Examples Of Religion In Huckleberry Finn

In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, the topic of religion is touched upon frequently. Many characters such as Miss Watson, the Widow Douglass, and the Grangerfords and Shepherdsons consider themselves religious people. They attend church and claim to live by the words of the Bible. However many of them do not practice what they preach. Throughout the novel, Huck realizes some of the flaws in their religious practices, and he begins to disagree with their beliefs. Twain expresses his rejection of religion by exploring the hypocrisy of the religious principles enforced in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

One the main beliefs practiced by Christians is the concept of tolerance, however the characters in this novel

are anything but tolerant. If someone was a different race, religion, or nationality, they immediately look down upon them.

Miss Watson, the sister of Huck’s primary guardian, the Widow Douglas, plays a great role in expressing religious hypocrisy. Being the so called devout Christian that she is, Miss Watson attempts to inform Huck about Heaven and Hell. Even though Miss Watson considers herself a good Christian, she owns slaves. The church preaches tolerance, yet she is completely intolerant of people with a different skin color. In chapter one, Miss Watson, “ Fetched the niggers in and had prayers” (Twain 3). She enforces prayer in her home yet she does not treat everyone with the decency that they well deserve. Another example of prejudice is represented through the acts of the duke. To ensure that people do not think Jim is a runaway slave, the duke paints him blue and puts a sign on him that reads, “SICK ARAB—BUT HARMLESS WHEN NOT OUT OF HIS HEAD”

(Twain 157). The duke puts this sign on him because he knows that nobody wants to go near an Arab. This just shows the prejudice that the Christians had against people from other countries. During chapter thirty-eight, Huck convinces Jim that he could attract rats, snakes, and spiders by playing the Jew’s harp. Through this conversation, Twain symbolizes the Christian’s views on Jews. The author is showing that if someone shared a different religious practice, such as Judaism, the Christians felt that snakes, and other devil like creatures would consume them. However, prejudice is not the only form of religious hypocrisy in this novel.
Another strong Christian belief is the importance of brotherly love.

In the Christian faith it is essential to love thy neighbor. Nevertheless, the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons seem to struggle with grasping this principle. Both families attend church every Sunday and listen to sermons about this very topic. Even though the families were at church learning about brotherly love, “The men took their guns along and kept them between their knees or stood them handy against the wall” (Twain 109). It appears very hypocritical to learn about these Christian beliefs, while directly engaging in a practice that undermines all of these religious principles. In addition to that, Christians live by the rules set forth by the Ten Commandments. One of the most valued commandments is “thou shalt not kill”. Still, the Grangerfords and Shepherdsons see no wrong in their actions. When Huck asks Buck Grangerford if he wanted to kill Harney Shepherdson, Buck replies, “ “Well I bet I did’ ” (Twain 107). After that, Buck even admits to not having a real reason on why he wanted to kill him. He simply blames his desire to kill on the family feud. Twain uses these two families to highlight how truly messed up the Christian belief system was. Just because someone goes to church, it doesn’t make them a good person or a good Christian. Twain made that point very clear by demonstrating the deadly relationship between the Shepherdsons and the

Grangerfords.
Through his journey of self discovery, the character of Huck Finn truly emphasizes the religious hypocrisy occurring in the novel. From society’s perspective, Huck is viewed as a bad Christian. The boy runs away from home and assists a fugitive slave. Ironically, Huck is the most Christian character in the whole novel. He learns to see the good in every human, including those of a different skin color. At the beginning of the novel Huck is very apprehensive about traveling with Jim. He feels as though the right thing to do would be to return Jim, the runaway slave, to his owner, Miss Watson. Huck begins to feel guilty for taking the slave away from Miss Watson, and prays to be a better boy. Nonetheless, Huck finds himself unable to pray, which brings him to the realization that, “You can’t pray a lie” (Twain 213). He knows that he cannot pray to be less naughty if he continues to let Jim run free. This persuades him into writing a letter to Miss Watson, disclosing Jim’s location. After Huck writes the letter, he begins thinking of all the good times he had with Jim. Huck had developed a bond with him, and it didn’t feel right to turn him in. Huck decides to tear up the letter to Miss Watson, and in doing so he says, “ ‘All right, then, I’ll go to hell’ ” (Twain 214). He feels wicked, like he is committing great sin by not revealing Jim’s location. Huck characterizes himself as the devilish person he once was, and decides to continue helping Jim. Even though he feels like he’s going against God, he choses to follow his own morals, which are in fact superior to those of the Christian faith. Twain uses Huck’s sense of compassion to underline the hypocrisy of Christian belief system.
Throughout the novel, Twain uses the characters to portray his dissatisfaction towards Christians. He clearly rejects the idea of Christianity, and feels as though many Christians are hypocritical. Miss Watson acts like the perfect Christian, yet she has slaves. The Grangerfords and Shepherdsons attend sermons about brotherly love, yet they are always willing and eager to kill. Most of the characters in the novel think of Huck as a mischievous boy who does not know right from wrong. Huck actually thinks he’s going to Hell, even though he encompasses the kindness and compassion that the Christian faith strives for. He is one of the only characters in the novel who is not a hypocrite. The other characters, however, show a great deal of hypocrisy in their beliefs, affirming the discontent Twain has for religion.