Thanks to Mark Twain there exist very few people who say that they don’t know American literature. Published in 1884, his novel “Huckleberry Finn” became one of the most notable representatives of American books with its dominating notions of color, religion, manners, and tolerance. 

In his early years, Mark Twain had a direct exposure to slavery: his family moved to Mississippi River (a town that will serve as a prototype for the one in a book) and even owned slaves themselves. Full of satire, sometimes vulgar and moral in other parts, the book condemns the slavery but also talks about different people’s attitudes to it. 

Imagine yourself in a small town in Missouri. Two young boys from very different backgrounds find a secret treasure of a robber. Huck is a boy who used to grow up in a poor, low-class family, seeing only dirt, hunger, lack of clothes and performances by his drunken father. Now he is adopted by Widow Douglas, lives in a clean house, behaves by the morals and even goes to school and church. To put it in a nutshell – his life is now boring as hell. 

The events spice up when Huck’s troubled father finds him and insists on getting part of the money from his son. After a long legal battle for custody over Huck, the man kidnaps his son and holds him hostage against Huck’s will. Tired of being locked up and constantly beaten, the boy fakes his death and escapes the confinement. While hiding, the boy meets a slave Jim and helps him escape his owner. 

Even though the book is a sequel to author’s famous Tom Sawyer novel, it is a unique piece of art in itself. Some might say it’s darker while others will call it deeper. It dwells upon the issues that are sad but represent a given fact for our society. The book offers a great opportunity to embrace and understand slavery better. 

Author: Arron Johnston