Carnival Post

Reviewing the majority of the blog posts, I did notice some similarities in the themes that were reflected on. For instance, beginning with The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin, many discussed society’s impact on Huck and his struggle to reconcile his own view of Jim with society’s.  On one hand, through his experiences with Jim, Huck was able to truly value Jim’s humanity. On the other hand, Huck really struggled with this.  In Rachel’s blog she describes this issue, stating, “We, as readers, know that Jim is a person in his own right, and that a person does not deserve to be property. And in a way, Huck recognizes that, albeit unconsciously. At the same time, he is caught in a society, and a community, that acknowledges slavery as an acceptable part of life.”  http://rjsunshine.wordpress.com/2013/02/16/the-adventures-of-huckleberry-finn-part-4/

Going along with this issue, others reflected on the times where Huck showed genuine concern and compassion for Huck.  Mariana reflected on Huck and Jim’s friendship and how they grew closer through the conversations and shared status as runaways, writing, “The conversations between Jim and Huck also contributed to their friendship….. It didn't matter what exactly they were talking about whether it was about Jim being a slave or about Solomon; conversing helped them bond and rely on each other since both were runaways. Jim looked out for Huck like family.” http://marianaslit.blogspot.com/2013/02/huck-chapters-6-17.html

 Kerri also contributed to this theme, writing, “While Huck does "tease" and kid around with Jim he never really treats him as less than himself. They work together as a team to survive.” http://eng224americanlit.blogspot.com/2013/02/chapter-6-17.html

Another theme I noticed in the discussion about Huck Fin was the frustration with Tom. His romantic schemes in contrast to Huck’s realist way of thinking were very evident. Mariana wrote: “This kid (Tom) is so blinded by his romanticized ideas that he doesn't think of others or himself, of the danger or the risk.” http://marianaslit.blogspot.com/2013/02/huck-chapters-37-end.html

 Rachel questioned, “I wonder if Tom understands the difference between reality and fiction.” http://rjsunshine.wordpress.com/2013/02/20/the-adventures-of-huckleberry-finn-part-5-finally/

 I also became rather annoyed with Tom and his silly, elaborate plans.

Another theme that many had an opinion on was the ending of the story. Since this was a realism novel, one would expect that it would follow through with that theme. Because of this, Huck Fin novel has been criticized, as we discussed in class. Jacki made a good point by mentioning that everybody who jeopardized Huck’s happiness somehow conveniently died. In her opinion, she believed that Twain took the “easy way out.” http://jahartman.wordpress.com/2013/02/21/happy-endings/

Kerri also acknowledged the ending with her opinion that it really did seem more romantic than realistic. However, she looks at the novel more as a social commentary, suggesting that perhaps Twain was trying to be hopeful in that someday blacks would be treated equally. http://eng224americanlit.blogspot.com/2013/02/chapters-37-43.html

Chris also had an intriguing view on the ending. Although he was disappointed in the ending, he still believes that Huck Fin has value. In his blog, he wrote about the fact that Huck and Jim were runaways together, even though Huck technically had no need to run away since everyone thought he was dead. Chris wrote,” The beauty in it is that Huck acted on impulse (since the men were already on their way) to hurry back to Jim and help him escape, indicating that he recognized his natural right to freedom instinctively, which is incredible when considered in light of his upbringing. In that, there is certainly value, and not even the poor ending can ruin it.” http://amlitsurvey.blogspot.com/2013/02/is-huck-finn-ban-worthy.html

Moving away from Huck Fin, I also noticed themes in the discussions regarding Washington and Dubois.  It is easy to see the sense and reason behind Washington’s address. In Sabrina’s blog, she mentioned that Washington seemed to be very realistic. Although he wanted change, he was very sensible about it. In contrast to Washington, Dubois wanted change rapidly. Sabrina wrote, “Dubois, however, aggressively fought for African American equality and expected to see it happen in his lifetime. While he had every right do expect this, I do not think he was seeing things vey realistically.”http://eng224americanliterature.blogspot.com/2013/03/washington-vs-du-bois.html

Rachel and Chris both commented on the fact, that in a sense, both addresses seem to go together. Rachel mentioned that both men wanted the same thing-equality for African Americans. The only difference was the way the two men went about it. Rachel believes that both of their views have merit. http://rjsunshine.wordpress.com/2013/02/22/washington-and-dubois/

In Chris’s blog he mentioned that the two approaches “are two halves to the same whole” and that they should not be viewed in competition to one another. http://amlitsurvey.blogspot.com/2013/02/divided-we-fall.html

To conclude, a lot of people had interesting insights on the literature read for this class. Although differing opinions and responses were expressed, many people did reflect on similar themes. Definitely interesting to read!