Huck Finn 9: pg. 185-209

"March off like a passel o' fools and leave eight or nine thous'n' dollars'"(190).
passel- a large quantity or group

"they're young and spry, and k'n easy earn a livin'"(190).
spry- active; nimble; agile; energetic; brisk

"I reckon a body that ups and tells the truth when he is in a tight place, is taking considerable many resks, though I ain't had no experience, and can't say for certain; but it looks so to me, anyway; and yet here's a case where I'm blest if it don't look to me like the truth is better, and actuly safer, than a lie"(200).

Most of the time, telling the truth is much harder than telling a lie. You can manipulate a lie to reach a desired outcome. However, when telling the truth, it is hard to predict the result, making it a risky endeavor. The truth can seem very hard to tell, and the reactions to it immediately might not be favorable, but in the long run, telling the truth is always a better choice than lying. In Huck's situation, he did not know what revealing the truth about her "uncles" would bring. However, Huck realized that if he lied to Mary Jane, he could keep getting caught up in this lie and that would be worse than the real truth. Huck didn't want any trouble, and he certainly did not want to cause any trouble with Mary Jane. He realized that telling the truth was a better option for everyone involved. While it might not always seem it, the truth can be a safer route than lying.



"It was well enough to tell her so-- no harm in it. It was only a little thing to do, and no trouble; and it's the little things that smoothes people's roads the most, down here below; it would make Mary Jane comfortable, and it wouldn't cost nothing"(203).

This quote clearly contrasts with the first one. In this quote Huck explains his feelings about white lies being tolerable. Huck told Mary Jane to "give your love to your uncles"(203), before she left the house in the morning. However, the news that Mary Jane just received made her think otherwise: "Gone to see a friend is all right, but I won't have my love given to them [her uncles]"(203). Huck told Mary Jane that if she really felt that strongly about not passing along that news, he wouldn't do it. However, Huck did pass along Mary Jane's unwillingly given love to her uncles. Huck defends this by explaining that Mary Jane would never know and that it would not affect her at all. Huck did lie which many of us would view as wrong. However, like most of Huck's wrongs, he does it with good intentions. He simply wants to comfort Mary Jane, he knows the lie will not hurt her. His heart is in the right place even if his actions speak otherwise.