What is right is not always popular and what is popular is not always right" (Albert Einstein 1). The question stands before us, does one do what is right and accept persecution if no one else is like-minded or do they conform to popular beliefs despite their own principles? The central theme of these two books, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain and The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, is unquestionably law versus morality. There were several instances in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn where Huck Finn faced the difficult decision of whether or not to do the right thing. For example, it was unlawful for Huck to help a fugitive slave in the mid-1800s but in accordance with his moral compass, he continued to assist Jim so he might be liberated. Similarly, in The Grapes of Wrath the reader is first introduced to Tom Joad who was wrongly convicted of killing a man, even though it was done in self-defense. In line with Joad 's personal moral code he was not about to sit there and get stabbed to death; choosing to protect himself instead. Likewise, in The Green Mile by Stephen King, John Coffey was convicted of a crime he did not commit, the murder of two little girls. Despite the correctional officers knowing John Coffey was innocent, the law would override this harsh truth because of the lack of evidence (King 493). Furthermore, Twain and Steinbeck personify within their characters the idea that obeying the law is important, however when one 's convictions are in conflict with regulation, it is more important to stand up for what one believes in, even if they must stand alone. Mark Twain did an excellent job of representing law versus morality in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. During the mid-nineteenth century, slavery was still widely accepted by many. Throughout the book, Huckleberry Finn gave off the impression that he was indifferent on slavery, not for nor opposed to it. In the beginning of his travels, Huck disregards the law and chance for a reward by not turning Jim in. He soon contemplates whether he would have felt better if he "a done right and [gave] Jim up" but recognizes that he would "feel just the same way" having sold Jim out or not (Twain 91). Additionally, Jim and Huck have bonded over the course of their time together and like before, Huck began to question whether it was "the plain hand of Providence slapping [him] in the face" for "stealing a poor old woman 's" slave when things went wrong (Twain 212). He was about to let Jim continue to live as a slave when his guilty conscience made him realize that he was the only friend Jim had and Jim repeatedly expressed his gratefulness to Huck. For Huck to let Jim remain as a slave was even more sickening than not turning him in as a runaway. So, he decided that he
…show more content…
John Coffey was a black man in 1932, when racism was still very prevalent, "sentenced to death for the rape-murder of the Detterick twins" (King 9). After Coffey healed Paul 's, the narrator and correctional officer, urinary tract infection using some kind of magic, Paul is convinced "a man who has power like that in his hands, you don 't think of him as the kind of man who rapes and murders children" (King 198). Yet even after knowing for sure that Coffey did not commit those crimes, when it came time for the electric chair, he was unable to cease Coffey 's predestined death by the order of the law. Another example of law versus morality was shown in the character of Percy. He was a merciless prison guard who took advantage of his supremacy and found joy in messing around with the prisoners. Percy purposely sabotaged an execution of one of the prisoners in which he left the sponge dry and then placed it atop of the prisoners head (King 292). When the electricity was sent through his body, instead of it being a quick and less gruesome death due to the normally wet sponge, the prisoner, Del, was fried to death (King 296). In the novel, Percy 's character symbolizes law and how rule and power may be unethical when it is put into the wrong
John Coffey was a black man in 1932, when racism was still very prevalent, "sentenced to death for the rape-murder of the Detterick twins" (King 9). After Coffey healed Paul 's, the narrator and correctional officer, urinary tract infection using some kind of magic, Paul is convinced "a man who has power like that in his hands, you don 't think of him as the kind of man who rapes and murders children" (King 198). Yet even after knowing for sure that Coffey did not commit those crimes, when it came time for the electric chair, he was unable to cease Coffey 's predestined death by the order of the law. Another example of law versus morality was shown in the character of Percy. He was a merciless prison guard who took advantage of his supremacy and found joy in messing around with the prisoners. Percy purposely sabotaged an execution of one of the prisoners in which he left the sponge dry and then placed it atop of the prisoners head (King 292). When the electricity was sent through his body, instead of it being a quick and less gruesome death due to the normally wet sponge, the prisoner, Del, was fried to death (King 296). In the novel, Percy 's character symbolizes law and how rule and power may be unethical when it is put into the wrong