As everyone starts to grow up, they begin to develop their own identity, as well as begin to identify their moral values. Through methods like lying, as shown by the character Huckleberry Finn in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, we can see how a person develops and changes. Lying and its effects is one of the main points of the book. In the novel, Mark Twain has a plethora of characters lie and deceive to show its benefits and consequences of not telling the truth. Some of the characters lie so much and so often that distinguishing the difference between reality and deception becomes impossible, and in turn, start to lose their sense of self-worth and self-respect. Characters like Huckleberry, the Duke, and the King are prime examples of characters who lie through their teeth for many reasons. All these lies heavily influence Huckleberry Finn and cause him to realize their cause and effects. Over his journey, and through his experiences, he begins to explore and find his true self. In the book, lying causes the main character to change and comprehend the moral effects of it because of how he uses lies for manipulation, protection, and fun.
In the early stages of his journey, Huckleberry uses his gift of deception as an innocent tool to have a good time and to play pranks on people. Towards the beginning of the novel, Huck is about 13, which is around the age in which kids start to mature and start to try to find themselves. The only influence that Huck really cares about at the time is Tom’s, and let’s face it, he is a pretty reckless role model for Huck. This was shown when Tom wanted to start the bandit camp with the kids from around the neighborhood. Huck would have stayed with that life if it wasn’t for his pap coming back for him. At this point in the story Huck still likes to lie because he wants attention and he finds it exciting, like for example when Huck places the dead rattlesnake what Jim slept and it ended up biting him. Or when Huck and Jim get separated in the fog and Huck tried to convince Jim that it was all a dream. While these acts were childish, they were actually huge turning points for Huck. His own moral reasoning is beginning to change from his own interests to the interests of everyone else. Through his game of lies, he realizes that his fibs don’t really have a positive effect on anyone.
Save your time!
We can take care of your essay
- Proper editing and formatting
- Free revision, title page, and bibliography
- Flexible prices and money-back guarantee
In addition to using lies for fun and games, Huckleberry also lies to protect others. We see this throughout the book as he protects Jim from the public. Because of Huck’s dedication to Jim, Huck begins to have problems with society. He begins to question and challenge not only his own attitude towards people of color, but the whole mindset of white supremacy in the non-free states. This type of growth is huge for a young white boy and his maturity is shown, especially when they meet the King and the Duke.
Huckleberry learns about what is morally right when the King and the Duke come in the picture. They’re full blown scam artists and they move from one town to the next swindling people out of their hard-earned money. Huck doesn’t necessarily like them, but tolerates them and offers them help simply because it was the right thing to do. When they arrive at the first town, and the King and the Duke begin their scams, Huck is put in an awkward position. Huck is basically thrown into the lions’ den and is experiencing these different, manipulative lies for the first time. Before, Huck was used to more playful, simplistic lies, but he soon realizes that these men are willing to lie to anyone to make a quick buck, and he doesn’t really like it. The last straw for Huck was when the King and the Duke act as the two brothers, in which Huck states “It was enough to make a body ashamed of the human race” (Twain 210). This whole experience of them lying through their teeth and pretending to be brothers really outraged Huck and shows him that lying just to manipulate is wrong. And while it was wrong, it ultimately developed his identity, as in the end he did what was right and gave the money back to Mary Jane and the sisters.
Throughout the adventures of Huckleberry Finn, I believe he grew from a boy to a man. He developed his own identity and learned about how different types of lies can affect him and all the people around him. He learned through his pranks that no matter how funny a joke might be, sooner or later someone could get seriously hurt. He learned to judge the objective and final outcome of a lie, and he learned that all lies eventually come with consequences. None of these lessons would have been learned if he hadn’t actually committed the lies in the first place. I think the biggest lesson we can take away from all this is to not be too harsh on people making mistakes. In the end, we all make mistakes, and each mistake is a lesson learned.
Stuck on your essay?
