Mark Twain saturates the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn with many examples of superstition and myths. These aspects of the novel help the story progress, they provide entertainment and help the story identify with the time. The most important
reason for the superstition and the rituals that come along with them are they are one of
the main reasons for the adventure in the first place. There are many examples throught
the story of the superstition from the spider in the candle to the rattle-snake skin and the hair-ball.
One of the first examples of superstition is a simple thing that carried some of the biggest consequences.”One morning I happened to turn over the saltcellar at breakfast. I reached for some of it as quick as I could to throw over my left shoulder and keep off the bad luck, but Miss Watson was in ahead of me, and crossed me off. “This is an example of how everything superstition has a ritual to remove the bad luck. Huck was not satisfied thought with what the widow had done for him he says “The widow put in a good word for me, but that warn’t going to keep off the bad luck, I knowed that well enough.” This fear of bad luck was acompanied by seeing his fathers shoe prints in the snow so Huck knew he had to do something. What Huck ended up doing was going to Miss Watson’s slave Jim who had a magical hair-ball. When Huck goes to find out what the hairball can tell him Jim tells Huck that the hairball needs money to tell his fortune. All Huck had however is a conterfiet quarter. Jim managed to make it work though by sticking it inside a potato to fool the hair-ball. What the hair ball ended up telling them is this “Yo’ole fathe doan’ know yit what he’s a gwyne to do.
Somtimes he spec he’ll go ‘way, en den ag’in he spec he’ll stay. De bes’ way is tores easy enlet so ole man take his own way. Dey’s two angels hoverin’ roun’ ‘bout him. One uv’em’s light en t’other one is dark.
...ke." Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. An Authoritative Text Backgrounds and Sources Criticism. Ed. Sculley Bradley, et al. 2nd ed. New York: Norton, 1977. 421-22.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a novel written by Mark Twain during the late 1800’s (Mintz). The book brought major controversy over the plot, as well as the fact that it was a spin-off to his previous story, Adventures of Tom Sawyer. This book has remained a success due to Twain’s interesting techniques of keeping the audience’s attention. Chapters eleven and twelve of “Huckleberry Finn,” uses a first person limited point of view to take advantage of the use of dialogue while using many hyperboles to add drama to entertain the reader by creating description within the story without needing to pause and explain.
Mark Twain throughout the book showed Huckleberry Finns personal growth on how he started from the bottom as a lonely, racist, immature kid who knew nothing to where he is now, by finally breaking away from society’s values he was taught in the beginning. He has alienated himself from the from that society and revealed how in fact these values were hypocritical. He realized that he can choose his own morals and that the one he chooses is the correct one.
In the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain illustrates several traits that are common in mankind. Among these traits are those that are listed in this essay. Through characters in the story Twain shows humanity's innate courageousness. He demonstrates that individuals many times lack the ability to reason well. Also, Twain displays the selfishness pervasive in society. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, many aspects of the human race are depicted, and it is for this reason that this story has been, and will remain, a classic for the ages.
When Miss Watson tells Huck that if he prays every day he'll get whatever he asks for, Huck informs the reader, "I tried it. Once I got a fish-line, but no hooks. It warn't any good to me without hooks. I tried for the hooks three or four times, but somehow I couldn't make it work" (1208). Huck concludes, ". . . I couldn't see any advantage about it [prayer] . . . so at last I reckoned I wouldn't worry about it any more, but just let it go" (1208-09). This shows that Huck does not "take stock" in anything that doesn't immediately affect him. However, when Huck accidentally flicks a spider into a candle, which is supposedly a sign of extreme bad luck, he is afraid and tries to ward off the bad luck. Also, when Huck dumps the salt-cellar over at breakfast and Miss Watson prevents him from throwing some over his shoulder, he believes that this means he will have great misfortune.
Clemens, Samuel. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The Heath Anthology of American Literature. Ed. Paul Lauter, et al. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. Lexington: Heath, 1994. 236-419.
