Adventures Of Huck Finn Essays (942 words) - Readers Digest

Adventures Of Huck Finn All children have a special place, whether chosen by a conscious decision or not this is a place where one can go to sort their thoughts. Nature can often provide comfort by providing a nurturing surrounding where a child is forced to look within and choices can be made untainted by society. Mark Twain once said "Don't let school get in the way of your education." Twain states that this education which is provided by society, can actually hinder human growth and maturity. Although a formal education shouldn't be completely shunned, perhaps true life experience, in society and nature, are a key part of development. In the novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain throws the curious yet innocent mind of Huck Finn out into a very hypocritical, judgmental, and hostile world, yet Huck has one escape--the Mississippi River constantly flowing nearby. Here nature is presented as a thought provoking environment when experienced alone. The river is quiet and peaceful place where Huck can revert to examine any predicament he might find himself in: "They went off, and I got aboard the raft, feeling bad and low...Then I thought a minute, and says to myself, hold on,- s'pose you'd a done right and give Jim up; would you felt better than you do now? No, says I, I'd feel bad..." (p.127). Only a few weeks with Jim and still feeling great ambivalence, Huck returns to the river to think. Twain tries here to tell the reader how strong the "mob" really is, and only when totally alone is Huck able to make the morally correct decision. The natural flowing and calm of the river cause this deep-thought, show! ing how unnatural the collective thought of a society can be. The largest and most obvious test of Huck's character is his relationship with Jim. The friendship and assistance which he gives to Jim go completely against all that "sivilization" has taught him; at first this concept troubles Huck and causes him a great deal of pain, but over time, through his life experiences and shared times with Jim, Huck crosses the line upheld by the racist South and comes to know Jim as a human being. Huck is at a point in his life where opinions are formed, and by growing on the river, Huck can stand back from society and form his own. Eventually he goes as far as to risk his life for Jim:"And got to thinking of our trip down the river; and I see Jim before me, all the time, in the day, and in the night-time, sometimes moonlight, sometimes storms, and we a floating along, talking, and singing, and laughing. But somehow I couldn't see no places to harden me against him, but only the other kind...I studied a minute sort of holding my breath, and then I s! ays to myself: 'All right, then, I'll go to hell'..." (pp.270-271). After a long and thought-provoking adventure, Huck returns to the raft one final time to decide the fate of his friend. Symbolically, Huck makes the morally correct decision away from all others, thinking on the river. Although it might not be evident to himself, Huck causes the reader to see that "sivilization", in their treatment of blacks especially, is not civilized at all. Every person Huck and Jim come across seems to just be following someone else blindly, as the whole country were some sort of mob. In the last few chapters, Tom Sawyer is re-introduced and the reader is left to examine how different environments: "sivilization" and nature (the river), have affected the children's growth. It is distinctly evident that Huck has turned out to be the one with a clear and intelligent mind, and Tom, although he can regurgitate worthless facts about Louis XVI and Henry VIII, shows no real sign of maturity. "The first time I catched up to Tom, private, I asked him what was his idea, time of the evasion?- what it was he planned to do if the evasion worked out all right and he managed to set a nigger free that was already free before? And he said, what he had planned in his head, from the start, if we got Jim out, all safe, was for us to run him down the river, on the raft, and have adventures plumb to the mouth..." (p.360). Huck has always thought of Tom as more intelligent than himself, but he cannot understand how Tom could toy with Jim's life in such a way. For

Double Possessive

Double Possessive Double Possessive Double Possessive By Maeve Maddox A reader asks, What are your thoughts on double possessives? For example: Friends of Sues   Friends of my aunts Friends of his Friends of hers Friends of theirs Friends of mine You will find the double possessive question and animated discussions of it on hundreds of language sites all over the web. It remains popular because it has no simple answer. First let me say that the reader’s fourth example, â€Å"friends of her’s,† would never be an option for anyone: the pronoun must be spelled either her or hers. The â€Å"double possessive† is so called because the preposition of, the possessive pronouns hers and theirs, and the ’s all signal possession. The construction is also called â€Å"double genitive† and â€Å"post genitive.† The objection to â€Å"friends of Sue’s† and â€Å"friends of mine† is that the of ought to be sufficient. Granted, â€Å"friends of Sue† is a reasonable option, but no native speaker is likely to say â€Å"friends of me.† The intractability of the question lies in the fact that in some contexts the double possessive is idiomatic. As far as a rule can be stated, it is this: Generally, what follows the of in a double possessive will be definite and human. For example, we might say â€Å"friends of Sue’s,† but not â€Å"friends of the university’s.† Another guideline is that what precedes the of will usually be indefinite. For example, â€Å"a friend of Sue’s.† When the preceding word indicates something definite, the second possessive is dropped: â€Å"the best friend of Sue,† â€Å"that friend of Sue.† On the other hand, one might say, with some emotion, â€Å"That dog of Sue’s is a nuisance.† Sometimes the double possessive is needed to avoid ambiguity. Compare: The mansion contains portraits of the owner. The mansion contains portraits of the owner’s. In the first sentence, the portraits are of the owner (i.e., they present a likeness of the owner). In the second, the portraits may be of anyone, but they belong to the owner. The most practical rule for writers is to avoid having two possessives in formal writing. If they occur, rewrite the sentence. As for informal use, the double possessive is idiomatic in English and has been for a very long time. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 English Grammar Rules You Should Know40 Synonyms for â€Å"Lie†45 Idioms with "Roll"

Why so many people eat fast food Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Why so many people eat fast food - Essay Example This change in lifestyle has interfered with their time for finding or preparing healthy food. The remaining option is reaching out for the fast food, which will save time. Likewise, women who were entitled to prepare food for their families are also competing in the job markets. They happen to secure popular titles in the job market thereby limiting their time for preparing food for their families. This change in lifestyle happens to be a significant reason as to why most people prefer fast food in most nations (Smith 7). Ideally, the current generation has proved to access extra finances compared to the past generation. The availability of money probes individuals to stop at the fast food joints and take anything ready. This also has a significant impact on the rising statistics on fast food consumption. As people access more money, they tend to eat outside their homes more often. Eating outside means taking food from a fast food restaurant thus increasing the statistics as to why individuals take fast food (Taylor, Funk and Craighill). Finally yet importantly, the statistics for fast food consumption is on the rise because of the modern life. Most food industries have advanced in their marketing strategies, and this probe people to change their eating habits. This concern with the advertising agencies, which make adverts on the fast food on media. Families will always want to taste new things due to change in their desire. Likewise, the moral advice on the food choice continues to slow down as the hosts have limited time with their family, thus exposing them to poor choices of food. This modern lifestyle altogether changed the eating habits of most people in the family most of them relying on fast food as the main alternative (Taylor, Funk and Craighill). Change of diet can have a serious impact to the lives of consumers in many perspectives.