Sunday, February 6, 2011
Land vs. Water
In our shortened week, we discussed the difference between land and water in Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The water is viewed of as a safe haven by Huck. Whenever he gets in trouble for lying, or whatever it may be, he escapes to the raft, where he is safe to be himself, and he does not have to worry about problems. Dry land, on the other hand, is problematic for Huck. When he is on land, he has to always be scheming of how to not get caught. Also, he is separated from his only companion, Jim, when he is on land. There is a clear difference between land and water in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and I wonder whether or not this difference holds true in the real world.
The first thing that came to mind relating to this topic is Holy Water. I do not know a lot about Holy Water, but I know that babies are baptized with it. So there's one real life example supporting Huck's viewpoint. After that, I tried to think of more...but none came to mind. Other than that one example, I could not think of anything to support Huck's thoughts. In fact, I personally feel the other way. On dry land, I feel at ease, whereas in the water, I might drown. That is just my opinion, though, and if you feel differently, please tell me why. Also, if you find more examples than Holy Water, I would like to know.
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I also think you have to look at the archetypal symbols. Water is usually a representation of rebirth or there is also references of the fountain of youth, which also I think fits in with Huck. Ground is solid which I guess could be said to be resistant to change. That goes along with Huck and Jim's relationship how on land it has to to societies idea of a relationship between black and white while on the raft they can start a new and reconstruct the dynamic of the relationship of a black man and a white boy during that time period. I really enjoyed you post it. It really got me thinking!
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