Huck Finn 1: p. 9-27

"and so we would lay in ambuscade"(21).
ambuscade- ambush

"I went down the front garden and clumb over the stile, where you go through the high board fence"(25).
stile- a series of steps or rungs by which a person may pass over a wall or fence that remains a barrier to sheep or cattle


"This was too many for me, but she told me what she meant-- I must help other people, and do everything I could for other people, and look out for them all the time, and never think about myself. This was including Miss Watson, as I took it. I went on in the woods and turned it over in my mind a long time, but I couldn't see no advantage about it-- except for the other people-- so at last I reckoned I wouldn't worry about it anymore, but just let it go"(19).

Miss Watson seems like a very nice woman. She genuinely cares for Huck and wants him to be a good person. She understands Huck is only a kid, but she wants him to be brought up right and think clearly. She tries to teach him her values. However, since Huck is only about 11, his first priority isn't learning about morals. Miss Watson has the right idea of putting other people first, and Huck doesn't agree with it. However, most 11 year old's wouldn't agree with that statement. How can helping other people benefit yourself? This is the way Huck views Miss Watson's lesson. Even though Huck says this, he is only saying it because he does not fully understand it. In fact, it would seem that he does enjoy helping others because he joins Tom Sawyer's band of robbers who all promise to always stick together. Huck is not a bad kid at all, he is simply young; his heart is in the right place, even if his head is not quite there yet.



"Shucks, it ain't no use to talk to you, Huck Finn. You don't seem to know anything, somehow-- perfect sap-head"(22).

This quote lends insight to both Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer. Tom is a leader and has no problem telling others what to do. He is the founder of his very own gang of robbers, which Huck is a part of. Tom reads a lot. He is very smart and has a great imagination. Huck on the other hand, is not very smart because he was not raised in an environment that allowed him to learn. Therefore, he has his own philosophies about life and finds societal ones strange sometimes. However, both boys are good people and value the same things. It seems to be a case where opposites attract.