The Reality of Huckleberry Finn
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Huckleberry Finn is a book that contains elements of romantic and realistic fiction; even though it contains both these elements, it is a book on realistic fiction, and that is how it was written to be. Mark Twain used historical facts and data to make this story realistic, it used situations that would normally happen in the time the novel takes place in. Huckleberry Finn’s father is a vagrant and a despicable person; his actions are written to how a man of that characteristic would act. Two more characters in this novel also act accordingly; the Duke and the Dauphin. A couple of crooks and frauds who are ill at heart and produce no good at all. A kind man Jim, a black slave at the beginning of this novel, goes through much and many people go through much for him. Of these characters I have just mentioned, Jim is the only considerate one, and the Duke and the Dauphin and Huckleberry Finn’s father are evil.
Huckleberry Finn has no strong feelings for his father except that of resentment. His father abandoned him when he was a child and comes back to town once in a while. His father would beat Huck many times usually because he was drunk. This is not unusual for someone drunk to do if that person is a beater. “I used to be scared of him all the time, he tanned me so much.” (Twain, p. 25) Besides him beating Huck, his father has put fear into Huck, which is sad, but is realistic. Besides beating Huck, he also scolded him for trying to get an education; he though Huck was trying to become smarter than his father, and he wouldn’t have that. “You’re educated, too, they say — can read and write. You think you’re better’n your father, now, do…
…the head of the bend. Is your man white or black?'” Then Huck replies, “‘ He’s white.'” (Twain, 120) Though this may not seem to be a big quote, it is quite important. It shows how Huck feels about Jim, and that a friendship between two people is very strong, and most peoples in that situation with a friendship like that would do the same, making it a realistic situation.
Yes, Huckleberry Finn contains elements of romanticism and elements of realism. But throughout this book, the element of realism prevails, and thus making this book a realistic fiction novel. These examples I have given should be just enough to prove this point of realism over romanticism. These two elements do coexist, but romanticism isn’t a strong enough element to categorize the book in. But to say this book only has elements of realism is unjust.
