In class this week, we got together with small groups and discussed different aspects of Twain's novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. My group was assigned Huck's guilt. One thing that I noticed about how Huck deals with his guilt is that it is very unpredictable. He feels guilty in many spots in this book, and each time, he deals with this guilt in a new way, most of which are somewhat obscure. When the Duke and the King con the Wilks family, Huck feels guilty about stealing copious amounts of gold from such nice people. What I would do in this situation is simply tell the family that they are being conned. Yet Huck, for some reason, resolves that "There ain't no good way but one. I got to steal that money, somehow; and I got to steal it some way that they won't suspicion that I done it" (147). I personally fail to see the logic behind this decision. If he were caught, then he would get in trouble, and regret his actions. If he was not caught, then the Wilks family would be in even more distress, since their money was stolen. Either way, it is a lose-lose situation for Huck. Perhaps others are seeing something here that I am not, but regardless, I think that this was a stupid decision of Huck's. Do you think that this was the right decision by Huck, and if, like me, you disagree with his actions, why?
Sunday, January 30, 2011
How to Deal with Guilt
In class this week, we got together with small groups and discussed different aspects of Twain's novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. My group was assigned Huck's guilt. One thing that I noticed about how Huck deals with his guilt is that it is very unpredictable. He feels guilty in many spots in this book, and each time, he deals with this guilt in a new way, most of which are somewhat obscure. When the Duke and the King con the Wilks family, Huck feels guilty about stealing copious amounts of gold from such nice people. What I would do in this situation is simply tell the family that they are being conned. Yet Huck, for some reason, resolves that "There ain't no good way but one. I got to steal that money, somehow; and I got to steal it some way that they won't suspicion that I done it" (147). I personally fail to see the logic behind this decision. If he were caught, then he would get in trouble, and regret his actions. If he was not caught, then the Wilks family would be in even more distress, since their money was stolen. Either way, it is a lose-lose situation for Huck. Perhaps others are seeing something here that I am not, but regardless, I think that this was a stupid decision of Huck's. Do you think that this was the right decision by Huck, and if, like me, you disagree with his actions, why?
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I agree that sometimes Huck makes stupid mistakes, and doesn't think things through always, but in this instance, I think Huck made the right call. He was hiding the money so the King and the Duke wouldn't take the money and run. He wanted to keep the money safe long enough for him to turn in the frauds. It was a risky situation, but I think it was pretty well rationalized.
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