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Jim

Jim. Alia Hafez Maggie Mumar Per.1 1/30/14. Thesis Claim.

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Jim

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  1. Jim Alia Hafez Maggie Mumar Per.1 1/30/14

  2. Thesis Claim In Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn, Jim is portrayed as a protective figure towards Huck despite the struggle of racial discrimination through a journey to which freedom is an objective in creating new beginnings for the South’s unbefitting society.

  3. Jim’s characteristics: Insightful Fatherly Optimistic Superstitious Caring

  4. Who is he? -Slave of Miss Watson -Wanted freedom to live life as any other man with rights -Was going to be sold for $800 to the south to work on plantations but ran for his freedom -Is a complex character with motives and feelings despite how he’s looked down upon in society -A man neglected by the human race for skin color, segregated and treated unequally by his equals (meaning the human race) -He’s a family man

  5. His purpose He looks over and protects Huck in a fatherly way throughout the novel. Jim is used as a symbolic figure from the fact that he was a runaway slave to expose the racist culture of their time in isolating “lesser” individuals. The relationship between Huck and Jim is also used in an effort to allow an insight on the interactions and struggles of friendship between a white and black man in the racist Southern culture. Huck is on edge between deciding what his conscience tells him is the right thing to do and what he feels would be the right thing to do. Society (or his conscience) tells him to turn him in, but he decides otherwise.

  6. Characteristic: Fatherly "It's a dead man. Yes, indeedy; naked, too. He's ben shot in de back. I reck'n he's ben dead two er three days. Come in, Huck, but doan' look at his face—it's too gashly." (9.18) Jim understands well that the image before him would affect Huck in the sudden change of events. He did not want Huck to be exposed to the death of his father for fear that his innocence as a mere child would be disturbed. His concern for Huck is a symbol of his care for Huck and responsibility. Jim is seen as a fatherly figure in terms of Huck's protection. People usually have an accomplice or some greater power over them as a source of guidance and protection. In this case, Jim is seen as that accomplice in his instinctive need to protect a vulnerable child, even though Jim seems to be equally as dependent on Huck for the possibility of potential freedom.

  7. Characteristic: Caring "Goodness gracious, is dat you, Huck? En you ain' dead—you ain' drownded—you's back agin? It's too good for true, honey, it's too good for true. Lemme look at you chile, lemme feel o' you. No, you ain' dead! you's back agin, 'live en soun', jis de same ole Huck—de same ole Huck, thanks to goodness!" (15.19) After their separation, Jim and Huck’s reuniting emphasizes Jim’s care as he confronts Huck’s once perceived lost soul with disbelief and amazement. Jim’s caring nature appeared to overwhelm him as he processed that his responsibility, or Huck, was alive, giving him a rational feel of security. The separation between Jim and Huck tightened their bond, for they both realized the importance of each other’s presence. Jim and Huck’s friendship has climbed at a level where one is dependent on the other in terms of survival and wellbeing. They had began a journey towards freedom together and had stuck through it with a bond increasing continuously in strength.Their undeniable growth in friendship had created more of a familial bond, regardless of the difference in race and considering both the mental and physical distance between their own blood related families.

  8. Characteristic: Insightful "Well, it's a blame ridicklous way, en I doan' want to hear no mo' 'bout it. Dey ain' no sense in it." "Looky here, Jim; does a cat talk like we do?" (14.39, 14.40) Jim does not understand the purpose of having different languages among the same race. He is in a state of confusion regarding the fact that human beings live in the same world and should be able to communicate with each other at one level. Jim denies the use of languages because he feels that to learn each one to communicate is unnecessary. Jim is seen to be confused by the the explanation Huck makes of the definition of languages. His level of understanding gets deeper into the meaning behind the distinction languages as a means to emphasize the conflict of inequality between the races. Jim questions the reason behind our lack adequate communication and its connection to his struggles through slavery as a subhuman.

  9. Conclusion Jim is the symbol of the south’s racially unstable society. The relationship between Huck and Jim is used to display the challenge of acceptance between the men of different colors. Jim is constantly on edge of risking his life for seeking a safe haven and eventually attaining freedom. He displays his understanding of the human race as a race most immoral and unreasonable towards their intention behind the segregation he had been forced to face. The struggle Jim is faced with is used for the purpose as an eye-opener for the unexplainable effects of arrogance.

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