Analyze Aunt Polly's character and her relationship with Tom in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

Ah, Aunt Polly:  tenderhearted, loving, but usually misguided Aunt Polly.  She is the caretaker of Tom Sawyer (after Polly's sister, Tom's mother, died) and is always desperate to understand Tom.  Her favorite charge, however, is Tom's brother, Sid.  Aunt Polly is always asking Tom to look to Sid in regards to how to behave. 

Aunt Polly is usually seen either quoting scripture, asking Tom to be more like Sid, warning Tom to be more civilized, or hitting Tom over the head withe her thimble.  Tom is not a fan of this type of treatment, so for all of Aunt Polly's tries, ... she fails to win Tom over. 

Aunt Polly is also the glue that cements the rivalry between Sid and Tom as well.  Polly is always trying to figure out Tom's doings.  Tom is always trying to give her some kind of convoluted explanation (and usually succeeds).  Sid prides himself in helping Polly note the inaccuracies in Tom's descriptions.  (Thus, Tom gets another thump with the thimble.)  In my opinion, Aunt Polly's relationship with Tom is summed up here:

In another moment he was flying down the street with his pail and a tingling rear, Tom was whitewashing with vigor, and Aunt Polly was retiring from the field with a slipper in her hand and triumph in her eye.

But of course, we KNOW what happens in regards to Tom's whitewashing the fence.  Aunt Polly never seems to have the upper hand!

What is Aunt Polly's reaction to Tom's exploits in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer?

Aunt Polly's ambivalence about Tom is clear from the very beginning of the book: she is infuriated and concerned by his misbehavior, but at the same time she feels very tenderly toward him. We see this right away in chapter 1, where the very first scene in the book concludes with something of a soliloquy by Aunt Polly in which she says:

"He ’pears to know just how long he can torment me before I get my dander up, and he knows if he can make out to put me off for a minute or make me laugh, it’s all down again and I can’t hit him a lick. I ain’t doing my duty by that boy, and that’s the Lord’s truth, goodness knows. Spare the rod and spile the child, as the Good Book says. . . . He’s full of the Old Scratch, but laws-a-me! he’s my own dead sister’s boy, poor thing, and I ain’t got the heart to lash him, somehow. Every time I let him off, my conscience does hurt me so, and every time I hit him my old heart most breaks." (emphasis added)

The last sentence, especially with the balanced repetition of its phrasing, perfectly captures the two contrary responses Tom provokes in Aunt Polly.

This contradiction is shown again in her reaction to what is probably Tom's most outrageous prank: pretending to be dead only to return, together with Joe and Huck, at his own funeral. At the very end of chapter 16, after the boys return, we are told that

Tom got more cuffs and kisses that day—according to Aunt Polly’s varying moods—than he had earned before in a year.

These actions reflect exactly what Aunt Polly's words expressed in chapter 1: she is equally inclined to shower him with discipline or affection.

As chapter 17 opens, however, we seem to see a possible resolution of these contrary reactions. The very next day after all the "cuffs and kisses," Aunt Polly seems to have nothing but tenderness toward Tom:

At breakfast, Monday morning, Aunt Polly and Mary were very loving to Tom, and very attentive to his wants.

This is confirmed after Tom pretends to have had a prophetic dream of a night during his absence (in reality, he was watching through the window) which concluded with him giving her a kiss and leaving a note reassuring her that he was alive. Aunt Polly's response is entirely affectionate in both word and deed:

“Did you, Tom, did you! I just forgive you everything for that!” And she seized the boy in a crushing embrace.

Even when Aunt Polly finds out in chapter 19 that Tom lied about the dream, she says, " 'Tom, I've a notion to skin you alive!' " but doesn't make a move. When Tom admits that he was really there but still maintains that he gave her a kiss and wanted to leave the note, she supposes this to be part of the lie but is still entirely willing to forgive him:

"I reckon he’s lied about it—but it’s a blessed, blessed lie, there’s such a comfort come from it. I hope the Lord—I know the Lord will forgive him, because it was such good-heartedness in him to tell it."

Finally discovering that he was telling the truth about the note, she is overcome:

A moment later she was reading Tom’s piece of bark through flowing tears and saying: “I could forgive the boy, now, if he’d committed a million sins!”

Clearly, there is little left of her earlier desire to discipline him physically.

So, when we are told in chapter 32 only that "Aunt Polly’s happiness was complete," there can be little doubt that her response is entirely one of tender, and probably tearful, welcome, with hardly any trace of her earlier irritation.

Why is Aunt Polly responsible for Tom in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer?

