Huck Finn Freedom Quotes

The Widow Douglas, she took me for her son, and allowed she would sivilize me; but it was rough living in the house all the time, considering how dismal regular and decent the widow was in all her ways; and so when I couldn’t stand it no longer, I lit out.

– Mark Twain

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Chapter 1. Huck Finn’s strict, old pious guardian. Emboding civilization and respectability, she wants to “sivilize” Huck. But he is having none of that and wishes to throw off the shackles of civilized society and be free.

This second night we run between seven and eight hours, with a current that was making over four mile an hour. We catched fish and talked, and we took a swim now and then to keep off sleepiness. It was kind of solemn, drifting down the big, still river, laying on our backs looking up at the stars, and we didn’t ever feel like talking loud, and it warn’t often that we laughed – only a little kind of a low chuckle.

– Mark Twain

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Chapter 12. Hucks explains that while he and Jim float downsteam on their raft, the Mississippi is a
source of food and spiritual nourishment for them. They enjoy the freedom of being in the wilderness.

Well, I can tell you it made me all over trembly and feverish, too, to hear him, because I begun to get it through my head that he WAS most free – and who was to blame for it? Why, ME. I couldn’t get that out of my conscience, no how nor no way. It got to troubling me so I couldn’t rest; I couldn’t stay still in one place. It hadn’t ever come home to me before, what this thing was that I was doing. But now it did; and it stayed with me, and scorched me more and more. I tried to make out to myself that I warn’t to blame, because I didn’t run Jim off from his rightful owner; but it warn’t no use, conscience up and says, every time, “But you knowed he was running for his freedom, and you could a paddled ashore and told somebody.” That was so – I couldn’t get around that noway. That was where it pinched.

– Mark Twain

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Chapter 16. Huck is having a moral crisis. Conflicted over matters of right and wrong, and questions of freedom and slavery, he wrestles over what he should do. Jim is all excited about the possibilities of freedom, but Huck knows that according to the racist society he comes from, he is breaking the law for aiding and abetting a runaway slave.

“Pooty soon I’ll be a-shout’n’ for joy, en I’ll say, it’s all on accounts o’ Huck; I’s a free man, en I couldn’t ever ben free ef it hadn’ ben for Huck; Huck done it. Jim won’t ever forgit you, Huck; you’s de bes’ fren’ Jim’s ever had; en you’s de ONLY fren’ ole Jim’s got now.”

– Mark Twain

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Chapter 16. Jim is certain that he will soon be free from the bonds of slavery. He thanks Huck for that and says he will never forget him. At this stage they have become close friends, they take care of each other and Jim is like a father figure to Huck, since his own father isn’t.

Sometimes we’d have the whole river to ourselves for the longest time. Yonder was the banks and the islands, across the water; and maybe a spark – which was a candle in a cabin window; and sometimes on the water you could see a spark or two – on a raft or scow, you know, and maybe you could here a fiddle or a song coming over from of them crafts. It’s lovely to live on a raft.

– Mark Twain

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Chapter 19. Huck and Jim really embrace the freeom of life on the river.

We had the sky, up there, all speckled with stars, and we used to lay on our backs and look up at them, and discuss about whether they was made, or only just happened – Jim he allowed they was made, or only just happened; I judged it would have took too long to make so many. Jim said the moon could a laid them; well, that looked kind of reasonable, so I didn’t say nothing against it, because I’ve seen a frog lay most as many, so of course it could be done.

– Mark Twain

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Chapter 19. Living on a raft on the Mississippi, what better life, what more freedom for Huck and Jim.
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