Absurdity of a “Sivilized” Society-an Analysis of Huckleberry Finn Essay

The Absurdity of a â€Å"Sivilized† Society Authors often express their views on any given subject through their works, and Mark Twain is no exception. One may read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and believe it is simply a novel about a young boys childhood; however, a deeper analysis of the text reveals many of Mark Twain’s expressions about important moral and social issues. Perhaps one of the most prominent being the frailty of human justice and the hypocrisy we as a people foster in our societies. Throughout the novel, Huck meets people who appear to be good, civilized people, but always end up having a hypocritical fault about them. Though not every instance is a grave matter, Twain’s writing shows that societies in Huck’s world are based upon corrupted laws and principles that defy basic logic. Twain’s writing leaves the reader with an understanding that cowardice, illogical choices, and selfish as well as hypocritical people mark these societies. Twain begins weaving hypocrisies and cants early into the story; one of the most appalling being the issue of Huck’s custody. This flawed system of thought is first shown when the new judge in St. Petersburg rules that Pap has rightful custody of Huck. Although this would be bad for Huck if his father became his legal guardian, the judge asserts Pap’s rights to Huck as his biological son, despite the fact that this is placing Huck’s welfare below the so-called rights of his father. Ironically, this system would put Huck under his dad’s custody, leaving him worse off, whereas Jim is separated from his family despite being a far better father and person. However, the welfare of the individual isn’t highly valued in society, and thus they are placed in uncomfortable, often dangerous situations. The judge tries to put Huck back in contact with his horrid father and therefore abuse, but Jim, a loving parent, never receives help to be with his children and help rescue them from slavery and separation. This decision defies all logic one would find in a normal society, and yet this kind of thinking was commonplace. The values and welfare of a black person were nowhere near as important as those of a white man, and even though Jim is a grown man with the most in tune moral compass of any character in the book, Huck still has power over him simply because he is white. By comparing the situation of Pap and Huck with slaves and their masters, Twain hints that it is impossible for a society to be civilized so long as it practices slavery. Though not quite as harmful, another example of a hypocritical character can be found in the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson. In an attempt to â€Å"sivilize† Huckleberry, Miss Watson reprimands him for smoking a cigarette and yet she snuffs tobacco. â€Å"Pretty soon I wanted to smoke, and asked the widow to let me. But she wouldn’t. She said it was a mean practice and wasn’t clean, and I must try to not do it any more†¦ And she took snuff, too; of course that was all right, because she done it herself† (Twain 2). She prevents Huck from doing what she believes is uncivilized and detrimental to his health, yet doesn’t think twice about proceeding to do something very similar simply because she herself enjoys it. This example of hypocrisy is not particularly malicious, but yet another example of how all the characters Huck is involved with has some form of a hypocritical flaw. Furthermore, Miss Watson is quite religious and, in efforts to teach Huck, tells him that all he must do is pray for something and he will have it. However, when Huck needs fishhooks and asks her to help pray for them, she calls him a fool. â€Å"Then Miss Watson she took me in the closet and prayed, but nothing come of it. She told me to pray every day, and whatever I asked for I would get it. But it warn’t so. I tried it. Once I got a fish- line, but no hooks. It warn’t any good to me without hooks. I tried for the hooks three or four times, but somehow I couldn’t make it make it work. By-and-by, one day, I asked Miss Watson to try for me, but she said I was a fool. † (Twain 8). Miss Watson tells Huck that if he does something, he can expect a certain result but when things don’t work, he asks for her help and she chides him for it! The widow Douglas and Miss Watson are religious, educated, and yet, they are slave owners. They educate Huck, and teach him religion but find it perfectly acceptable to do things contrary to their teachings, such as snuff and practice slavery. The latter, being a more insidious humbug of St. Petersburg, is shown over and over again throughout Huck’s journey. As Huck begins to stray from his backwards, insincere town, he reaches different places with different people, all different in their own way and yet, very similar to those in St. Petersburg. The Duke and Dauphin are two despicable con men who join Huck and Jim as they continue to drift on the river. The Duke and Dauphin cause trouble for Huck and Jim, as well as the towns they visit. The fault here is that, the Duke and Dauphin are able to scam entire communities by lying, pretending to be someone they’re not, and cheating their guests. Though they spend most of the novel doing awful things or planning awful things, they both are hardly punished. After the first showing of The Royal Nonesuch, the first group of attendees realizes they have been cheated. However, instead of chastising the Duke and Dauphin, the audience that night chooses to lie about the performance in order to cheat a second group of attendees. Hold on! Just a word, gentlemen. † They stopped to listen. â€Å"We are sold—mighty badly sold. But we don’t want to be the laughing stock of this whole town, I reckon, and never hear the last of this thing as long as we live. NO. What we want is to go out of here quiet, and talk this show up, and sell the REST of the town! Then we’ll al l be in the same boat. Ain’t that sensible? † (â€Å"You bet it is! —the jedge is right! † everybody sings out. ) â€Å"All right, then—not a word about any sell. Go along home, and advise everybody to come and see the tragedy. † (Twain 114). Most hypocritical, however, is the fact that the Judge of the town conceived this plan. He who stands as a pillar of justice and truth in the town decides to cheat the others in order to save face. By the third night, everyone in town has seen the play and the Duke and Dauphin make a large profit from their misconduct. Immoral acts committed by the Duke and Dauphin never yielded punishments, but brazen, drunk insults led to execution. Boggs, described as the â€Å"most easy going old fool in Arkansas†, began shouting insults and anathemas at Sherburn, the man who had cheated him. He [Sherburn] was standing perfectly still in the street, and had a pistol raised in his right hand—not aiming it, but holding it out with the barrel tilted up towards the sky†¦ Boggs throws up both of his hands and says, â€Å"O Lord, don’t shoot! † Bang! goes the first shot, and he staggers back, clawing at the air—bang! goes the second one, and he tumbles backwards on to the ground, heavy and solid, with his arms spread out. † (Twain 108). The Duke and Dauphin cheat entire communities and remain unpunished by their terrible acts; however, peccadilloes like shouting drunken insults result in execution. Twain’s writing exposes the issue of faulty justice and duplicitous nature of men. Furthermore, Sherburn’s speech to the angry mob around his house in relation to a lack of logic and cowardice capitulates Twain’s societal views. Twain’s use of hypocrisy helps express his views on societal issues. Though not every instance is harmful, such as Miss Watson’s snuff usage, other notable examples such as the execution of Boggs and the custody of Huck highlight his belief that cowardice, lack of logic, and selfishness are at the core of society, not the communal welfare that it should be. The repeated instances of insecure, logic defying justice are the root of the problem, as thoughtless crimes are punished severely whereas serious crimes go scot-free. Throughout the novel, Huck meets characters that appear good, yet Twain makes a conscious effort to prove they are prejudiced slave owners. The illogical choices and hypocritical people presented throughout the novel show the hypocrisy and ludicrousness of the â€Å"sivilized† society.

