- Life along Mississippi shows a typical Southern society that is interwoven with racism and abuse and the story highlights the abyssal differences between the poor and the wealthy. We witness an alcoholic and abusive father who forms an unstable environment for a young boy to grow up in. The common people are religious, poor, insecure and sometimes can get tricked easily and there are also gangs of criminals that make the city dangerous for living. However, we can see acts of sympathy even in such a place – e.g. when slaves of the Grangerfords help Jim hide, get him food and help him get in contact with Huck again, or when the doctor at the end does turn Jim in after he runs away from captivity but at the same time puts in a good word for him and appreciates his selfless character. And the Mississippi river itself can be seen as a symbol, a liminal space, where Huck and Jim find their own personal freedom.
- We see the world through the eyes of Huck, a young boy, whose point of view is sometimes completely pure, and we could consider his storytelling an innocent testimony of life in the US in the 19th century. However, there are limits to what he knows about the world, and he lacks education, which can make him an unreliable narrator.
- Huckleberry - A white teenage boy that is portrayed as good-hearted, curious and as someone who does not care for being “respectable” unless he gets something out of it – these moments show his childish nature. He often contemplates the question of religion and praying to God, but at the same time, he believes that he is not destined to be a respectable citizen and feels he is undeserving of even praying to God – these feelings root in his origin and abusive environment he is growing up in. Because of his alcoholic father and the situations he keeps getting into, he is forced to grow up at an early age.
- Jim – A runaway slave who is portrayed as kind and selfless and who has no fear of risking everything just to be reunited with his family. He becomes kind of a mentor to Huck and provides him a secure place of friendship. His character emphasizes the cruelty of slavery.
V odpovědi na Barbora Voříšková
Re: Notes - Raková, Uřídilová, Voříšková, Kopecká, Tobiáš
autor Eva Kalivodová -
I very much like your reflection on "the Mississippi river itself /that/ can be seen as a symbol, a liminal space, where Huck and Jim find their own personal freedom. And yes, Huck is an unreliable narrator who makes adult readers think beyond what he tells... Yor reflection upon Jim as a mentor to Huck providing him a secure place for friendship is awesome!