Physical Journeys Essay

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A physical journey is a process that one undertakes to reach a certain destination. This transition involves overcoming many different obstacles, experiences and hardships that will not only challenge the individual physically but mentally as well. These difficulties however allow one to undergo an experience of learning and self-discovery. It allows the broadening of one’s understanding of themselves and the world around them and acts as the catalyst for change and self-growth. Mark Twain’s picaresque novel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, shows journeys as a means of education and understanding. The story is written through the eyes of a young white boy called Huck, an outcast from white society who abandons the restrictions of conventional civilization. Twain presents Huck with a humorous and engaging voice in the opening lines: "You don't know about me, without you have read a book by the name of 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'; but that ain't no matter". It is important to recognise that the language employed by Huck and those around him is reflective of the setting and era, with the constant and degrading use of the term ‘nigger’ to describe black people. Along with a black slave called Jim, they embark on a journey together down the Mississippi River. Life on the raft is empowering because the river becomes a freedom motif as it carries them away from confinement and abuse, juxtaposing with the idea of the shore being symbolic of danger and social tyranny. Huck escapes the brutality of his drunken father and ‘sivilizing’ restrictions of St Petersburg, and Jim the degradation and racism of slavery. Huck has been affected by the stereotypical opinions of the society of the time, and has preconceived notions of black people and their rights. The journey is a unifying experience that allows them to recognise a common humanity. It also becomes a search for
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