Employment and its effects on high school and college students’ grade point averages Essay

Many students, parents, and educators have been seeking the so-called Holy Grail of learning for many decades. One question that has arisen out of this learning model is that of student employment? Many wonder if working a part-time job will affect a student’s grades, and if so, how much? The answer to this seemingly simply question, however, is more complex. A variety of factors must be considered when deciding if and to what extent a student’s grades are affected by his or her employment status. In recent years, the concept of the full-time student seems to be disappearing. From about age sixteen, an overwhelming majority of students, both high school and college, work while they attend school. This average is about 85% for most college students (Bradley, 2006). However, high costs everything from apparel to tuition drives these workers into their part-time jobs which are generally retail and service related businesses for an average of fifteen hours per week (Bradley, 2006). Generally, most studies do identify some differences in academic performance and attitude, but these differences are not as great as people once may have believed. Generally, studies find very few basic differences between working and non-working students, especially in college. However, the intensity of the job and the number of hours worked did seem to affect academic performance in many students at the high school level. Generally longer hours meant more stressors on the individual and had a negative affect on their grades, which translates into about a half of a grade point average(GPA) point lower than not working students or students who work only a few hours, perhaps on the weekends (Weller et al, 2003). Oettinger (1999) also found this to be true, and noted that minority students tended to be more affected by the GPA drop than white students. He noted his drop in GPA to be about . 20 points and to be most obvious in students working more than twenty hours per week. These studies corroborates a study done nearly twelve years earlier in which the researchers found, similarly, that students who put in longer hours at their jobs suffered lower grades, higher absenteeism, and less interest in school in general which was seen in negative behaviors while in school (Perils of Part-time Work for Teens, 1991). At the college level, these differences were less noticeable. Ironically, Bradley (2006) found that the grade point averages were highest for students who did not work AND for students who worked more than twenty hours per week. This seems to contradict the research done on high school students, suggesting that maturity and attitude may also play a part in the employment/grades debate. Research has also been conducted on academic attitude and perception as they relate to grades. In high school, students who worked longer hours did not seem to have much distress about their grades as a result of the employment: â€Å"Those who had jobs displayed no advantage over the others in self-reliance, self-esteem or attitude toward work† (Perils of Part-time Work for Teens, 1991). In addition, students who worked even seemed to report less school stress, possible because they had less interest in school, as mentioned above. Moreover, researchers explain this more blase attitude toward schools by the findings that students who worked were more likely to report avoiding difficult classing, cheating on exams, and copying homework from friends (Weller et al, 2003; Perils of Part-time Work for Teens†, 1991). This was not the case for university students. In college, students who worked perceived that their employment DID affect their grades even when the researchers found little or no interest in grades between non-workers and workers at the college level. Both working and non-working college students showed a high level of interest in their grades and expressed an overall desire to achieve a high level of academic performance. Students who did not work stated that did not do so in order to focus on their studies, and they believed that their studies benefited from this extra time. Again, though, the studies showed no difference in the GPAs of working and non-working college students (Bradley, 2006). Instead many researchers ponder how college students who work so many hours are able to keep similar GPAs to those that do not work. Bradley (2006) suggests that nonworking students may be spending similar time with other activities such as sports, extracurricular clubs, or even caring for dependents at home. He also proposes that the non-working students and the working students may be approaching homework and study in different ways. He notes that non-working students â€Å"may be most likely to adopt a ‘deep’ learning style, characterized by intrinsic interest in the subject content and a desire to maximize understanding of this content† and that working students â€Å"may be more likely to adopt an ‘achieving’ style aimed at maximizing grades through the effective use of space and time. † These learned differences could certainly account for the way different students juggle the demands of work. It is certainly helpful to note when employment can be an effect socialization tool aimed at building strong character and organizational skills and when it can be a definite academic detriment. Research shows that more differences exist for high school students than for college students, and that the majority of the college differences exist only in perception, not in actuality. This gives rise to the possibility of further research which could focus on the characteristics of working students who do keep their GPAs high.