Superstition is used in the novel to emphasize the feelings of the characters. One instance is when Huck is sitting by an open window at night.
Twain’s skeptical take on religion can be elicited because superstition is a theme that both Huck and Jim bring up several times. Although both of these characters tend to be quite rational, they quickly become irrational when anything remotely superstitious happens to them. The role of superstition in this book is two-fold: First, it shows that Huck and Jim are child-like in spite of their otherwise extremely mature characters. Second, it serves to foreshadow the plot at several key junctions. For example, spilling salt leads to Pa returning for Huck, and later Jim gets bitten by a rattlesnake after Huck touches a snakeskin with his hands.
Witchcraft is said to be the most widespread cultural phenomenon in existence today and throughout history. Even those who shun the ideas of witchcraft cannot discount the similarities in stories from all corners of the globe. Witchcraft and its ideas have spread across racial, religious, and language barriers from Asia to Africa to America. Primitive people from different areas in the world have shockingly similar accounts of witchcraft occurrences. In most cases the strange parallels cannot be explained and one is only left to assume that the tales hold some truth. Anthropologists say that many common elements about witchcraft are shared by different cultures in the world. Among these common elements are the physical characteristics and the activities of supposed witches. I will go on to highlight some of the witch characteristic parallels found in printed accounts from different parts of the world and their comparisons to some famous fairytales.
Twain satirically emphasizes the flaws of society and its unrealistic expectations in various manners (Gaither Par.9). One of the ways Twain accomplishes this is through the superficial expectations to be learned in the oppressive presence of Miss Watson. Huck finds Miss Watson to be oppressive and harsh at times. She expects a lot out of Huck, including understanding. An example of this is prayer. Miss Watson expects Huck to understand the meaning and purpose of prayer when she never adequately explains it to Huck, or allows him to learn about it without treating him as though he is unintelligent, when he fails to understand. When Huck prays for a fishing rod, he finds that he never receives one. He was under the impression that if he prayed he could expect to have anything that he desired because Miss Watson impressed upon him if he prayed he would get what he asked for “She told me to pray ever...
The novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain has many different, intertwining themes. The book spotlights the personal growth and development of the protagonist, Huckleberry Finn, through the theme of nature. The importance of nature is shown in several ways like the symbolism of the Mississippi River, through the forest and Huck’s time spent living there, and by the argument of human nature versus civilization. While there are many different themes throughout the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the aspect of nature and its significance is extremely important and is vital to the plot and character development of the entire book.
“Mark Twain had a way of telling stories that shifts your consciousness away from labels.” Val Kilmer, an American actor said this about Mark Twain. Kilmer is saying that Twain could really make a reader think deeper about people and social issues, through his stories. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain portrays many ideas and themes through the characters and events. These themes are even still relevant in today’s society. The main themes in Huckleberry Finn are education, equality, and friendship.
Superstitious Acts As Joseph Lewis once said “Superstition is the poison of the mind”. There is much of this in Mark Twain’s novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, this quote means that superstition is a belief that is unjustified but has unexplained consequences. Superstition is often associated with black cats and walking under ladders, these beliefs affect the way some people view bad luck. As noted in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn the consequences resulting in bad luck are a burnt spider, spilled salt, and snake skin.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, is an immensely realistic novel, revealing how a child's morals and actions clash with those of the society around him. Twain shows realism in almost every aspect of his writing; the description of the setting, that of the characters, and even the way characters speak. Twain also satirizes many of the foundations of that society. Showing the hypocrisy of people involved in education, religion, and romanticism through absurd, yet very real examples. Most importantly, Twain shows the way Huckleberry's moral beliefs form amidst a time of uncertainty in his life.
Dossey, D.E. 1992. Holiday folklore, phobias, and fun: mythical origins, scientific treatments, and superstitious "cures”. Asheville: Outcomes Unlimited Press. Quoted in Roach, J. 2004.