Huckleberry Finn

By Mark Twain

In the novel Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, Almost every character lies one way or another. Tom Sawyer lies to portray his imagination, Huck lies about his family, and The King and Duke use lies to profit financially.

In the novel Huckleberry Finn Tom sawyer, a young boy with a vivid imagination, lies about the things he and his gang but only uses his imagination. Tom says, We are highwaymen, we stop stage and carriages on the road, with masks, and kill people and take their watches and money (10). Tom s lies don t hurt anyone but little Tommy Barnes, who has a tendency to be timid anyway, Huck says Little Timmy Barnes was sleep now, and when they waked him up he was scared, and cried, and he said he wanted to go home to his ma, and didn t want to be a robber anymore. So they all made fun of him and called him a crybaby (11). Tom s lies are very white and only have a negative result on one person.

Tom s lies are imaginative but Huck s lies are deceptive. For example, Huck tells the Grangerfords, Its me George Jackson. Sir I fell overboard off of the steamboat (95). Then Huck tells the Grangerfords, Pap and me and all the family was living on a little farm down in the bottom of Arkansas, and my sister Mary Ann ran off and got married and was never see again (96). Huck Benefits by being able to stay with the Grangerfords and the family is not physically hurt but his lies but they feed and clothe Huck, which is a financial loss. Huck also tells another lie to a ferry captain. Before Huck finds three robbers plundering a shipwreck and Huck steals the thieves only raft and exit from the ship. The ship will inevitably sick, so Huck feels sorry for the ill fated robbers. Huck tells a neighboring captain that his family is on the shipwreck. He tells him Pap, Mam, and Sis They re in a peck of trouble [They re] on the ship wreck (71). This lie gets the captain to go to the wreck and to find the robbers trapped on the ship. Also, this lie endangers the captain and the robbers.

The Duck and King lie about their whole personal realities. Neither of the two ever disclose their true identities, and lie, cheat, steal, and plunder to only benefit themselves. For example, The Duke says that he is a

Printer by trade; do a little in patent medicines; theater actor tragedy, you know; take a turn to mesmerism and phrenology when there s a chance; teach singing-geography school for a change; sling a lecture sometimes- oh, I do lots of things, most anything that comes handy, so it aint work (118).

The king says, I ve done considerable doctoring way in my time layin on o hands is my best holt; for cancer and paralysis, and such things; and I k n tell a fortune pretty good when I ve got somebody along to find out the facts for me. Preaching s my line too and workin camp-meetings, and missionaryin around (118). The two even lie to each other when they plan on steeling money from a young lady named Mary Jane. The Duke planned on running off with all the money and so did the king. Kind asks, Didn t you have it in your mind to hook the money and hide it? (208). The Duke says, Well, I don t care if I did, I didn t do it anyway, but you not only had it in your mind, you did it! (208). The Duke and King can t even keep honesty among themselves. These two hurt everyone they come in contact with.

Tom, Huck, and Duke and King all lie but Mark Twain portrays some lies as more cruel than others. The Duke and King come across as the worst and least moral. Tom is harmless, along with Huck. Nonetheless the lies in this novel do not get the liar any better off. So therefore Mark Twain s opinion on lies is that despite the reason, lies are never for good.