Tasks: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Discuss with a partner and write down the answers.
Why is Huckleberry Finn and Jim on the river?
Why are they looking for Cairo?
Why does Huck feel guilty about helping Jim?
What does Huck plan to do when he paddles away from the raft?
Why does he change his mind?
How does Huck trick the men who are looking for runaway slaves?
How is Huck able to stop feeling guilty about helping Jim?
Huckleberry Finn breaks the law when he helps Jim escape from slavery. When is someone justified in breaking the law? Who can decide when it is OK to break the law?
What do you think of Huckleberry's decision to stop worrying about morality and just do what is most convenient at any given time?
Most people at the time accepted slavery as a fact of life, and did not question whether it was right or wrong. How is it possible for a whole society to accept something that we today see as fundamentally wrong?
Are there things we accept as normal today that you think people will think is strange and immoral in the future?
The story depicts a time when slavery was legal in the United States. Is it possible to write realistically about this time without using language that is considered racist and offensive today? Should we stop reading books depicting this period?
Study the examples of direct speech in the excerpt. Then answer the questions below.
Give examples of vernacular language in the excerpt.
Is there a difference between how Jim speaks and how the other characters speak?
What does the author achieve by using vernacular language in the text?
Mark Twain's most famous works are The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Is there a difference in meaning between The Adventures and Adventures? What does the author accomplish by leaving out the definite article in the second title?
Choose one of the topics to research. Make a presentation to be held in a group or prepare to have a conversation about your topic with your teacher.
Find out more about Mark Twain and discuss why he is considered one of the greatest American authors of all time.
Find out more about slavery in the United States. When did it start, how long did it last, and how was it justified?
During slavery, the Underground Railroad helped slaves escape. Find out more about the Underground Railroad.
Choose one of the tasks and write a longer text.
Mark Twain drew inspiration from his childhood when he wrote Huckleberry Finn. Draw inspiration from your childhood and write a humorous short story.
Write a humorous text about a serious topic.
What can we learn from literature about what it was like to be a child in the past? Write a text where you discuss this question. Refer to the excerpt from Huckleberry Finn and at least two other texts or films.
'Books that make use of racial slurs should be banned from schools regardless of their historic context or significance.' Write a text where you discuss this statement. Reference Huckleberry Finn and at least one other literary work in your text.
Related content
Excerpt from Mark Twain's novel Huckleberry Finn.