The use of satire in the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn : Satire as a Tool for Social Criticism

Introduction

Mark Twain in his novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn tells of a journey that is undertaken by Huck , a self-proclaimed uncivilized boy and a runaway slave named Jim . Although Mark Twain is often described as a comic writer , throughout this novel his uses satire in a manner that clearly illustrates a variety of problems faced by American society at the time that the novel was written . Some of the social problems raised through Twain 's use of

satire include social issues related to slavery , religion , morality , and class prejudice . The superficial nature of the humor occasioned by the satire fades and eyes are opened as the reader is forced to confront the need for social changes Twain 's satire is most intimately associated with the pointing out of flaws and hypocrisies as they apply to individuals , to social institutions , and to society . Huck and Jim confront these types of flawed social institutions and corruptions of ideal notions of ethical norms as they struggle to come to terms with their own roles in society Twain therefore uses satire to create a point of view in which an apparently humorous journey actually represents a type of social criticism . The satire thus provides serious insights into human nature and society in addition to being entertaining and humorous at a superficial level . One of the ways that Twain accomplishes this is by creating a low class boy in the form...