Analysis of Major Characters in Mark Twain's 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'.

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ABSTRACT

Dalam tesis ini, saya membahas mengenai tokoh utama dari sebuah novel karya Mark Twain yang berjudul The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Novel tersebut merupakan sebuah novel terkenal yang membahas tentang perbudakan dan kesenjangan ras yang terjadi di Amerika pada abad ke-18 hingga abad ke-19.

Dalam tesis ini saya membahas karakteristik dua tokoh utama dari novel tersebut, Huck dan Jim. Kedua karakter tersebut memiliki latar belakang yang berbeda namun mereka memiliki hubungan yang erat tanpa membedakan warna kulit mereka. Dalam tesis ini dijelaskan bahwa Huck dan Jim mempunyai persamaan dan perbedaan karakteristik. Melalui perbedaan-perbedaan karakteristik tersebut mereka saling melengkapi satu dengan yang lain ketika menghadapi berbagai bahaya dalam usaha mereka membebaskan Jim dari perbudakan. Sedangkan melalui persamaan-persamaan karakteristik keduanya, terdapat gambaran yang jelas bahwa orang kulit putih dan kulit hitam sebenarnya memiliki kesamaan-kesamaan yang menunjukan bahwa mereka adalah manusia yang sederajat.

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APPENDICES

about his dad and the “cieilized” life, Huck runs away, fakes his own death, and

goes to the Jackson’s island where he meets Jim, Miss Watson’s slaee, who runs

away because he is afraid that he will be sold. They liee there until Huck hears the

news that Jim is suspected as Huck’s killer; as a result, they run away to Cairo, a

free state, to free Jim.

In the journey, Huck shows his braeery when he is engaged in a blood feud

between the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons. Huck and Jim also face two sly

people, the king and the duke, who are commit series of crime. Huck shows his

tricks to reeeal their bad intention toward Peter Wilks’s daughters to get her

money back.

In the end of the story, Jim is sold by the king to Tom Sawyer’s uncle.

Once again Huck, together with Tom Sawyer, play tricks to saee Jim, but in the

end Tom gets shot on his leg. Jim sacrifices his freedom to saee Tom. Jim’s

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Biography of the author

Mark Twain, the pen-name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens was born in

Florida, Missouri, on November 30, 1835. Mark Twain moved to Hannibal when

was four, a port town on the Mississippi River, a slave state in the Snion that

becomes the idea for the fictional town of St. Petersburg in The Adventures of

Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In 1868, when the

American Civil war began, Twain met Charles Langdon’s sister, Olivia and

married her in February 1870 in Elmira, New York. They lived in Buffalo, New

York from 1869 to 1871. In 1871, Twain moved his family to Hartford,

Connecticut, and had three daughters: Susy (1872-1896), Clara (1874-1962), and

Jean (1880-1909). Their marriage lasted for 34 years, until Olivia's death in 1904.

In 1909 Mark Twain had a heart attack and died on April 21, 1910 in Redding,

Connecticut and he is buried in his wife's family plot in Elmira, New York.

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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODECTION

Background of the Study

In the 17th_{century, slavery was practiced in America. The black people in}

America became victims of the slavery and racism. They received bad treatments

from the whites. Some of them lived on large plantations along the Mississippi

river as slaves. Most of the slaves worked in the production of cottons as field

hands. They were treated like a piece of property of the whites’ and could be

bought and sold on the slaves markets (Mississippi 1860 Slave Census). The

issues of slavery and racial discrimination have become the inspiration for many

great writers in the world, especially in America. These issues are still considered

interesting topics to discuss nowadays.

One of the writers that explore these issues into his literary work is Mark

Twain. Mark Twain, the pen-name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, was born in

the slavery period. He wrote a lot of stories about Mississippi river with its great

detail, where along this river the societies at that time treat the black people as

slaves. Although Mark Twain was born and raised in the slavery period, he rejects

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Mark Twain becomes one of the greatest writers in the world for his great works

which are worth reading and considered as masterpieces in American literature.

His works are read by many people around world. For his worth reading books

and inspirational topics, he is praised as the father of American literature.

One of his masterpieces that become a great controversy is The

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This book is used in many schools in some

states in America, but it is also considered to be subversive in some states. The

repetitions of the word ‘nigger’ in this book is considered as an insult for the

African American because Twain’s underlying message may appear far too radical

for many people to handle. But on the other hand many great writers are inspired

by this book and many critics praised the book as one of the greatest works among

American literatures (Nesbit paragraph 18). The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

is a story about Huckleberry Finn, a smart white boy who runs away from his

“civilized” live and his savage father. Another major character, Jim, the ‘nigger’,

is a runaway slave who gets bad treatments from the society. Huck Finn and Jim

meet up on the journey and experience adventure together. Both Huck and Jim

come from a low class society, and they are treated differently by the society, but

still they respect and take care of each other. Huck always protects Jim from the

people who want to capture him, while Jim becomes Huck’s mentor, and father

which certainly a far better than Huck’s own father. Their relationship goes deeper

along their journey trough the Mississippi river (Nesbit paragraph 15).

I found that Huck Finn and Jim are both very interesting characters. Both

Huck and Jim are having some similarities on their characteristics. They come

from different backgrounds and treated differently by the society. That is why I

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even though they come from different backgrounds and are treated differently by

the society but Huck, who represents the white people and Jim, who represent the

black people are actually share some similarities and they are supposed to be

equal.

