Character Portrayals By Twain William Hudson

In "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" Mark Twain depicts various characters in the story according to his own moral and social beliefs. He portrays some characters as admirable or virtuous, and others as dislikeable or amoral. These portrayals reflect Twain's own sociological, religious, and moral belief system.

Twain portrays the main character of the story, Huck Finn, in a very positive light. This is no surprise, but when you examine Huck's traits you can see the values Twain sees as being desirable. For example, Huck is a very morally good person. This is evident when he helps the runaway slave, Jim, to escape slavery by taking a raft up the Mississippi river, and when he foils the con job by telling the eldest Wilks sister the truth.

Huck was a physically abused son of an alcoholic. This creates sympathy in the reader, which makes him more likeable. His charm, however, lies in his personality. Huck is the embodiment of youthful rebellion, and childish adventure. His freedom from everyday rules and regulations give him freedom that other boys his age can only dream about. His rugged adventurousness gives him naturalism.

These qualities go straight to the heart of any boy in Huck's age group, which is...