Last Huck Finn Questions

1. What do we learn about Jim in these chapters?

We learn that as a person, Jim has changed quite a bit. He is now shown as a real person who feels emotions and holds his own beliefs. When he reveals himself to the doctor after Tom Sawyer is shot, Jim shows that he is a good person by pretty much giving himself up as an escaped slave.

2. What effect does the Doctor's speech in support of Jim have? How do you feel about that?

The doctor says that Jim is a good person and for the townspeople to not cuss him out. The people then listen to the doctor and don't cuss him out. Jim is still kept on a bread and water diet though whilst also being chained up. This just seems wrong after all that Huck and Jim have been through.

3. What is the significance of the bullet?

It is a keepsake for Tom. He keeps it to remember the great adventure he had. Tom brought the adventure upon himself though so the bullet is also a sign telling Tom to get real.

4. Where is Huck going at the end of the novel? What does this imply about his view of the world in which he lives?

Huck is going to the western territories. Huck doesn't really like civilization and seeks to escape it by moving west to where things are a little less developed.

5. Comment on the style of the novel. Do you feel it represents the Realist tradition as we have discussed it? What aspects of Huck's character make him a good narrator? What problems did you encounter (if any) due to Huck's narration? Speculate on how a different narrator or a third person omniscient narrator would impact the story.

The story as a whole is very realistic and I feel fits the definition of a book written with realism in mind. Even though Tom Sawyer's reappearance is a little on the romantic side, the rest of the book fits like a glove. Huck's voice throughout the book is what really made him a great narrator. The young mind of Huck Finn sometimes made things a little more on the humorous side mostly because of his lack of knowledge and his way of being extremely literal. Without Huck as the narrator we would've probably lost the importance of the maturation of Huck's morals.