Monica Corcoro. Posting 1. Compare and Contrast

In Huckleberry Finn, although there were some twists to the end, the story came out a happy ending alike what most stories turn out to be; which I find to be very predictable. But in Of Mice and Men, although it was a sad ending, the story ended with a twist—which I think is always good to have in a story. I didn’t expect at all that George would kill Lennie by the end of the novel. I would have thought Curly would be the one to kill him first, considering Lennie was the one to murder his wife.

In Of Mice and Men, I think the main and overall theme of the book was friendship. George and Lennie stayed by each other the whole way through. It looked like nothing could tear them apart from each other because they have been by one another for the longest time. When Curly picked on Lennie, George couldn’t stand to bear tolerating it. George knew Lennie needed support from his best friend, so George did all he could do to help. The same theme can also be applied to Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, but the overall theme that best fits this novel is perseverance. Throughout the adventures he had with Jim and Tom, Huck started to become more humble and started to care for other people more than himself; from people whom he has known for the longest time to people whom he met only for a little while. In chapter 40 when Tom is hurt, Huck goes out of his way to go find a doctor to help him. And when Tom and he go to rescue Jim from being chained, they both persevered to set him free. These books were very enjoyable to read because they both show the commitment and the hardships of being in a friendship.

Monica Corcoro. Posting 8. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Getting to know Tom Sawyer more made me notice that he is not as good of a person as I thought he was, in my opinion. He is more devious than I thought he was as well. I do agree with what Chi Chi had to say about being bothered by the fact Tom didn’t tell Jim and Huck that Jim had been a free slave for quite a while. It is as if Tom only went with Huck to rescue Jim just for the fun of going on another adventure. In the novel Adventures of Tom Sawyer, I found Tom to be a very friendly and understanding boy who, by the end of the book, influenced Huck to become good like him. But it seems in this story; Tom seems to be the one who needs influence from Huck. When Tom gets hit in the leg with a bullet in chapter 40, it is almost like punishment for having to be so selfish of himself during the journey. I enjoy having Tom as one of the main characters in this novel; but his attitude towards certain things, such as slaves or black people, is an inferior characteristic to have.           

Monica Corcoro. Posting 7. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Once again, Tom and Huck are reunited when they try to get Jim back from Silas Phelps. I always liked it when Huck and Tom were together because they are such great friends that they would do anything for each other. Whenever they put their minds together, they always think of a devious, foolproof plan; which I always love reading in books. And whenever they are together, chaos and foolishness always happens, which makes me so happy every time they do. Such as in Chapter 33, Tom pretends to be someone else right in front of his own aunt and uncle, and they do not even realize it’s him (228). I just find it so foolish of them whenever they act like someone else because they know that they will have no intention of giving up their true identity later.

I have said this several times throughout my postings, but I really enjoy how Huck has become so humble and so caring of people around him; especially for Jim. In chapter 31, when Jim has been sold to a farmer, the only thing Huck was thinking about was “How do I get him back?” and “This was entirely my fault.” It made me happy to know that he was thinking of every way possible to help Jim work for Miss Watson again. Huck showed amazing growth of maturity throughout his time spent with Jim. And even when Jim was no longer with him, he knew exactly what to do to get him back.

Monica Corcoro. Posting 6. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

By this time in the novel, I think Huck truly understands the gift of giving and understanding. He no longer just thinks about what is best for him; but what is best for other people. An example would be when in Chapter 21, he tries to hide the money from the con men to help out the Wilks family. He tried his best to keep the con men from finding the money, and tries to help the Wilks contain their fortune.

I find it unbelievable how Duke and Dauphin always keep conning people for their money. And no matter how much they lie, they just cannot stop. As if money was more valuable to them than peoples’ feelings; even if it involves someone’s death. And even how much they get caught for lying and fraud; they always insist that they are telling the truth. I find it the most ridiculous thing I have ever head in a book; which I admire Twain’s writing style for.

A character I enjoyed having in the novel was Mary Jane Wilks because it seemed that she cared for her dad more than any other of her sisters. When Huck was in the funeral house to hide the money, Mary Jane walks in crying. Nearly every daughter or son would care if their parent dies, but it seems to me that she is the only one feeling sad about the loss. And it makes sense that she feels this way, mainly because she is the eldest of the 3 sisters, so she has to take care of her siblings without any more guidance from her father. Such as when my grandparents died, my uncle was the eldest out of 5; so it makes sense why he and Mary Jane would feel more disappointed.

Monica Corcoro. Posting 5. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

At this point in the novel, the story is not just about Huck and Jim anymore; now it’s more about their adventures they have with the 2 con artists who call themselves as Duke and Dauphin. While Duke and Dauphin are performing plays and providing entertainment for people, Huck follows them; but I find it strange that they leave Jim on the boat by himself. Even though they know that Jim is a runaway slave, they shouldn’t keep him tied up on the boat while they have adventures.

