Nature Vs. Nurture In Mark Twain's The Adventures Of Huckleberry
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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain tells the tale of a young white boy who is heavily influenced by society but emerges as his own man. His mind was clouded with racist Southern view as a white male. White supremacy was the notion of the Southerners. However, thought adventure, which brought good and bad times, Huckleberry pushed down he barrier and let his own thoughts shine through. Through this novel, where the predominant issue is race, Huckleberry is forced to dwell on his internal conflicts that deal with what he is feeling and what society is telling him. This universal theme of nature versus nurture poses obstacles for Huckleberry to overcome. Motifs of family and skin color help this theme emerge and continue to…show more content… Without a mother, he was left with his abusive, alcoholic Pap who decides to reenter his life for money. “Pap he hadn’t seen me for more than a year, and that was comfortable for me; I didn’t want to see him no more. He used to always whale me when he was sober and could get his hands on me; though I used to tale to the woods most of the time when he was around” (Twain 25). Pap had a significant influence on Huckleberry's life, as most fathers do. The motif of family portrays the parental influence on children. Being abused as a child wasn't a pleasant experience for him, so Huckleberry lived in perpetual fear of his father. Pap's abusive nature led to Huckleberry's reaction to flee when Pap is around. The motif of family continues to develop the theme of nature versus nature when Huckleberry and Jim embark on their unexpected journey together. “I was ever so glad to see Jim. I warn’t lonesome now” (Twain 70). Jim and Huckleberry become each other's family on the raft. They have no one from their true flesh and blood families, so they become close and and Jim refers to Huckleberry as his best friend. This related to nature versus nurture because Huckleberry associated himself with Jim in a relationship other than slave and master. Huckleberry was nurtured, as a white boy, to see the blacks as slaves and property, not friends. However, through their journey, Huckleberry's own feelings were stronger…show more content… Tom and Huckleberry are mere boys who haven’t truly formed their own opinions on the people of the world. Yet, they still choose to use racial slurs to define the blacks of their community. They have been brought up this way, so they don’t understand that such use of language is demeaning to an entire race of people. This shows the distinctly harsh nurturing of society. It sets a corrupt precedent for young people so they have an increased difficulty when it comes to forming their own opinions. Huckleberry and Tom were both raised to be racist, but showed great indifference when attempting to help Jim escape slavery. Both boys still used harsh language and portrayed a racist view at times even when helping