Huck Finn -- The Raft Symbolism
Mark Twain's story of Huck Finn provided entertainment, as well as Twain's own insight on America's unjust society. At only twelve years old, Huck narrates the story and allows the reader to see events take place from a great point of view. As the adventure unfolds, the once naïve Huck realizes the harsh realities of society every time he sets foot on land. This development in the young boy's maturity begins from the very moment he and Jim begin to float down the Mississippi River. The raft that Jim and Huck had made use of provided the duo with an escape and refuge to "their own world". There, they could be who they wanted to be and do what they wanted to do without having to answer to anyone. This ultimately leads Huck to realize that he does not agree with what is "sivelized", no matter how accepted it was by everyone else.
Huckleberry Finn (1974 film)
The cover of the first edition of Adventures of Hu...
Illustration of Jim and Huckleberry Finn, by EW Ke...Every child needs to escape sometimes. Be it in a fort they made, a closet they transformed, a treehouse, or just their own bedroom, every kid has a hideaway place. When there, their minds are free to imagine, and they are also allowed to discover who they really are as an individual. Huck's raft was his hideaway place. Above being a site of simple gratifications and pleasures, it was a place where Huck could reject all of the conformities of society and everybody else's demands. Huck utilizes his freedom by lounging in the raft naked, free of his former clothing in which he expressed his dislike for them by previously saying, "She put me in them new clothes again, and I couldn't do nothing but sweat and sweat, and feel all cramped up." Through his freedom of self expression, he...