Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Huckleberry Finn Quotes

Huckleberry Finn

Quote 46

The duke done it, and Jim and me was pretty glad to see it. It took away all the uncomfortableness and we felt mighty good over it, because it would a been a miserable business to have any unfriendliness on the raft; for what you want, above all things, on a raft, is for everybody to be satisfied, and feel right and kind towards the others. (19.48)

After the duke and king decide to work together, Huck is relieved. It's hard enough to deal with feuds and fights in a high school; imagine trying to work them out on a raft. (Actually, someone call the networks—sounds like a great setup for a reality TV show.)

Huckleberry Finn

Quote 47

I went to sleep, and Jim didn't call me when it was my turn. He often done that. (23.30)

So, we're reading along, chuckling at Huck's wacky antics, when Twain comes along and hits us in the gut with something like this: "He often done that." There's Jim, looking out for Huck just like a dad—or like a friend.

Huckleberry Finn

Quote 48

But somehow I couldn't seem to strike no places to harden me against him, but only the other kind. I'd see him standing my watch on top of his'n, 'stead of calling me, so I could go on sleeping; and see him how glad he was when I come back out of the fog; and when I come to him again in the swamp, up there where the feud was; and such-like times; and would always call me honey, and pet me and do everything he could think of for me, and how good he always was; and at last I struck the time I saved him by telling the men we had small-pox aboard, and he was so grateful, and said I was the best friend old Jim ever had in the world, and the ONLY one he's got now; and then I happened to look around and see that paper. (31.23)

Here, Huck is trying to come up with something, anything, that'll "harden" him against Jim, so he can turn the man in or at least write to Miss Watson to tell her where her slave is. But he can't. Gee, we wish we had a friend like that.