Similarities Between Huckleberry Finn And Barn Burning

In the two of the most revered pieces of American literature, “Barn Burning” by William Faulkner and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, we examined two characters and the relationships that they shared with their fathers. Being a father and having a father-like figure plays a monumental role in a child’s life. Although in these components of literature, the two main characters, Huckleberry Finn and Colonel Sartoris Snopes, show animosity towards their fathers. They both aspired to be the farthest type of person from their fathers. Huckleberry Finn didn’t want to be a drunk, ignorant, racist. Although at the beginning of the short story, Sarty backed his father and lied for him when accused of burning barns, but at the end of

the book, his attitude towards his father changes as he realized that he’s a cold, physical, and violent person.
At the end of the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck decides to “light out for the territory” (pg 292) because he wants a sense of independence from what’s at home. He does this so that he has the opportunity to be himself, in a world that he has control of instead of a “sivilized” community in which he would be leaving (pg 292). He also feels as if everything that is back home has been resolved, which gives him a reason to leave. Jim is now a free man, his best friend Tom is on his way to becoming healthy after being shot, and he doesn’t have to worry about the burden of the six thousand dollars Pap was trying to steal from him. However, he finds out that Aunt Sally wants to adopt him which makes him relive the time he spent with Miss Watson and the Widow Douglas and how much he disliked it. Huck realizes that Aunt Sally’s intentions are similar to Miss Watson’s. A life where there’s a belief in religion and in an education which Huck “can’t stand” as he has “been there before” (pg 292). The man wants a change in his life and feels that by sticking around with Aunt Sally, although he has come to like her, he would be reliving his time spent with the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson. On top of this, Aunt Sally prohibits swearing and drinking, all of which identify Huck as a person. He wants a sense of freedom where he is not constantly constrained and has independence from all the burdens that he has had to deal with and that the “territory” will provide for that. Another reason in which Huck leaves for the territory is that he doesn’t want to become a boring townsfolk like Tom Sawyer who plays fantasy by creating a gang and acts all childish. Huck realizes that this isn’t the type of person who he wants to be and by leaving it behind, he won’t be like Tom.
By voyaging to the so-called “territories”, it is argued whether Huck will transcend his father’s legacy or by leaving he is acting more like his father. Huck is heading to the territory to leave his life back home and become an independent person, not to suddenly become a person who desires not to be (Pap). Huck’s entire purpose of heading for the territory is to detach himself from the society that he was once a part of. Even the time spent on the raft with Jim, Huck transcends his father's legacies and becomes his own unconstrained person. He has different views on society and race than most. He takes Jim in and treats him as a father figure, despite him being a slave. This shows how Huck has left Tom Sawyer and his childish games and has transformed into a mature person. He will certainly carry what he learned from his time on the raft where he was independent and apply them to his time in his new life. Pap is dead and it gives a perfect opportunity for Huck to scrap his father's legacy, leave his life behind, head for the territory, and continue to be an independent, unconstrained person.
In the short story “Barn Burning”, like Huck Finn, Sarty decided to “not look back” and leave the current life he had behind him.

In the beginning of the story, Sarty originally stands by his father and backs him up when he is put under pressure or when accused of committing whatever it could be. However, throughout the novel, Sarty begins to see his father’s true colors and the horrible man he actually is. When Sarty sees De Spain’s mansion, it gives him hope that having his father work in a place that stands for “peace and dignity” would terminate his father’s bad behavior for good. However, the moment when Abner said “get out of my way (N-word)”, he knew that there was no going back to the way things used to be (pg 10 and 11). This was his realization that his father was a villain. Sarty dreamed of having the life that De Spain did. A nice house, people who worked for him, wealth, and success. Realizing that if he stayed with his nomadic family who spent their time living in a wagon and covering for their father’s actions, he would be stuck forever unsuccessful and poor. What astonishes this choice is that even at ten years of age, Sarty is mature enough to realize that his father is a bad person and that he can have a better life where he can live his life the way he wants to and make his own decisions. Maybe Sarty thought that he could have a better life, away from the negative influence that Abner displayed. When he heard the gunshots, he knew that his father was dead and it gave him a legitimate reason to leave his family and start fresh, just like Huck Finn. Sarty does not look back because maybe there’s a side of him that is embarrassed to be Abner’s son and a desire to be free from being Abner’s son, although he praises him as “brave” and a man of “Colonel Satoris’ cavalry” (pg

24).
Realizing what a man Abner truly was, it is for sure Sarty will transcend his father’s legacies when he doesn’t turn back. Sarty despised his father for the coward he was. He didn’t like him burning down barns and disrespecting other people’s property. He even wishes that he had someone like De Spain as his father. By not turning back, he is assuring himself that he will never be the type of person that Abner was. Although he goes and spends time hiding in the woods like his father did in the Civil War, he still is planning on living his life by his own rules. After seeing De Spain’s house and how successful he was and how his father wasn’t, it is motivation for Sarty to do well in life. He has learned so much at such a young age that he is bound to forget who is father is and go on to bigger and better things in life.
In both pieces of literature, both characters learn valuable lessons from their fathers about who not to be in life. Not to be a drunken racist or an unsuccessful, jealous, coward. These two boys will take these lessons that they learned on so early in life and make sure they live up to their potential and not be stuck living the life that their fathers did. They learned this lesson at such a young age and are fortunate for it because most people learn this type of lesson very late in life and can do nothing about it.