It is noticeable that Huck is being a little more different than he was at the beginning of the novel. He is starting to feel more humble and less selfish and mean. As I stated in my previous posts, Huck wanted to pull some tricks on Jim when he did nothing to harm him and Tom from the start. Now that Huck has spent some extra time with Jim, he begins to feel guilt in his decisions. Such as when they steal the robbers’ boat, Huck felt bad for leaving the robbers stranded. “Now I begun to worry about the men—I recon I hadn’t had time to before. I begun to think how dreadful it was, even for murderers, to be in such a fix.” (71). Another example would be when he was about to turn Jim in for being a runaway slave, he felt guilt when Jim told him he was his only friend. I think Huck is starting to think about other people’s feelings instead of just how he feels. I hope he continues to grow in humbleness throughout his adventures.

Qing Rou Deng. Posting 2. Compare and Contrast

The ending of The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin left me with some questions and some ill feelings. So the question I have is why would Jim not tell Huck that his father is dead? I thought the main point of this trip, for Huck, was to escape his dad. I think if Jim told Huck about his father he could have reclaimed his fortune and live the rest of his life in luxury. Some things that bother about the ending of this book is how Tom didn’t tell Jim and Huck that Jim was free and even though Tom knew Jim was a freed man he still toyed with him like life was a joke. “What I was he’d planned to do if the evasion worked all right and he managed to set a nigger free that was already free before? And he said, what he had planned in his head from the start, if we got Jim out all safe, was for us to run him down the river on the raft and have adventures… (375)”

The ending of Of Mice and Men was sad where Huckleberry Fin had a happy ending with a twist. Unlike Huckleberry Fin the ending of Of Mice and Men was very honest unlike how Huckleberry Fin ended knowing how many things was lie or kept a secret. The ending of Of Mice and Men was honest in the sense that George realizes his duties and acts on them. Since the ending was fore shadowed through the event of the killing of the old dog and because of what happened to George and Lennie in the previous town it seems to me that George already had this kind of idea in mind but did not confront it until Lennie killed Curly’s wife. Overall I felt Of Mice and Men was a better book to read because of the sentimental lessons that it taught and the symbolisms in the book was also a great feature. Monica what did you think about the ending of the two books?

Qing Rou Deng. Posting 1. Compare and Contrast

The two stories for this project have different motives and themes. I think Of Mice and Men is more of a book that manipulated the reader to feel sad and sympathy and the Adventures of Huckleberry Fin is more of an adventure story showing the reader what the world was like during that era. So Of Mice and Men to me was deeper and more sentimental. My opinion comes from some of the recurring things within the two stories. In Huckleberry Fin things that occur more than once are superstition, the effect of adventure novels (evident especially in rescuing Jim), lying, scams, racism, hatred of society and more. Some of these topics are really strong topics and can be very sensitive however to me Mr. Twain wrote the story in more of a comical style than a style to make the reader feel sympathetic (with exception of some parts). Take the adventure with the fake king and duke for example, they lied, scammed and treated Huck and Jim horribly. I felt it was wrong but some parts of their adventure, like the part about the king taking the role of Juliet, that I did not felt it was such a bad thing. In Of Mice and Men the story showed caring, loneliness, weakness, reaching for an impossible dream and more. And Of Mice and Men is very different for Huckleberry Fin because very small things that I think would be over looked in Huck’s world make me think, a example would be the beautiful scene at the river and how that was first a place where they had a great experience but later is the place where George kills Lenie. I think these books can both be very touching but for certain people and Huckleberry Fin, in my opinion is not a book of feelings.

Qing Rou Deng. Posting 8. Adventures of Huckleberry Fin

Lies

There are certainly a lot of lies told throughout the story. Some of them are good and some of them are bad. It seems to me that all the lies told by Huck are good and those told by the fake king and duke would be bad but why is that? Well the lies they told were all for their selfish reason so I wonder why I would think that. Plus lying is bad. Well I guess I thought Huck’s lying was good because they rescue Jim and they agree with my morals. For example Huck’s lying in the start of his journey when he pretended he was a girl he was lying for his and Jim’s freedom so that agreed with my morals because I value freedom. And I think the lies told by the fake king and duke are bad because the lies they told was not only selfish but scammed other people of the money they worked hard for. “I knew the first house would keep mum and let the rest of the town roped in; and I knew they’d lay for us the third night, and consider it was their turn now. (204).” And later Huck said “Them rapscallions took in four hundred and sixty-five dollars in that three nights. I never see money hauled in by the wagon-load like that before. (205)”

Since there is so much lying going on throughout the story I think this shows something. I think this is another fact that Mr. Twain used to show the dangerous conditions of that era and how no one can be trusted. And I wonder why lying would be such a big part of Huck.

