Study and Discussion Questions for Huck Finn

Chapters 1 - 7 set up life on shore prior to Huck and Jim’s adventure. What details does Twain use to give us an impression of this life? Why does he begin this way? Why is it important for the reader to picture that antebellum world of Missouri?

What role does Tom Sawyer play in this opening section? How does Huck view Tom? What does this tell us about how Huck views himself?

How are the relationships with adults which Huck has before the journey based on manipulation? How does his relationship with Jim differ once they are on the river? (Compare Huck and Pap and Huck and Jim).

The first section of the novel ends with Huck’s staged death. In what ways does this serve a symbolic function?

The motif of the journey is an important one in the novel, setting up the second section of the book, Chapters 8 - 30. How does Twain invest this journey with symbolic qualities? How does it help him establish structure for this section of the novel?

Can this journey also be seen as the search for a home? If so, in what way?

Twain often suggests an Edenic quality to life on the raft before the arrival of the Duke and Dauphin. What details does he use to convey this? Why is this important to the experience of Huck and Jim?

One of the advantages to the first person narrator for Twain’s work is that it allows him to hold the various episodes together in a meaningful way. How does the narrative voice allow this? How else does the narrative voice contribute to the novel?

How does Twain convey social satire in the Grangerford episode, Chapters 17 and 18? What is he satirizing? How can this section also be seen as tragic?

What function do the Duke and the Dauphin serve? Ho do they allow Twain to comment on antebellum society? How do they affect life on the raft?

Why does Twain include the Sherburn - Boggs section?

What happens in the Wilks episode? Why is this section important to Huck’s development?

What signs do we see of Huck’s growth? How does he change by the end of the river journey? Chapter 31 marks the culmination of Huck’s moral growth as well as the end of the river journey. What does it reveal? How does Twain develop the themes of loyalty and betrayal in Chapter 31?

Is it ironic that Huck becomes "Tom" in Chapter 32? What effect does it have on him? This is the last "identity" that Huck tries onhas he learned anything by trying on all of the roles he has played?

What is the function of the Phelps Farm episode?

How do you evaluate the end? Does knowledge of Jim’s freedom change the way we view Tom’s concept of adventure? What does Huck’s final decision to "light out for the territories" suggest?

Does Jim change in the novel? Does the Phelps Farm episode put Jim back into his old role? Is this a problem?

Is this a racist book? Should students read it in high school?