Aunt Polly is the sister of Tom and Sid's deceased mother. The boys are apparently orphaned, so Aunt Polly, who has no children of her own, takes care of them.

Aunt Polly is a loving and maternal figure who wants to tame Tom's wild nature but is too kind and guileless not to be outsmarted by the energetic boy—at least some of the time.

Aunt Polly definitely finds Tom a challenge to raise. He is very high-spirited, doesn't like to go to school, and is always up to something he shouldn't be. She feels it is her duty to discipline him, such as by hitting him with a birch rod or forcing him to work on a Saturday when the other children are free to play, but Tom usually manages to get around her. Partially this is because Aunt Polly's heart truly isn't geared towards the kind of harsh punishment her society says is the right way to raise a child.

In the book The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain, Tom Sawyer lives with his Aunt Polly.

At the beginning of the book, it is evident that Tom lives with his aunt, instead of his biological mother and father. As the book shows, after his mother passes away, Tom is sent to live with his Aunt Polly. Although Aunt Polly struggles with disciplining Tom, she remains his primary caregiver. For example, Aunt Polly believes that children should be disciplined when they misbehave due to her personal religious convictions. However, she struggles with disciplining Tom because of her compassion and care for him. As Aunt Polly reveals:

“He's my own dead sister's boy, poor thing, and I ain't got the heart to lash him, somehow."

Thus, Aunt Polly takes care of Tom. Although Aunt Polly is often unsure about how to respond to Tom’s actions, she cares for Tom deeply, even though he is not her biological child.

Why and how did Aunt Polly decide to punish Tom in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer?

There are several instances throughout the novel where Aunt Polly punishes Tom for his behavior.

Her most common form of punishment is beating Tom. In chapter 1, Aunt Polly attempts to beat him for hiding in the jam closet as she called for him. Later, she beats Tom for dropping the sugar bowl—even though Sid is the one responsible. During this incident, Polly justifies her actions, saying she punishes Tom because she loves him.

Polly does try other forms of punishment: one famous example is her forcing Tom to whitewash the fence instead of playing with his friends. Aunt Polly does this because she caught him sneaking in through the window the night before. However, Tom actually finds ways to manipulate the situation and gain enjoyment out of these kinds of punishments.

Later in the text, Polly even tries the guilt trip. After Sid tattles on Tom for sneaking out in the night, Polly tells her nephew he has “broken” her heart. This punishment works better than Aunt Polly’s other techniques, as Tom feels depressed at school for the rest of the day.

After discovering Tom is alive after his and the boys’ pirate adventure, Aunt Polly doesn’t even punish Tom at all. This suggests that all of Polly’s punishments truly have been the result of her love and care. She believes that discipline equals love (which is a Christian belief) and therefore tries her best to discipline the mischievous Tom in the ways she knows how.

The changes in Polly’s methods indicate Twain’s message about discipline: one has to understand the negative consequences of one’s actions on one’s own terms in order for any punishment to alter behavior.

In The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, what is the relationship between Tom and Aunt Polly?

Aunt Polly loves Tom and does her best to provide him love and support even though he is sometimes difficult.

Tom is a very spirited boy.  He does not fit well into the boundaries of society.  He doesn’t like to follow rules and stick to routines.  He does his best to enjoy himself and avoid the consequences of his playful actions.

Aunt Polly tries to raise Tom with as much love and attention as she can.  She often feels that she is failing him because she doesn’t provide enough structure and discipline. She doesn’t always punish him when he misbehaves because she can’t bring herself to do it.  She feels sorry for him for not having a mother and father.

"Hang the boy, can't I never learn anything? Ain't he played me tricks enough like that for me to be looking out for him by this time? But old fools is the biggest fools there is. … But my goodness, he never plays them alike, two days, and how is a body to know what's coming? (Ch. 1)

Tom is clever, and sometimes too clever for his own good.  When he goes off for a few days to hang out with his friends on the island, Aunt Polly thinks he is dead.  When he returns, he feels bad that he made her so worried.  He was just being the playful Tom, never thinking about the consequences.

His aunt wept over him and asked him how he could go and break her old heart so; and finally told him to go on, and ruin himself and bring her gray hairs with sorrow to the grave, for it was no use for her to try any more. (Ch. 10)

For Tom, his aunt crying over him and telling him how she worried is “worse than a thousand whippings.”  Despite his goofiness, Tom actually has a big heart. He cares what his aunt thinks, and he does not try to worry her.  The same goes for Aunt Polly.  She may exasperate Tom with her home remedies and rules, but she loves him and is just looking out for him.

How would you describe Aunt Polly's attitude towards Tom in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer?

