The Initiation Of Huck In The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn

Mark Twain is one of the greatest American writers in the 19th century. William Faulkner even called Mark Twain "the father of American literature". William Dean Howells praised him as "the Lincoln of our literature," The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is Twain's representative work. Hemingway declared in his Green Hills of Africa (1935) that "All modern American literature comes from" Huck Finn, and hailed it as "the best book we've had." However, this novel has been one of the most controversial and frequently banned books of American literature since its publication in 1884. During the course of one hundred years after its publication, this novel has still been loved, and frequently discussed all around the world. It proved to be one of the greatest books in the world literature.Many works of study about this novel have interpreted it from diverse perspectives, such as realism, existentialism, racism and psychological novel since its first publication. Though a profusion of studies have been conducted on the novel from the angle of initiation story, they are far from complete. Few articles focus exclusively on its initiation theme and a variety of features possessed by the special novel type. The thesis proposes that as a classic Initiation story, it is necessary to probe deep into the progression of the protagonist's growth and social problems revealed in this process.This thesis first approaches the initiation stories and American initiation stories. Then it points out that the basic plot pattern of initiation stories is, oppression—escape—confusion and conflict—epiphany. By analyzing the text of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the thesis focuses on the stages and progress of Huck's initiation; how does Huck's raft journey influence his initiation; his inner conflicts and growth. Through Huck's adventures, Mark Twain shows us a vivid picture of the prewar American society. This thesis is composed of four chapters. Chapter one introduces briefly about Mark twain and his most representative work The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It also points out the position and contribution of Mark Twain in the world literature and studies on the novel both at home and abroad.Chapter Two introduces the definition and development of initiation stories and analyzes briefly on American initiation stories.Chapter Three through analyzing the plot, structure and context of the novel, points out that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a classic American initiation story. It puts emphasis on Huck's initiation process and the influence of the various conflicts on Huck's initiation.Chapter Four analyzes the on-shore adventures that influence the initiation of Huck. It finds out that the initiation process of Huck is not only the development of his minds and conscious but also his realization of the society and human nature.On the basis of the analyses and interpretation in the four chapters, the conclusion summarizes the argument of the thesis. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a classic American initiation story. Huck's initiation embodies the commonnesses of human beings'initiation and possesses typical features. His initiation is the development of his minds and conscious through various conflicts and his process of realizing society and human nature.Through analyzing the plot pattern and context of the novel, this thesis aims to explain the reasons why this novel can survive the time as a classic initiation story. It also hopes that Huck's growth can have a positive influence on the teenagers. The writer of this thesis hopes that it can deepen the readers'understanding of initiation stories and American initiation stories as well as the novel.