Examples Of Huckleberry Finn As A Christ Figure

There is one man that seemingly everyone reveres. He displays good-hearted, sacrificial traits, and uses his teachings to better the world. He even has an entire book in his honor. This man is named Jesus. The Bible physically describes Jesus as a semitic-looking man who would not stand out amongst a crowd, but Christ-like figures come in many shapes and sizes. A Christ figure would possess attributes that mirror those exhibited in the biblical man himself. Jim, a slave man from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, can be easily acknowledged as a Christ-figure. Jim managed to be protective, forgiving, sacrificial, and spread his message of acceptance despite his oppressive background.

As a poor black man in the antebellum age, no one listened to Jim. Many knew him only as Mrs. Watson’s slave. Despite his oppressive surroundings, however, Jim proceeded to share his morally positive message with Huck. In response to Huck pulling a prank on him, Jim points out that people who “puts dirt on… [their] fren’s” (65) are trash. He speaks here of the fact that those who play rude tricks are the lowest of the low; they are garbage. After a while, Huck responded well to this and apologized to Jim. In

When Huck and Jim encountered a rattlesnake, Huck brushed off Jims precautions about touching snakeskin. In turn, Jim got bitten. After Huck’s numerous apologies, Jim told him that it “ain’t [his] fault… [he] didn’t know” (70), showing that Jim genuinely forgave Huck and lacked any hard feelings towards him. Jim again showed forgiveness after he had escaped with Tom and Huck. When referring to the game of lies Tom had just played, Jim refers to it as “mixed-up [and] splendid” (207). Even though Jim suffered considerably throughout this game, he forgave Tom in the end and praised it. This trait parallels Jesus in the bible because he forgave the sins of his disciples, especially those of