1.) melodeum - (n.) a kind of accordion (dictionary.com)
"They had borrowed a melodeom" (Twain 194).
2.) numskull - (n.) a dull-witted or stupid person; dolt (dictionary.com)
"and some numskull up and say" (206).
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1.) "We shan't rob 'em of nothing at all but jest this money. The people that buys the property is the suff'rers; because as soon's it's found out 'at we didn't own it - which won't be long after we've slid - the sale won't be valid, and it'll all go back to the estate" (190).
In this quote, Twain continues to paint the picture of evil that surrounds the "royal nonesuch." Their play known as "The Royal Nonesuch," was a complete scam, and was the first of a series of steadily worsening acts. It eventually led to the point where they planned to rob a family of orphaned girls of all that they owned. They started off by stealing $6,000 from the basement of the house, which Huck later on steals and hides. After they get a hold of the money, the duke plans to leave the place before they are exposed, but the dauphin does not consent, and says the above quote. They planned to sell what was left that the family owned, and they started with the sale of the Wilks' slaves. The separation of the save family caused a scandal, as would their capture. All that the duke and the dauphin want is money. They seek to procure it by evil tactics, which confuses Huck. Huck is torn apart by how some people like Ms. Watson can be good and others like the duke and dauphin can be so evil as a whole, and be equally evil, as shown when Ms. Watson tries to sell Jim and when the duke and dauphin pretty much do anything. Huck, possessing an air of independence about him, takes these to mind, and turns over the facts in his head, as demonstrated in the following quote.
2.) "These uncles of yourn ain't no uncles at all - they're a couple of frauds - regular dead-beats" (200).
In this quote, Huck opens up and exposes the truth to Mary Jane, his favorite of the Wilks girls. He opens up after he sees Mary Jane crying over the separation of the slave family. Eager to make her feel better, uck acts on his own conscience and tells her that the duke and dauphin are frauds, giving her information to help get them busted. Huck has had a confused upbringing. He's been raised by Ms. Watson, who is predominantly a good person, and by his pap, who is rather a negative influence. In reality, Huck sees these forces of good and evil go to work in all matter of ways. Whether it be staying with the Grangerfords or travelling with the duke and dauphin, Huck never seems to know which path to take. What he does is actually do some good and evil. The above quote is an example of one of his good deeds, while one of his bad deeds would be saying "Well, I see the niggers go in there several times" (197). Throughout the book, Huck is influenced by both of these opposing forces, and it is all a part of his maturity. He goes from listening to anyone, like when he was with Ms. Watson, to questioning things and making decisions on his own, as demonstrated when he frees himself of pap and Ms. Watson. In his decision to reveal the truth about the duke and dauphin, Huck is taking a huge risk. If they had known, Huck and even Jim would be in a world of trouble. Yet, Huck desides to tell Mark Jane anyways.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
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