Huckleberry Finn is a book that contains elements of romantic and realistic
fiction; even though it contains both these elements, it is a book on realistic
fiction, and that is how it was written to be. Mark Twain used historical facts
and data to make this story realistic, it used situations that would normally
happen in the time the novel takes place in. Huckleberry Finn's father is a
vagrant and a despicable person; his actions are written to how a man of that
characteristic would act. Two more characters in this novel also act
accordingly; the Duke and the Dauphin. A couple of crooks and frauds who are ill
at heart and produce no good at all. A kind man Jim, a black slave at the
beginning of this novel, goes through much and many people go through much for
him. Of these characters I have just mentioned, Jim is the only considerate one,
and the Duke and the Dauphin and Huckleberry Finn's father are evil. Huckleberry
Finn has no strong feelings for his father except that of resentment. His father
abandoned him when he was a child and come backs to town once in a while. His
father would beat Huck many times usually because he was drunk. This is not
unusual for someone drunk to do if that person is a beater. "I used to be
scared of him all the time, he tanned me so much." (Twain, p. 25) Besides
him beating Huck, his father has put fear into Huck, which is sad, but is
realistic. Besides beating Huck, he also scolded him for trying to get an
education; he though Huck was trying to become smarter than his father, and he
wouldn't have that. "You're educated, too, they say -- can read and write.
You think you're better'n your father, now, don't you, because he can't? I'll
take it out of you." (Twain, pg. 26) Not only is Huck's father mean and
petty, he is also greedy. "'I've been in town two days, and I hain't heard
nothing but about you bein' rich. I heard about it away down the river, too.
That's why I come. You git me that money to-morrow -- I want it.'"(Twain,
pg. 27) But Huck's father isn't the only greedy character in this play, there
are two men that pose as the Duke and the Dauphin (who are obviously not really
who they claim to be). These were two men that were frauds, they would scam
people out of their money and move along to the next town as swiftly as
possible. Occasionally they were, caught, which is quite realistic. "'Well,
I'd been selling an article to take the tartar off the teeth -- and it does take
it off, too, and generly the enamel along with it -- but I stayed about one
night longer than I ought to, and was just in the act of sliding out when I ran
across you on the trail this side of town, and you told me they were coming, and
begged me to help you to get off. So I told you I was expecting trouble myself,
and would scatter out with you.'" One example of how these men are nobody
but a couple of petty thieves. "' Well, I'd ben a-running' a little
temperance revival thar 'bout a week, and was the pet of the women folks, big
and little, for I was makin' it mighty warm for the rummies, I tell you, and
takin' as much as five or six dollars a night -- ten cents a head, children and
niggers free -- and business a-growin' all the time, when somehow or another a
little report got around last night that I had a way of puttin' in my time with
a private jug on the sly.'" (Twain, pg. 161) A very noble person does not
get the respect he deserved Jim that is. Jim was a very brave, strong,
courageous man, and the only person that truly recognizes him is Huck. There is
one scene where Huck is questioned about a runaway slave. Most people would have
given Jim away really quickly, but Huck's friendship with Jim, and that he knows
how good a person he is does not. "' Well, there's five niggers run off
to-night up yonder, above the head of the bend. Is your man white or
black?'" Then Huck replies, "' He's white.'" (Twain, 120) Though
this may not seem to be a big quote, it is quite important. It shows how Huck
feels about Jim, and that a friendship between two people is very strong, and
most peoples in that situation with a friendship like that would do the same,
making it a realistic situation. Yes, Huckleberry Finn contains elements of
romanticism and elements of realism. But throughout this book, the element of
realism prevails, and thus making this book a realistic fiction novel. These
examples I have given should be just enough to prove this point of realism over
romanticism. These two elements do coexist, but romanticism isn't a strong
enough element to categorize the book in. But to say this book only has elements
of realism is unjust.