Aunt Polly finds Tom very difficult to deal with and frequently complains about the trouble he puts her through, but she clearly loves him and worries about his wellbeing. Because she loves him so much, she is often easily manipulated by him, even though she shouldn't be surprised by his antics.

When she thinks he is dying in chapter 6, she rushes to his bedside with "her face...white...and her lip trembl[ing]"; when she finds out he's faking, she laughs and cries with relief and says, "Tom, what a turn you did give me. Now you shut up that nonsense...." She says, "Tom, Tom, I love you so, and you seem to try every way you can to break my old heart with your outrageousness." It's clear that she finds his antics troubling and heartbreaking, but she loves him too much not to laugh at his outrageousness.

In chapter 18, after Tom has returned from the island, he tells Aunt Polly all the details of the moment he eavesdropped on when he snuck home, and she believes immediately in her relief that he is okay that he had a prophetic dream, saying things like, "Mercy on us!" and "Don't tell me there ain't nothing in dreams anymore!" She concludes that "the Spirit was upon you!" Inevitably, she finds out he was lying, and in the next chapter, she tells him, "Tom, I've a notion to skin you alive," but when she finds out he kissed her before he left, she is so overcome with love for him that she asks for another kiss and cries with joy. He has embarrassed her, and she is upset, but she can't help but be moved by his declaration of love for her in return.

What qualities does Aunt Polly exhibit towards Tom in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer?

Aunt Polly is loving and patient with her mischievous nephew Tom.

Aunt Polly is pretty much in over her head with her nephew Tom Sawyer.  Tom is not only mischievous but clever, constantly coming up with new ways to get into trouble.  Polly tries to raise him right, but she loves him so much that she finds it difficult to discipline him in the way she thinks she should.

He 'pears to know just how long he can torment me before I get my dander up, and he knows if he can make out to put me off for a minute or make me laugh, it's all down again and I can't hit him a lick. (Ch. 1)

Polly feels that she isn’t doing her “duty” to Tom because she doesn’t spank him often enough.  Tom does try to avoid getting caught when he gets up to mischief, but Aunt Polly also can’t bring herself to hit him.  She is very loving and compassionate toward him because he has no parents but her.

When Polly does hit Tom for breaking the sugar bowl, he is surprised and upset because it was his brother Sid who actually broke it.  As Tom sulks, Aunt Polly tells Tom he probably deserved the punishment for something he had done that she hadn’t caught him at.  She still feels bad about hitting him though.

Then her conscience reproached her, and she yearned to say something kind and loving; but she judged that this would be construed into a confession that she had been in the wrong, and discipline forbade that. So she kept silence, and went about her affairs with a troubled heart. (Ch. 3)

Aunt Polly believes in home remedies, and often tries to give Tom potions and treatments that aren’t quite reputable.  Tom hates this, of course.  One day he gives his treatment to the cat, and when Aunt Polly sees the cat’s reaction she feels bad for even giving Tom the medicine.  She never realized how awful it was.

When Tom runs away and the whole town thinks he is dead, Aunt Polly is just happy to have him back when he shows up.  She loves him too much and missed him too much to be angry at him for running away.  Even though he is her nephew, she loves him like a son.

How is Aunt Polly's character described in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer?

Interesting question! In the book The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain, Aunt Polly is an important character. Aunt Polly has many unique attributes.

Foremost, Aunt Polly is compassionate. Aunt Polly cares for Tom even though he is not her biological son. As the book shows, Tom often causes problems and incites Aunt Polly to worry; however, Aunt Polly continues to care for Tom. As Aunt Polly’s thoughts reveal:

“He’s my own dead sister’s boy, poor thing, and I ain’t got the heart to lash him, somehow.”

Subsequently, the text supports this assessment of Aunt Polly. For example, the text describes her as being “tender” and possessing “measureless love” for Tom.

Furthermore, she often utilizes her own mental acuity to try and trap Tom in his rebellious actions. For example, she tries to cleverly question Tom about his actions to determine his guilt. However, she is rarely successful in outwitting Tom. The text describes her questions as “full of guile, and very deep.”

Lastly, she is also religious. Aunt Polly recites Bible verses to Tom and encourages him to follow Biblical principles. As the text reveals:

“Aunt Polly had family worship: it began with a prayer built from the ground up of solid courses of Scriptural quotations, welded together with a thin mortar of originality; and from the summit of this she delivered a grim chapter of the Mosaic Law, as from Sinai.”

Thus, Aunt Polly has many different characteristics in the book. With her multiple attributes, Aunt Polly represents a fairly complex and positive character.