Mark Twain’s 1884 novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, uses vivid descriptions and dialect to capture the story of Huckleberry Finn, a 14-year old country boy. The novel follows Huck and a runaway slave, Jim, as they travel down the Mississippi River seeking adventure and freedom. Along the way, they meet various characters and challenges from which something can be gained. In the chapters 21-23, their river raft brings them, along with two conmen, the duke and the dauphin, to Bricksville, Arkansas. There, Huck witnesses the murder of a drunk man, the intensity of an angry lynch mob, and the results of a large con scheme. Through Huck’s description of these events readers can see how Huck’s first impressions–as conveyed to the reader–clearly contradict a deeper reality later revealed. Huck’s initial thoughts are impressed upon the reader given the first-person format of the novel. In these three chapters, this formation of appearance and reveal of reality can be seen in the case of the man who killed Boggs, Colonel Sherburn, and the “victims” of the conmen’s scheme. The initial depiction of Colonel Sherburn does not convey much of the depth and insight of his full character. When Huck arrives in Bricksville, Arkansas, he quickly notices the slow pace of this rugged town. “All streets and lanes was just mud, they warn’t nothing else but mud…” (156). In his clear description of the town, an idea of the townspeople are also easily formed. They all appear to be lazy, unambitious, and simple-minded. This explains why, when Sherburn is introduced, he is easily distinguished from the people of his town. In learning about this character, Huck paints an image that sets Sherburn up to viewed as proud and self-centered. Next, Boggs, a town drunk, comes into the narrative. He makes a loud entrance with announcing his mission to kill old Colonel Sherburn. Though a fairly serious threat, it is quickly disregarded based on the fact that “[Boggs] is the best-naturedest old fool in Arkansaw–never hurt nobody, drunk nor sober” (157). The development behind the contextualisation of these characters plainly sets up the roles of victim and killer. This notion is also supported by Huck’s focus on Boggs’ daughter’s reaction to her father’s death. Focusing on this “sweet and gentle-looking” (159) girl and her heartfelt reaction to her father’s death promotes sympathy. This sympathy along with solidifies Sherburn’s outward appearance as a harsh, cold-blooded killer. Once Boggs has been killed, an angry lynch mob forms and seeks after Colonel Sherburn. Based on the details presented, readers easily agree with the mentality of the lynch mob: “an eye for an eye.” The growth of Sherburn’s character becomes very limited until he delivers a powerful speech to the bitter crowd. Not only does
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In chapter 23, the townspeople of Bricksville are tricked into buying tickets for a play put on by the two con men. This play is, of course, illegitimate and a hoax. Because of their title of conmen, character roles are already set and expected to be filled. It is automatically implied that whoever the two scheme against are the victim(s) of the situation. The reaction of the first night’s audience of townspeople argues against this. Instead of solidifying these roles, their reaction reveals their true nature in relation to the duke and the
In chapter 23, the townspeople of Bricksville are tricked into buying tickets for a play put on by the two con men. This play is, of course, illegitimate and a hoax. Because of their title of conmen, character roles are already set and expected to be filled. It is automatically implied that whoever the two scheme against are the victim(s) of the situation. The reaction of the first night’s audience of townspeople argues against this. Instead of solidifying these roles, their reaction reveals their true nature in relation to the duke and the