The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Group

Question:

jammin222
jammin222
Student
High School - 11th Grade

How does the story of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn fit the idea of a quest?

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Posted by jammin222 on Sunday November 8, 2009 at 6:22 PM and tagged with literature, the adventures of huckleberry finn.

Answers:

  1. parkerlee
    parkerlee Teacher

    eNotes Editor

    Twain lends a delightful twist to the quest leit motif in that the thing sought after in this tale is Tom's freedom, even after the Emancipation Proclamation has already set him free. Huck is having so much fun with their escapades up and down the Mississippi River (on the river and on shore) that he keeps this news a secret from his friend as long as he can.

    Huck himself is feeling pretty much enslaved to the expectations and constraints of a "civilized" life, finding life on the raft much more easygoing and free. In these terms, Huck's "quest" is to prolong his childhood indefinitely and to put off encroaching adulthood, along with all its everyday problems and responsibilities. In tandem, 'Huckleberry Finn' is a coming of age story as well as one of loss of innocence.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/adventures-of-huckleberry-finn
    http://www.enotes.com/adventures-of-huckleberry-finn/role...
    http://www.enotes.com/adventures-of-huckleberry-finn/themes

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    Posted by parkerlee on Monday November 9, 2009 at 10:18 AM