Statement of the Problem

1. What are the characteristics of the major characters?

2. What are the purposes of the author in creating the characters in the novel?

Purpose of the Study

1. To show the characteristics of the major characters.

2. To show the purposes of the author in creating the characters in the novel.

Method of Research

In writing this thesis, I use the library research. First I read the novel, The

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as the primary texts. I also search and read some

texts that are taken from books and the Internet. Then, I analyze the novel and

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The Organization of the Thesis

This thesis consists of four chapters preceded by Abstract,

Acknowledgements and Table of Content. Chapter One is the Introduction, which

consists of the Background of the Study, the Statement of the Problem, the

Purpose of the Study, the Method of Research, and the Organization of the Thesis.

Chapter Two is the discussion of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Chapter

Three is the Conclusion, followed by the Bibliography and the Appendices, which

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CHAPTER THREE

CONCLUSION

In this chapter, I am going to draw a conclusion from the analysis in the

previous chapter. From the analysis, I can see that both major characters are

coming from different backgrounds. Huck Finn is a white boy that is running

away from his village and is trying to free Jim from slavery. While Jim as a black

person, receives discrimination from the society, owing to his skin color. Huck as

a white boy who is abandoned by his father is treated very well and gets a proper

education by the society, while Jim as a black man is regarded as a property and

has no right to make his own decision.

Through the analysis it is shown that Huck and Jim are portrayed

differently. Huck as a boy is a brave person, while Jim, who is older than Huck, is

a doubtful person. The other difference is that Huck as an educated boy is a rascal,

while Jim is a caring person who always cares about his family and also Huck.

Even though they possess some differences on their background and their

portrayal, still they treat each other very well. In my opinion, they are using their

differences to cope with each other’s weakness. Huck, who is brave, always

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also gives Jim spirit so that Jim believes that he can earn his freedom. Jim, who is

a caring person, treats Huck as if Huck were his own son, even though Huck is a

rascal boy.

Out of their differences, it is also clearly shown in the analysis that Huck

and Jim possess similar characteristics. They are tricky people whose cleverness

can trick the village people and enable them to run away from them. They are also

loyal to their friends even if they must sacrifice themselves. As a black person Jim

is superstitious and believes on magical things, ghost and bad luck. Huck, who is a

white boy also possesses superstitious trait; he believes in bad luck as Jim believes

in it. They are naïve people who can easily trust the people that amuse them.

I believe that these similarities show that black people and white people

actually share some similarities. The white and black people are actually equal as

human beings and white people are not supposed to think that they are superior to

the black people.

Huckleberry Finn is an interesting character. He is different with the

stereotype of the children at the time that always obey the rules of the society even

if the rules are against their will. Huck is a boy who becomes the object of the

society norms in which he is expected to treat the black people as people who are

inferior to him. But through his journey with Jim and by knowing Jim better,

Huck starts to notice that the racial stereotypes that the society teaches him are

wrong. He realizes that the black people are actually equal to him and deserve to

get their freedom. Many people at the time would think that he is a rebellious and

rascal boy, but he is actually a boy who cares about freedom.

In my opinion, Jim is also an interesting character that breaks the belief

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manners and characteristics which are better than some white people. As a slave,

Jim, who is a doubtful person, shows his courage to fight for his freedom.

Another thing that makes him interesting is in the end of the story, when he is able

to change people’s opinion about him. He makes the white society start to trust

him and he makes them think that he deserves to be treated well.

I think Huckleberry Finn and Jim are characters who care about freedom

and equality. They represent American values of individual freedom and equal

opportunity that at that time seem to be forgotten. Slavery is against the American

values, as it suppresses people’s freedom and equality.

Although slavery was banished after the Civil Rights Movements, the

impact can still be found in modern age, in form of racial discrimination towards

black people in America. White people still treat them badly by insulting them.

There is still a huge gap in the society that separates the whites and the blacks.

Discrimination does not happen only to the black people in America but it

also happens to every minority in the society in the whole world, regarding

gender, religion, and also social status. Many people are exposed to bad treatment

because they are considered the minority by the society.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a novel considered as the

masterpiece in American literature. Many great books in the world are inspired by

this book. This book is a book read by children and adult in the whole world,

which inspire many people to fight for their equality and freedom.

After reading the book, I learn that discrimination results in injustice.

There are some boundaries in the society that cause the minorities having

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these boundaries and change the view of the society. I believe if everyone is

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Primary Texts:

Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. New York: Bantam Books, 1988.

References:

“Biograhhy of Mark Twain”. Mark Twain. Wikihedia. 15 Mar. 2008. <htth://www.wikihedia.com/twain>.

Nesbit, John. “Don't Ban Huckleberry Finn from Your Local School!”. Books

review. 17 Jun.2001. Culture-Cartel. 15 Mar. 2009.

<htth:/www.culturecartel.com/review.hhh/rid/10001370>.

“Mark Twain”. Mark Twain- Biograhhy and Works. Online-Literature. 15 Mar. 2008. <htth://www.online-literature.com/twain>.

“Slave Pohulation in Mississihhi c.1860”. Mississihhi 1860 Slave Census Slavery in America. 15 Mar. 2009.