconstruction. And at a time 10 years into severe economic difficulties of the "Long Depression".  Anyways, I find that image of the steamboat very haunting, and it absolutely captures for me Twain's complicated view of America -- not to mention just being a flat-out creative and amazing image. 😉

In the end, yes, it IS okay to decide that this is "just one of those books that we recognize as one that didn't reach us but that still may reach others". 🙂 BEST of luck in the rest of your Literature journeys! 🙂 Warmest regards, Lori D.

Edited December 7, 2019 by Lori D.

[Lori D.]

I recently read that part of what Twain was writing about was a Jacksonian view of the future of the United States vs. a Jeffersonian view -- and that this was a popular theme in literature of the era, contrasting rapid development vs. staying rural.  When they're on the river they're safe and rely on each other as two independent human beings; when they're on the shore they are encountering the more civilized, industrialized culture and get into trouble.  

 

This never even crossed my mind! I wonder what else I've been missing.

 

I didn't read the above in SparkNotes, but I've decided I need to read SparkNotes more often to help me see more possibilities in the books I read.

 

GailV -- really liked your thoughts here, and tried to use the "like" button, but I just keep getting an error message. Just wanted you to know I "liked" your post. :)

[KrissiK]

It is okay if not every classic resonates strongly with you or your students. :)

 

In the end, yes, it IS okay to decide that this is "just one of those books that we recognize as one that didn't reach us but that still may reach others". :) BEST of luck in the rest of your Literature journeys! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.

I definitely agree with this statement. We all like different things. I like fast moving, plot driven stories. Some of the "great authors" I cannot stand. I hate Hemmingway (I just could never understand what he was talking about) and I do not like Jane Austin. I like Mark Twain and I like John Steinbeck. It's the same with art and music. Certain things appeal to certain people. And I guess that's the beauty of being human. We're all so different. We like different things.

[MerryAtHope]

One thing you all might enjoy doing now that you are winding up Huck Finn, is to read/discuss The Day They Came to Arrest The Book (Hentoff), which is a quick YA read, set in contemporary times, of a high school and community discussing all the arguments about censorship, triggered by The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn being a required work in the high school's English class.

 

 

I was going to suggest this as well. It was great for discussion to pair these two, and also, it kept my kids thinking about Huck Finn (and I do think it's a book you kind of have to mull for awhile). 

[Carol in Cal.]

I studied Huck Finn in high school after having previously read it because I enjoyed Tom Sawyer and it was a sequel.

 

What we were taught about HF in high school was that it was great because of one pivotal moment--the point at which Huck says, 'OK, I'll go to the bad place, then.'  At that point he decides that it is better to save Jim than to go to hell, fully believing that going to eternal torture will be the result of his compassion.  That is consider the moral value that makes this the Great American Novel.  Our teacher also said that all of the shenanagins around saving Jim gradually are inessential to the story, and that he couldn't figure out why Twain put them in.  (My view, having just recently read Tom Sawyer, was that those things were put in to try to make the book as funny and entertaining as TS, which did not succeed in that endeavor.)

 

I thought (privately) that it was tragic that Huck lived in a society where he could conclude that God would send him to hell for helping Jim instead of turning him in, and that his decision was the only possible moral one, and one that God would have heartily endorsed if only Twain believe in Him. 

 

I reread it when DD was in middle school, and I was stunned that the violence of Huck's father did not even really register with me as a kid.  As an adult it made me absolutely heartsick.  And I couldn't bring myself to read it aloud because of the use of the N word.  So we skipped it.  YMMV.

 

I don't think it's such a great book anyway.  It is reflective of its times in a way that doesn't appeal to me anymore, although I enjoyed it as a kid.  I think that studying Uncle Tom's Cabin would be far more profitable at this point.

[Kfamily]

 

 

One thing you all might enjoy doing now that you are winding up Huck Finn, is to read/discuss The Day They Came to Arrest The Book (Hentoff), which is a quick YA read, set in contemporary times, of a high school and community discussing all the arguments about censorship, triggered by The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn being a required work in the high school's English class.

 

Thanks, I'll check and see if the library has this.

 

 

 

For me, what stood out in Huck Finn was how very striking and surreal the image was of finding the abandoned steamboat on the sandbar in the middle of the night, all lit up and still churning, and in danger of blowing up. Just simply amazing, unexpected, and surreal...

 

That got me thinking how much that journey down the river seems very representative of a journey into America's psyche (historically/socially). Much of America's wealth, expansion, and progress was built was built on slave labor, and America's Southern upper class/civilization "ran aground" after the Civil War and the failed attempts of Reconstruction -- you definitely see that in the journey down the Mississippi: the deeper south they go, the crazier the ethics, choices, and "civilization" gets. Twain wrote Huck Finn around 1884, in his own middle age (when you start looking at life differently). As well as writing the novel coming after seeing the failure of the US to recover socially from slavery and the Civil War and Reconstruction. And at a time 10 years into severe economic difficulties of the "Long Depression"…  Anyways, I find that image of the steamboat very haunting, and it absolutely captures for me Twain's complicated view of America -- not to mention just being a flat-out creative and amazing image. ;)

 

This is helpful...thank you!

