To Be Or Not To Be

As the novel progresses, Huck and Jim also progresses (down the river, that is). It seems to me as though with every pit stop that they make, we are placed in scenarios in which we unravel more and more of Huck as a person. It's almost as if layers are being added onto his character as he journeys down the river. The river is a symbol within itself. For Huck and Jim, it represents a path towards freedom. However, all the situations that they've encountered so far has been negative and seems to only get worse with every pit stop they make. This novel reminds me of Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" and how the Congo River was the key to Africa for the Europeans.

Although the duke and the dauphin appear to just be comical characters on the surface of the novel, I picked up a deeper reading from them. First off, they aren't necessarily what we consider "good people." They lie, cheat, steal, and rip people off for their money. Speaking of "ripping people off" .. When the two attempts to put on a nice show called the "Shaksperean Revival" it fails miserably so they end up putting on two, short shows and running off with the money the third time around. I took this scene as them trying to make money the moral way which doesn't work out so they end up turning back to their old, thieving ways. This leads to the fact that nearly everything and/or everyone that Huck encounters so far has been portrayed negatively; this possibly depicts the hardships of life.

A guy that acts as a drunk wanting to ride on a horse turns out to be a performer in the circus. Can this be a depiction of how thin the line is between what's real and what's fake? Oh and what about the man, Sherburn, who shoots an innocent drunk? His actions seem to be unvigilant, but his mind seems to be very bright judging from his thoughtful speeches. It's all so contradicting and hypocritical; a constant battle between good and bad, right and wrong.

Confused yet? Because everyone is this novel seems to be! The fact that the duke and the dauphin use the death of Peter Wilks to collect money shows us how morally messed up society really is. It presents to us a "new low" as if the novel isn't messed enough as it is already.