Qing Rou Deng. Posting 7. Adventures of Huckleberry Fin

It is interesting why Mr. Twain would use a child as the story’s main character. I think he used a child as main character because this book is about showing America was like during that era. By using a child main character Mr. Twain shows how vulnerable a person such as Huck would be during that time. In addition how a child’s innocence is affected by the different morals of a society. Huck was vulnerable to his father and to people such as the fake king and duke who took advantage of him by treating him like a servant or maybe more like a slave. “But he said it warn’t no use, nothing but to be dead and done with it all could do him any good; though he said it often made him fell easier and better for a while if people treated him according to his rights, and got down on one knee to speak to him, and always called him ‘Your Majesty,’ and waited on him first at meals, and didn’t set down in his presence till he asked them. So Jim and me set to majestying him, and doing this and that that and t’other for him, and standing up till he told us we might set down. (172)” And Mr. Twain not only showed the relationship of lower class of whites to the society but also the relationship of Negros to the white society. Mr. Twain showed the relationship by using Jim. These two characters are actually quite similar. They are both on the bottom of the social ladder and both of their freedoms are at the will of adult white men.

To expand on a topic brought up earlier in the post about how the innocence of a child is affected by the morals society. Like some people would say a child is a blank slate and Huck prove that true by showing ignorance. But instead of having person guiding Huck, Huck faced conflicting morals of society almost on his own. However, Huck already had ideas of slavery instilled in him. So these conflicts that came up made him afraid of society.

I agree with you, Monica, about the Huck's methods of lying. It would be a really good idea for him to make up one lie and stick to it because in the beginning of the story Huck kept on forgetting his name and this happens again with the Grangers when Huck tricks Buck to tell him his name.

Monica Corcoro. Posting 4. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

While Jim and Huck’s adventure goes on, their fake stories and lies get even bigger. First Huck tells the Grangerford family that he is an orphan; but when they meet the 2 con artists, Huck announces that Jim is the orphaned one. Sooner or later, they are going to be caught somehow by their many lies. But although Huck lies so much, he is doing it for a good cause. Because he and Jim cannot be noticed by anyone, they have to disguise themselves. If they don’t disguise themselves, Huck will have to go back to his Pap and Jim will have to go back to Miss Watson to be given away to. I think Huck having to lie about their identities is a very sly thing to do, but he should have his stories straight instead of changing it all the time because he can get himself into serious trouble.

What got me thinking was when Huck encountered the Grangerford family. They seem to be nice and hospitable to him; but when it comes to the Shepherdson family, both families get into a gunfight every time they see each other. Although Huck asks one of the Grangerford’s family members, Buck, why their families are always feuding; Buck does not seem to know why. That statement made me think of why they would feud in the first place when they don’t even know the reason for or how it all started.

The two con men that Huck and Jim interfere with in Chapter 19 remind me of them in a way. They both have a wide age difference; they are both very deceitful in their own way. They even disguise their names to be “Duke” and the famous “Dauphin,” the long lost son of King Louis XVI of France. I picture them to be very whimsical, which I also see in Huck and Jim as well.

Qing Rou Deng. Posting 6. Adventures of Huckleberry Fin

There are many themes occur in The Adventure of Huckleberry such as racism, freedom and coming of age. But I think the one that is most relevant to the story is intellectual vs. moral education. In the first parts of the story the town’s people who are better off, so people like Miss Watson and the judge, seem to make it their goal to civilize people. Huck was largely affected by their goal of civilizing people and I think this really confused Huck because some of his teachings during the beginning of the book conflicts with his morals, which I think was gained through his experiences. This conflict occurs mostly in situations relating to slavery and racism. One example is the teachings of slavery and the idea that blacks are not people; these ideas arouse conflict with his morals later in story in the part of Jim wanting to be free and rescuing Jim.
I think the reason that Huck decides to go west and not go back to a society is that the society’s morals had so many conflicts with Huck’s morals that made him apprehensive of society. I think the part that really taught this lesson was Huck adventure with the Granger’s family. It seems what their society has to teach is to revenge at all costs. “‘Did you want to kill him, Buck?’ (Huck) ‘Well, I bet I did.’(Buck) ‘What did he do to you’ ‘Him? He never done nothing to me.’(151)” which resulted badly and in this experience Huck lost his friend. So this lesson really made Huck afraid which can be seen when he leaves the town in a hurry. Another experience that also shows this conflict with Huck is his journey with the fake king and duke.

