The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain - 1183 Words

From ignorance to love, Huck and Jim s relationship changes drastically throughout the beloved story, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. This classic story takes place mainly along the Mississippi river, where an unlikely friendship is formed. Huck is a mischievous teen living with Widow Douglas when he is first introduced to Jim as her sister’s slave. Their relationship grows as they find themselves journeying down the river and relying on and protecting each other. Undoubtedly, these qualities among others define true friendship. In a time period where race is the deciding factor on relationships, Huck and Jim briefly and bravely step out of societal norms and form true friendship, although they struggle to maintain it†¦show more content†¦Yes indeedy; naked, too. He s ben shot in de back. I reck n he s ben dead two er three days. Come in, Huck, but doan look at his face—it s too gashly. (59) This quote is a great representation of a time in t he story were Jim protected Huck. In this instance Jim acts as an emotional safeguard and protects Huck from the pain of seeing his father dead. Although Jim does not directly tell Huck that he loves him, his actions of protection are reassuring to the reader of Jim’s true feelings. When defining a true friendship, protection is one of the key elements and Jim displays this throughout the novel. Similar to Jims protective instinct, Huck also feels the urge to protect Jim once their friendship has developed. At first, Huck is reluctant to continue his relationship with Jim based off the societal norms he has grown up with. During their first few encounters, Jim is the victim of Huck and Tom s small jokes. Huck grew up with an extremely racist father and became accustomed to seeing slavery as the rightful place for African Americans. Although Huck has had no personal experience with African Americans, he understands that their lives are of less value. As his relationship with Jim grows stronger, he begins to question all the societal norms regarding race that he has grown up with. At many points along their journey down the Mississippi, Huck