Human Resource Planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Human Resource Planning - Essay Example At the moment, the organization needs to hire competent individuals that are capable of providing the services. The problem of limited cash flows is affecting the recruitment process; the company simply cannot pay for quality services. In the coming years, the organization will be in dire need of individuals that are capable of promoting the company’s image to attract more donors. Currently, the cash flows are dwindling, and it is negatively effecting everything that the company does. The company needs healthy donations to effectively run its operations. Relying solely on volunteers is harmful to ‘going concern’ of the company. First and foremost, Juanita needs to get her authority, and power expanded. Without the power to effectively manage people and resources she will remain ineffective, and the company will never get out of hot waters. Juanita is already on the right track. Instead of making frequent appointments, she has setup her group over the email, and she is in touch with them. Juanita is new, and she is learning more about the company every day. The first step is obviously meeting the company personnel and assuring them that the HR manager is there to help achieve better results for the company. The first step towards improving employee performance is to cut the dead weight. Juanita did her research and found that there are people in the company who do not have any significant work, but they are still getting the paychecks. If the company carries on the same pattern it will have ripple effects as others will see that idlers are getting paid for doing nothing so why should they work so hard. Second, the company needs to formulate its HR policy exactly according to the laws that apply to a Non for Profit organization. This will help promote the better image of the company as new recruits will notice that the company operates in accordance with

Memo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 8

Memo - Essay Example o focuses on potential benefits of paying part of fee for the college attendance, for the students, to create a clear picture of the possible effects of the move on the students and the company. One of the benefits of the move to sponsor the students is the knowledge that they will gain and use in the organization. Even though the organization is a manufacturing company, it requires diversified competencies such as administrative potentials, human resource management potentials, budgeting and planning potentials and leadership skills. Having students attend the college will train them on the business and economics scopes that they can use in different sectors of the organization. Training students on cost accounting and managerial accounting, elements of the college’s accounting program, will for example facilitate efficiency in planning for organization’s resources and promote cost effectiveness towards lower production cost. Even though the company may spend significant amount of money on paying the students’ fee, the results, which is likely to culminate into higher profit margin, due to low production cost, may surpass the expenditure in the fee. Ef ficiencies may also emerge from improved competencies in human resource management and leadership that can motivate and empower students for greater potentials and productivity levels. Training some students on human resource management will facilitate an understanding of students’ attitudes and changes in attitudes for measures that can ensure favorable environment for students’ optimal output. Developing leadership potentials is will also help the trained students to facilitate the organizations’ objectives through empowering and influencing other students. Paying part of the students’ fee, in sponsoring them into the school, will also have general positive effects on their perception on the company, and commitment to the company. The move is likely to develop students’ perception that the

