Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer are the best of friends with remarkably
different personalities. Each brings their unique characteristics into this
comical friendship giving the novel numerous amusing passages. Throughout the
tale, Tom is often the leader while Huck is the reluctant follower. It doesn’t
matter that Tom’s ideas are ridiculous and extravagant, and Huck’s are
simple and practical, together they always proceed with Tom’s imaginative
plans. In contrast to Tom’s great imagination and creativity, Huck is
humorless and literal minded. Tom’s imaginativeness comes only from knowledge
he has gained through books. Huck, on the other hand, actually lives out the
fantasies Tom can only imagine. Tom Sawyer, already civilized, follows the
values and beliefs of society. Due to these convictions, Tom always abides by
the laws. For these reasons, Tom would never have helped free Jim unless he knew
that Jim had already been freed. Conversely, Huck Finn rejects the philosophy of
political beliefs for the fear of becoming civilized. He usually runs away at
the first notion of him becoming “sivilized.” Huck is able to function in
any society with the help of his adaptability and survival skills. He is able to
go from the freedom of the raft, to the perceived harshness of civilization, and
back again with ease. Although Tom has been able to slip past Death’s grip so
far, his chances of escaping may not always work out to his liking. Of the two,
Huck will always be the survivor in life. Together this pair achieves their
goals because of their intelligence and witty personalities. They have the
ability to put the knowledge they obtain into their every day lives. They are
two adventurous souls in search of fresh and exhilarating escapades. Their ages
united with their exceptional education keeps them on their toes. Huck’s
humorless personality and Tom’s extravagance has made The Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, a popular adventure for all ages. The American
people have forever enjoyed this novel and have made it the American literary
classic that it is today. “So there ain’t nothing more to write about an’
we is rottin’ glad of it, because if we’d ‘a’ knowed what a trouble it
was to make this essay, and, we wouldn’t ‘a’ tackled it, and ain’t
a-going to no more.” -Mark Twain pg. 283