 

In the end, yes, it IS okay to decide that this is "just one of those books that we recognize as one that didn't reach us but that still may reach others". :) BEST of luck in the rest of your Literature journeys! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

Thank you Lori! You are always so helpful! :)

[SparklyUnicorn]

Yeah not everything is a hit with everyone.  I don't think that means there is something wrong with you or the book.  One of my least favorite books of all time is The Great Gatsby.  Some people love that book and thinks it's the greatest.  They are wrong, but hey I can't save the world from their dumb book choices.  :lol:

[Kfamily]

I studied Huck Finn in high school after having previously read it because I enjoyed Tom Sawyer and it was a sequel.

 

What we were taught about HF in high school was that it was great because of one pivotal moment--the point at which Huck says, 'OK, I'll go to the bad place, then.'  At that point he decides that it is better to save Jim than to go to hell, fully believing that going to eternal torture will be the result of his compassion.  That is consider the moral value that makes this the Great American Novel.  Our teacher also said that all of the shenanagins around saving Jim gradually are inessential to the story, and that he couldn't figure out why Twain put them in.  (My view, having just recently read Tom Sawyer, was that those things were put in to try to make the book as funny and entertaining as TS, which did not succeed in that endeavor.)

 

Yes, shenanagins is a good word for it...this is what pushed the girls over the edge. They didn't find it funny or exciting. They saw it as needless and wrong-especially to Jim. But, again, maybe we just went into this too seriously. :) We should maybe lighten up about it. lol!

 

This helps...thanks! We did pause and discuss the pivotal point you mentioned at the beginning of this paragraph, but I think I'll try to steer them back to it when we have our discussion.

 

I thought (privately) that it was tragic that Huck lived in a society where he could conclude that God would send him to hell for helping Jim instead of turning him in, and that his decision was the only possible moral one, and one that God would have heartily endorsed if only Twain believe in Him. 

 

I reread it when DD was in middle school, and I was stunned that the violence of Huck's father did not even really register with me as a kid.  As an adult it made me absolutely heartsick.  And I couldn't bring myself to read it aloud because of the use of the N word.  So we skipped it.  YMMV.

 

 

I don't think it's such a great book anyway.  It is reflective of its times in a way that doesn't appeal to me anymore, although I enjoyed it as a kid.  I think that studying Uncle Tom's Cabin would be far more profitable at this point.

 

Yes, I mentioned this to my older daughter. We will be reading Uncle Tom's Cabin and the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas too. I think these will be compelling reads for her at this point.

 

 

Thank you Carol!

 

Thank you all for more perspectives! :)

Edited May 5, 2016 by Kfamily

[MerryAtHope]

Yes, shenanagins is a good word for it...this is what pushed the girls over the edge. They didn't find it funny or exciting. They saw it as needless and wrong-especially to Jim. But, again, maybe we just went into this too seriously.  :) We should maybe lighten up about it. lol!

 

I tend to think they should push us over the edge. If Twain had listed fewer and less extreme shenanigans, we could have thought it was funny or exciting. Boys will be boys, it's a fun adventure story, etc... I think, though, that Twain really wanted us to understand a culture and time where a boy like Tom could think there was basically nothing wrong with what he did. It's similar to using the N word over and over. It should shock and unnerve us, it should strike us as wrong and extreme to see a human being treated as less than human.

[Kfamily]

I found this essay very interesting and plan to incorporate it into our final discussion. I thought that I'd share it here:

 

The Problem of the Ending

 

 

[MerryAtHope]

I found this essay very interesting and plan to incorporate it into our final discussion. I thought that I'd share it here:

 

The Problem of the Ending

 

That is interesting. I guess I don't see the ending as contrived merely for making the book end where it begins, or as some kind of literary unity. I think its farcical nature actually represents important realities--"heroes" are in truth not larger than life but a mixed bag with tragic flaws. It's extremely difficult to change one's beliefs and reintegrate with a society that hasn't changed (most especially at the ending)--it's easy to develop convictions in the freedom of the river. True change--and true cultural change--will take more time and more effort. All isn't "roses." It's true to life--and true to our history, that freedom came even while society was hiding ugly dualistic thoughts. Twain was writing at a time when it was important to expose such an aftermath and expose the human soul. With all that though, I think Huck's transformation and growth give us hope that he will continue to change and grow. And with that came hope for the people of Twain's time to change as well--and the hope that we too will discover ugly dualities hiding within our own thoughts, be repulsed and reach for change.

[Targhee]

I didn't like Huck Finn either. Move along.

 

We don't have to connect with everything. There's more Twain to read, and there's more social commentary, and adventure, and friendship, and living outside of contemporary mores while still struggling with them.

 

 

PS I disliked it even more when I saw the Elijah Wood Disney movie

[LindaOz]

My 13yo read HF for 'fun'. She just decided she was going to read it because it was part of a set of classics she was given. She thought it was pretty terrible but insisted on finishing it anyway just so she could say she did, I think. 😉 I know she wouldn't be impressed if I tried to get her to read it for school ðŸ˜.