Qing Rou Deng. Posting 5. Adventures of Huckleberry Fin

Throughout the story it is very evident that Huck’s mind is changing. Huck was raised with the ideals that black people are worthless but throughout the story Huck become a less of a believer in slavery. In the first parts of The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin Huck’s thoughts on slavery can be shown with in this quote “I see it warn’t no use wasting words—you can’t learn a nigger to argue. So I quite. (118).” Toward the end of the book Huck is not completely against slavery because Huck decided to write the note about Jim running away to Miss Watson and afterwards he thought “I felt good and all washed clean of sin for the first time I ever felt so in my life, and I knowed I could pray now. (279)” However he after he wrote the note he eventually decide to destroy it and chose to rescue Jim. “I’d see him [Jim] standing my watch on top of his’n stead of calling me, so I could go on sleeping; and see him how good he was when I come back out of the fog; and when I come to him again in the swamp, up there where the feud was; and such like times; and would always call me honey, and pet me, and doe everything he could think of for me, and how good he always was; and at last I struck the time I saved him by telling the men we had smallpox aboard, and he was so grateful, and said I was the best friend old Jim ever had in the world, and the only one he’s got now; and then I happen to look around and see that paper. (279).” Is really wonderful to see how kindness can change a person so dramatically. In this story Jim’s caring and kindness change Huck’s view on slavery. Using kindness to change others can be seen in many stories. My favorite example was in a movie I saw; the title was The Color of Friendship. The story took place in 1977 in Washington D.C. and South Africa. This story is about a rich African America family hosting a white exchange student from South Africa who was raised with racist ideas. But her view is completely changed in her journey to America. In the end the student from South Africa became best friends with the girl from the host family. This movie is really inspiring and I learned from both of these examples that if I show kindness to someone who is less fortunate or they might be prejudice toward the wrong thing (but that is an opinion) then I can change their life.

Monica Corcoro. Posting 3. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

I had mixed reactions when Jim and Huck decided to take the robber’s boat when they stumbled upon the wrecked steamboat. It was the right thing that they stopped the robbers from causing any more trouble; but yet, they were being robbers also by stealing the real robbers’ boat and leaving them stranded on the wreck. Knowing the robbers had put stolen items on the boat before Jim and Huck took it, makes me feel like they did more crime than the robbers did; but they did it for a good cause. Since Jim and Huck lost their raft and also had to call for help, grabbing the robbers’ boat was their only option to help themselves.

What I found very humorous was when Huck dressed up and pretended to be a girl named “Sarah Williams.” I liked how Mark Twain made the woman Huck encountered very witty and very aware of her surroundings; such as her suspicion of Huck dressed as a girl. She always asked him questions to see if he was lying or not about whom he was. What was funny was when she asked for his name once, then asked it again; and both times he changed the name. I then realized that Huck is a pretty easy person to trick. But at the same time, I feel that he could have been more careful with something as simple as learning a name. I do agree that he had made a good save though by saying both names are his. I do hope that Mrs. Judith Loftus, she soon reveals, shows up later on in the novel because of how tricky and sly she can be.

Qing Rou Deng. Posting 4. Adventures of Huckleberry Fin

In the parts about where the fake duke and king accompany Huck and Jim, even though they seem comical it is evident that they pose threats to Huck and Jim. Is evident that the duke and the king are terrible people because they lied about being royalty and they committed the king committed his first scandal, after they met, at the religious meeting. “­­­­He [king] told them he was a pirate—been a pirate for thirty years out in the Indian Ocean—and his crew was thinned out considerable last spring in a fight, and he was home now to take out some fresh men, and thanks to goodness he’s been robbed last night and pt ashore off of a steamboat without a cent, he was glad of it; it was the blessedest thing that ever happened to him, because he was a changed man now, and happy for the first time in his life; and, poor he was, he was going to starring right off and work his way back to the Indian Ocean, and pt in the rest of his life trying to turn the pirates into the true path…. (181)” In this the fake king collected eighty-seven dollars and seventy-five cents. I wonder why Huck and Jim still let them tag along. I think it is easy enough to abandon, and that is okay to abandon them because they are bad people.

Throughout the story everyone Huck and Jim meets seems to have bad morals. For example the first person, Huck’s dad, would give anything up for his drinking problem. And currently there is the fake duke and king. But I think the Grangers and the Sheperdsons were the worst of them all not because they had bad morals but because of their prejudice which resulted in the demise of both families. I guess this sort of shows the characteristic of America back during Mr. Twain’s time. A part of the story that really shows these traits are during Huck’s visit to the circus when the audience is entertained by a dunk man who was in danger. But I wonder why Mr. Twain only showed the bad characteristics and not the good ones because there were certainly a lot of them. The part of the circus proves again what good morals Huck has because he did not find the man who is in danger funny.