DAY 1 - CYCLE 13 - SEMESTER 2

We covered the next 5 words in Unit 8 Vocabulary. Remember, quiz will be on FRIDAY, MAY 15th. It will include five sentence diagrams.

“All ‘civilizations’ are legitimate matter for (private, but not public) jeering & laughter, because they are so conspicuously made up of about three tenths of reality & sincerity, & seven tenths wind & humbug.” ~Mark Twain (source)

We began our discussion of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn today, where Twain presents to us hints of the 30% reality & sincerity he celebrates in this novel, and the 70% he jeers. We focused most of our efforts today on figuring out Jim. If Jim doesn't know the boys are there when they sneak by the widow's kitchen in the dead of night, he is dim-witted and not very self-aware. If he does know the boys are there, he is rather crafty and sly. Huck believes that Jim believes that he was "rode by witches," and perhaps he does. But if he does not, saying he was persecuted by witches and demons carries a different meaning entirely. Also, by looking at how Jim interacts with Huck over the fur ball, we can get a better sense of who Jim is. Does Jim exploit Huck or show kindness toward him? Is it a combination of both? Does Huck realize he might be getting exploited for money? Why does Jim tell Huck the nifty potato trick, anyway? And why is Huck loath to admit he didn't know it?

Clearly, this is a not-so-simple relationship and many external factors influence its conduct and their views of one another. What is obvious, however, is that Huck and Jim both turn to superstition to explain the world around them, and in that respect, there is a mutual understanding, one in which Pap is likely to share. Their worldview is different from the widow Douglas and Miss Watson's, and Judge Thatcher's, and is also different from Tom's. Tom, whose personal circumstance most closely resembles that of the widow, Miss Watson, and the judge, is clear about where he learns his truths: "'Don't I tell you it's in the books? Do you want to go to doing different from what's in the books, and get things all muddled up?'" (11). Huck has many inflences in his life, all of whom draw on different sources for their authority. To whom is Huck most responsive? Receptive? Why? Figuring that out will help us sort the thirty percent from the seventy percent as we move forward.

Notes from today's discussion will be on the wikispace first thing Friday morning.

HOMEWORK
Please, be prepared to disuss pages 29-58 in detail. Discussion questions will include:

1. Why does Huck want to spite pap, even if it means pap will beat him?
2. Why does pap kidnap Huck?
3. Think carefully about what he tells us: he is kidnapped by his physically abusive, impoverished father and held captive in the woods across the river where he is beaten daily, and yet he tells us he gets "used to being where I was, and liked it" (30). What exactly does he like?
4. What are the reasons that finally drive Huck to seek escape?
5. Why do yo suppose Twain includes pap's tirade about the "govment"? What do we learn about the responsibilities of government and citizen from it?
6. Why isn't Huck more deeply affected by pap's imprisonment of him and his efforts to murder him?
7. Huck talks about being able to get logs that broke off of log rafts. Click here to see a picture of the larger sort of raft that was common on the Mississippi.
8. Would you characterize Huck as violent?
9. Why does Huck wish Tom were there?
10. Huck is a very keen observor of his surroundings. Provide ample proof of this statement. Do his observations (e.g. "...it looked late, and smelt late" (42) add to the story?
11. See the explanatory notes on pages 394 & 395 to help understand why the ferry fired cannons and why the bread had mercury in it.
12. When the ferry containing all of the people he's been connected to--good or bad--comes along, Huck is noticeably silent about the effect of his apparent murder on them, and the fact that to maintain the ploy, Huck can never talk to them again. Why is he seemingly indifferent to this?
13. Why is he terrified by the discovery of the campfire?
14. Page 50: fantods. (Simon, I'd bet oodles of money you either love or hate this word.)
    
15. What hints do we have early on in the coversation Huck has with Jim that Jim does not trust him?
16. Why does Huck agree to keep Jim's secret?
17. Are Jim and Huck's escapes comparable in any way? If so, how?
18. Would you say Huck and Jim are smart? Qualify this a bit and explain what you mean.
    
19. The explanatory notes about Jim's unusual investments are helpful.
    
20. How is the final quote of the chapter a loaded one?