A Very Excellent Listing of the Religious References in Huckleberry Finn

· Blogger Post #1
○ 2
§ "I don't take no stock in dead people." [referring to Moses]
□ Develops Huck's character as disliking religion, education and society
§ "Grumble a little over the victuals"
□ Further develops Huck's character
○ 3
§ "Well I couldn't see no advantage is going where she was going"
□ Huck chooses the tangible reality of Tom and the Widow over the abstract concept of heaven and hell
§ "The fetched in the n----- and had prayers"
□ Religion is used to show the hypocrisy of society: The blacks have souls and therefore are required to pray, but they aren't considered to be human
○ 10
§ "All the boys said it would be wicked to do it [kill someone] on Sunday"
□ Huck is put further at odds with society, as even his friends believe in religion but he doesn't
○ 11
§ "There ain't much talk in prayer"
□ Further develops Huck's character as disliking religion and therefore society
○ 14
§ "I would see if there was anything in it"
□ Huck is rational: If he could rationalize prayer, he would do it
○ 18
§ "Dey's two gals flyn' 'bout you in yo'life."
□ Jim practices superstitions religiously
○ 37
§ "There's something in [prayer] when a body like the widow or the parson prays, but it don't work for me, and I reckon it don't work for only just the right kind"
□ Develops the idea that religion doesn't apply to all members of society
○ 69
§ "I'm unfavorable to killing a man as long as you can get aroun it [...] it ain't good morals."
□ Irony/Hypocrisy: Someone is citing religion a reason not to kill someone, but they are ok with killing him anyway
○ 78
§ "He was the most down on Solomon n----- I ever see."
□ Jim's interpretation of religion is very particle
□ Superstition has practical value, religion isn't
□ Similar to Huck's attitude of Moses