Morality of Lying in ‘Huckleberry Finn’
Everybody lies, So it is important to understand the moral nuances that surround lying. Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a great book to look into the reasons people lie and their outcomes. Throughout the book many people lie, either to manipulate people for the liars benefit, to get information and hospitality, or to help other characters in the story.
The most notable liars in the book aside from Huck are the King and Duke who lie to swindle people out of their money as a job. One of the first times we see this happen is when the King tells a group of church goers that their surmon had saved him from the damnation of being a pirate, his story was so convincing, the group decided to take up collection
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“Was Jim a runaway nigger? says I "goodness sakes! Would a runaway nigger run south?” (175). Although Hucks opinion on slavery is often conflicted, he knew after meeting back up with Jim that he couldn’t send him back to his owners. So to keep him safe, Huck had to stick his neck out for Jim many times throughout the book. So despite the obvious dishonesty, it is easy to tell that the deception was best course of action in these situations.
Aside from harming and helping people, sometimes the lies people tell have real effect on the people who were lied to. When Huck goes to the shore from Jim and his island hideout he dresses up as a young girl named Sarah Williams. Although under false pretenses, Huck never takes anything the woman didn’t give. and she is in no way harmed by Hucks inquiries (77). Even though it would be better to not lie, if it is the only way to get the information you need, and you won’t harm those you lied to it is not nearly as bad as cheating someone out of their money.
The nuances of lies are far too important to simply say all lies are bad. Some lies harm, some help, and some don’t do much at all. People lie, so to generalize would only lead to more
In Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck and Jim bond closely to one another, regardless of the fact that they belong to different ethnic groups. Huck, a coming-of-age teenage boy, lives in the Southern antebellum society which favors slavery. At the beginning of the book, Twain claims that “Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; and persons attempting to find a plot will be shot” (Twain 2). Ironically, through his experiences with Jim, the uncivilized Huck gradually establishes his own moral beliefs, although sometimes struggling against the influence of society.
Stephanie Ericsson begins her explorative essay, “The Ways We Lie,” with a personal anecdote of all the lies she fabricated in one day. She told her bank that a deposit was in the mail when it was not, told a client that the traffic had been bad when she was late for other reasons, told her partner that her day was fine when it was really exhausting, and told her friend she was too busy for lunch when she just was not hungry, all in the course of a day. She shifts from talking about herself to talking about everyone, claiming that all people lie, exaggerate, minimize, keep secrets, and tell other lies. But, like herself, most still consider themselves honest people. She describes a week in which she tried to never tell a lie; it was debilitating, she claims.
People would call me a low-down abolitionist and deise me for keeping mum” (43). Huck’s decision to keep Jim’s secret reflects a higher
In the Novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, Huck Finn can lie well when he is doing it to help people he cares about or feels bad for. Huck’s life has been based on lies, but he can only lie presumably when he is not doing it for his own benefit. Huck’s lies are not believable when he is lying for selfish reasons. Huck lies out of necessity, so when he lies for a want instead of a need or to save someone else, the lies do not sound truthful. Huck’s ability to lie depends on the people he is with.
In chapter sixteen Jim says in regards to Huck “Dah you goes, de ole true Huck; De on’y white genalman dat’ ever kep’ his promise to ole Jim.” - Jim The true meaning behind this quote is kind of upsetting, because it shows just how badly blacks were treated in this time period. Jim feels Huck is the only white man who has ever kept a promise to him. This promise was to never turn Jim in.
There is not a person alive who has not lied, be it a little white lie or a whopper. It is highly probable that Arthur Miller created Thomas Putnam’s character based off people in the McCarthy era who accused others of being dreaded communists for the sole purpose of monetary or material benefits. Similar to Thomas Putnam’s motive, the duke and the king from Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn lie about their royal status in order to loot money from their audiences. In The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, a non-fiction novel, Henrietta Lacks lies about her fatal disease to her family and friends out of love, she does not want them to worry about her.
In Ericsson’s essay she wrote about why lying threatens to become a “cultural cancer”. To explain why we lie, she tells us about different types of lies, and how they can still be harmful despite having good intentions. Ericsson is correct that lying threatens to become a “cultural cancer”. Lying threatens to become a “cultural cancer” because it can lead people going to a wrong direction. It can turn statements into excuses that can help people manipulate others.
But Huck also feels like he can not turn Jim in because deep down he knows that Jim’s life will be better not being a slave. This shows that Huck battles between himself whether to follow society’s rules or his own morlas. When Huck chooses to not turn Jim in as a runaway slave, that makes it evident that he matures or so it
In “The Way We Lie”, author Stephanie Ericsson gives her readers a list of ten lie we sometime use it for a purpose and sometime we did not realize we did it. She starts out her story with four lie she used in the same morning as she is starting out her day. She explains these lie are intentionally use to minimize the complications and make the day goes much smoother. However, she questions whether these lie can actually make an impact on the person who carry out and the person who receive the lie.
If Huck wouldn’t have lied, he would have still been stuck in the cabin with Pap beating him, Jim would be a slave sold off, the duke and dauphin would be stuck in that same river town and the entire novel wouldn’t have even happened without lies. Huck was forced to lie because what would others immediately suspect when they saw a child and a black man traveling alone? They would immediately think Jim was a runaway slave aided by the help of a white child and find a way to bring Jim back. There is so much lying because that is all the characters have learned and grown up with. They must lie and become someone else to receive what they want.
Huck has been burned with the idea that he is to blame for Jim’s escape. Huck ultimately feels guilty because he knows he has not done wrong but he has no reason not to believe what society thinks because he was only taught one way. Huck imagines an alternate scenario, thinking “s’pose [he]’d’ a’ done right and give Jim up, would [he] felt better... No…[he'd] feel bad” (91). Huck is aware that the right decision based on society is to give up Jim.
People like the lady that Mark Twain was talking about in his essay “On the Decay of the Art of Lying” argued that she doesn’t tell a lie in any circumstance, but Mark Twain confronted her by telling her that she is wrong, “we are all liars. There are no exceptions,” he said. He
Individuals often say that the right way may not necessarily be the popular way, but standing up for the right thing, despite it being frowned upon, will be the true test of one’s moral character. This relates to the moral growth that Huck Finn experiences throughout his journey. Mark Twain’s controversial novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, can be said to be a compelling story about how one individual, Huck Finn, goes against society’s ideals. Huck’s moral development can be said to be based primarily on those around him, especially Jim. Many instances also influence Huck’s morals, particularly during the raft journey that will change his beliefs and morals.
In the novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the reader gauges morality through the misadventures of Huck and Jim. Notably, Huck morally matures as his perspective on society evolves into a spectrum of right and wrong. Though he is still a child, his growth yields the previous notions of immaturity and innocence. Likewise, Mark Twain emphasizes compelling matters and issues in society, such as religion, racism, and greed. During the span of Huck’s journey, he evolves morally and ethically through his critique of societal normalities.
According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, honesty is the quality of being fair and trustful. I have always wondered why people succeed and are considered of great importance. Many tend to succeed through illegal paths, which will vanish faster than they think. Real businessmen build their heritage slowly, step by step through honest actions and decisions. A person who’s honest is not weak or fragile, instead, dares to practice honesty, to be considered trustworthy, and to be transparent in everything they do.