FIRST IMPRESSIONS
The Wilks Family
The Wilks family is the target of one of the Dukes and the Kings scam. They learn that Peter Wilks who was a fairly man , had just passed away. Peter was hoping to see his brothers William and Harvery before he died. Being the biggest con men alive the Duke and the King try to be pose as the two brothers so that they could steal the familys money and riches. The con men run out of luck because, the Wilks ladies are very loved especially by Huck and he cant let them steal all their money. He gets very fond of Mary Jane who is the oldest of the family. As a result Mary Jane does fall for the Dukes scam but, luckily for Hucks soft spot for her leads him to throw a wrench into the cons crooked game.
The Grangerfords
The Grangerfords are a family that takes Huck in after a steamboat hits his raft, which causes him to seperate from Jim. These people were very heart warming because they let Huck stay with them in there country home. Although they are heart warming , they have a feud with another family in the area, the Shepherdsons. The feud between both the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons gets many people killed. The Grangerfords are extremely wealthy because, each member of the family has a servant, there house is huge and looks well decorated and they also have an abundance of land. The feud between the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons is really big , because they all want to kill eachother until there is no one left in any family, this feud between both families has been going on for 30 years. A boy named Buck Grangerford who is the age of Huck, has violence on his mind the whole time.
Judge Thatcher
Judge Thatcher is the guy that is fighting for Huck's safety and well being with Widow Douglass at the beginning of the novel. Judge Thatcher safeguards Huck's money and invests it so that he could accumulate as much interest as possible , all around Judge Thatcher is a very kinda hearted man. Thatcher also tries to keep Huck away from his father. Judge Thatcher is basically a second father for Huck because, when Huck has problems or when he needs someone to talk to Thatcher is always there for him and helps out Huck as best as he can. You can tell that the judge cares about Huck a lot because, he also tries to gain custody of Huck after he finds out that his father is an incapable father. You can also tell that the judge cares about Huck a lot because, Huck tells Thatcher to take the money but he tricks him into not taking it, this shows a lot because most characters in the novel would just take the money and leave but a kind hearted man like Judge Thatcher would never do that.
The most memorable moment in this selection for me would be in chapter 31. This is when they're making there way down the river into the south where its warm. Huck is nervous because the Duke and the King start planning and scheming, he is nervous because he thinks that they are going to rob some houses along the river. Huck decided that the first chance he gets he will break away from the Duke and the King and, Jim and himself will be free from them. The King goes into the one of the small towns and tells the Duke and Huck to meet him up there shortly after a bit. When they arrive there they see the King acting drunk, Huck uses this as an advantage and escapes to the raft. When he gets to the raft he yells out Jim's name because he is so excited but, he could not find Jim anywhere. Huck did not know what to do so he just wondered off down the road, where he meets a boy who tells him that they have caught the runaway slave and that he is down at Silas Phelp's house. Huck then realizes that the King told Jim's location for $40 dollars, this makes Huck very frustrated at the King and Duke because of what they had done to Jim. Huck then decides to hide the rafe and sleep for a bit, the next day he changes his clothes and cannoes over to Phelp's farm. When Huck gets to town he notices the Duke there putting up a "Royal Nonesuch" handbill. They talk for a bit about where the location of the raft and Jim is. Huck acts like he does not know where they are and the Duke tells him that the King had sold Jim for $40. Huck bursted out in tears and was asking the Duke where he could find him , but instead of the Duke telling Huck the truth he lied to him and said that Jim was with a slaver driver named Abram G Foster. The Duke thinks that this will keep Huck occupied and out of there way. Huke being the intelligent boy he is pretends to walk in the woods but turns right back around so he could make his way back to Phelp's farm and rescue Jim, without the King and Duke around.
Analysis of Setting
The book takes place in the 1800s, roughly between 1835-1845 which is before the Civil War. From chapters 23 to 31 the setting of the book takes place mainly in the Mississippi river and in Phelp's farm
which was where Huck was looking for Jim.
Analysis of Style and Structure
The book is written in Huck's point of view. The author uses English language in his novel but, he makes use of Southern and Black dialects due to the time period.
"He don't mean nothing; he's always a carryin' on like that, when he's drunk.
"He's the best-naturedest old fool in Arkansaw- never hurt nobody, drunk nor sober"
These are two examples of how people use to talk back in Huck's time. You can cleary tell that this is how people spoke back in the days because, of the way they were speaking. No one would speak this way because it is improper grammar.
Contemporary Relevance - Newspaper Article
Missing Boy dissapeared in the area of St.Petersburg Missouri
Jim was last seen in the Phelp's farm, he was coming off a raft. People have seen Jim in the area and may have suspected that he was with a black male around the age of 30. Police say that he may have been set up by these two men named King and Duke, these two men have been noted as con men. Jim was wearing a white shirt with blue shorts. People in the town were saying that they saw Jim at one of the stores and he was making a purchase for a bottle of water. No one knows where he has gone and his good friend Huck is looking for him and is deeply sad because, he has no clue where Jim may be. If you have any clues as to where Jim may be please contact the Missouri Police Department, thank you for your cooperation
Staff Reporter,
Hareesh Krishnakumar
QUESTIONS
1. What do you think happend to Jim?
2.Do you think that Huck will find Jim?If so do you think it will take him awhile for him to find Jim?
3.Do you think King and Duke have something to do with Jim's dissapearance?
4.Why would King sell Jim for $40?