Precedent vs. Contemporaneous Autonomy in Regard to Advance Directives Essay

Precedent vs. Contemporaneous Autonomy in Regard to Advance Directives - Essay Example Ronald Dworkin argues that if we can declare this patient incompetent, he does not have the capacity that autonomy represents. This means that respect should be upheld to the patients’ prior wishes made when competent. This is because a competent person’s decisions are autonomous ones. This view is referred to as the integrity view, which states that the value of autonomy derives from the capacity it protects: the capacity to express one’s own character traits, values, commitments, convictions and critical as well as experiential interest in a life one leads. However, it is arguable that, in most cases the present desires expressed by a patient need to be respected. Dworkin constructs a hypothetical case, where there exists a woman named Margo, who has dementia, but still seems to find pleasure in seemingly meaningless activities, such as reading, eating snacks among others. He even explains that Margo may be one of the happiest people he â€Å"knows.† How ever, years back, Margo had signed an advance directive expressing her desire to be left to die if she were to need life-saving medical treatment once afflicted with dementia. ... Dworkin believes we must respect Margo’s advance directive, as Margo living with dementia is her living against her critical interests that she held while competent. Experiential interests, in my opinion, hold a great deal of value, enough that experiential interests alone make one valuable and thus their life worth continuing. As Dworkin points out, pleasures that experiential interests provide are essential for a good life. A good life has value in it of itself, and while â€Å"genuine meaning and coherence† may enhance this value, no requirement for value to be obtained (Marshall, 123). I deduce that the reason we have critical interests are so we can enhance individual experiential ones. For instance, Dworkin claims establishing close friendships are an example of a critical interest. The reason we wish to establish such relationships is so when â€Å"watching football, or seeing Casablanca for the twelfth time or walking in the woods in October† (Marshall, 5 1) we are that much happier and life is more enjoyable. However, if one performs these experiential interests without having formed close relationships, they do not suddenly lack value; they are just perhaps slightly less enjoyable. However, if one were still to argue on critical interests that hold true value, we can see in many instances where experiential interests remain valuable on their own. The existence of a person who is solely able to attain experiential interests may allow someone else to enhance his or her critical interests. For example, in the case of Margo, there existed a medical student, Firlik, who took a specific interest in her case (Marshall, 144). By being able to visit Margo daily, Firlik was able to answer his questions and

The rule in Salomon v Salomon & Co [1897] AC 22 has been described as Essay - 1

The rule in Salomon v Salomon & Co [1897] AC 22 has been described as one of the corner stones of English Company Law. Discuss the rationale and impact of the decision on company law - Essay Example This paper will discuss the rationale and the impact of the decision made by the House of Lords regarding Salomon v Salomon & Co Ltd on company law. Aaron Salomon was a businessman who for many years worked in manufacturing leather boots. Increasingly, his sons grew and demanded to be part of the business. Consequently, Salomon capitulated and incorporated his manufacturing business as Limited Liability Company. During those times, one needed to have at least seven members in order to incorporate their business. Salomon registered all his family members as shareholders of the business. Salomon, however, owned a majority of the company’s shares while the rest of the family members shared the minority shares equally. Consequently, Salomon became not only the company’s principal shareholder but also the company’s principal creditor (Duhaime, 2010). Upon incorporation of the business, the company saw a decline in the sales of the boots. Part of the resolve for the waning was as a consequence of a sequence of internal strikes. The strikes made the government, Salomon’s main customer, divide its contracts to other firms in order to avoid the risk of depending heavily on one supplier. The government’s decision to divide its contract among other firms affected Salomon’s business greatly and was one of the reasons it failed. The consequence of failure was the inability of the company to pay interest on its debentures (half-held by Broderip). Broderip took action and litigated to apply his safety in the year 1983. It is after the company failed that it was put into liquidation (Duhaime, 2010). While in liquidation, the liquidator became suspicious of Salomon’s debentures used for security for the debt. He termed them as invalid and argued that Salomon obtained them fraudulently. As such, the liquidator demanded a refund of the money that had been dished out to Salomon by the company and a cancellation of the debentures. The

Has british politics become more feminized since 1997 Essay

Has british politics become more feminized since 1997 - Essay Example While the current parliament has the largest number of women MP’s in British history, the proportion is only 22.6%, which is just an increase of about 4% since 1997. This proportion indicates an increase of 1.3% in female representation per each election held after 1997. As many political systems across the world move towards equality in representation, Britain still lags way behind other countries like China, Italy, Germany and Argentina among many others. Feminisation of British politics has progressed with slow increase since the major achievement of 1997. The concept of feminisation of politics is based on the gender rather than the party and sex differences existing between men and women. The increased debate on the feminisation of politics is essentially based the perceptions of women’s political styles being less legitimate, than those of their male counterparts. The practice of politics is believed to be completely different between men and women. The fundamental discrepancies existing in the ways which individuals from different genders practice politics are utilised in the determination of feminisation of political systems. Feminism politics are characterised as based on co-operation, collaboration and honesty, qualities that depict them as gentle and kind politics. Masculine politics on the contrary, are presumed to be based on conflicts, hierarchy and sleaze. The characteristics of political systems and the politics have a significant effect on how the political environment within a country. The basic definition of feminisation of politics is based on the gender representation of individuals rather than the content of the political system. Consideration of the gender issues within the British system results in the politics being considered to be less feminine, because of the large number of men within the