Huck Finn#2

As you've seen in the early chapters of "Huck Finn," many of the characters (Huck and Jim especially) believe in a large number of superstitions.
Comment on at least 2-3 of the superstitions shown so far. What are they? What do the characters believe about them?
Most importantly, what is Mark Twain saying about the characters who believe these superstitions? About American society during this time period?

They believe that touching snake skin will bring bad luck and it did. Jim ended up getting bit by a snake. Huck believed that when you spill salt it will bring bad luck. Mark Twain is saying that the people that believe in superstitions dont necessarly belive in religion or they just dont follow their religion very well.

Huck puts his superstitions before his religion in the story. In Chapter one Huck sees a spider crawling up his shoulder,
so he flipped it off and it went into the flame of the
candle. Before he could get it out, it was already
shriveled up. Huck didn't need anyone to tell him that it
was an bad sign and would give him bad luck. Huck got
scared and shook his clothes off, and turned in his tracks
three times. He then tied a lock of his hair with a thread
to keep the witches away.

Cross in the shoe. Salt over the shoulder. Jim the witches.
Huck found a cross in his shoes. Before hucks father showed up they talked about the salt being thrown over the shoulder. Jim and the witches and there spirts. Mark Twain is showing how these characters are so superstios and that they are believing in something not true and beleive things beyond normal. This time period may have brought many different superstiotions. They way things were and living condtions may have brough these superstions

I think that these superstitions are kinda stupid cause its just coincidence that these things happen cause throwing slat over your shoulder, or nails in the shoe is just a waste of things and it wont keep anything off. That these people are crazy and everyone believes in god does all this stuff.

Superstition 1.) You shouldnt touch a rattlesnake skin. They believe in if you touch a rattlesnake skin you will have bad luck and have bad things happen to you.
Superstition 2.) You shouldnt kill a spider or you will have bad luck. They believe that if you kill a spider that you will have bad luck and you better watch yourself and not do anything to get into bad situations. Such as when they come across the paddleboat that was hung up on rocks they encountered a bad situation. What mark twain is saying about these characters is that their superstitions may not seem true, but he makes them come alive in the book by making examples to back up the superstitions. He shows how the american society during this time period that all of them believe in superstitions.

Huck questions Aunt Polly about why they pray all the time. He says they have habits that they don't even think about. They just do it. Huck and his family believes that if you free a black, you will go to hell. Huck always follows his conscience and stays with Jim, instead of turning him in. Now he believes he will go to hell after faking his death and his from his actions with Jim. Also, he is impatient with the civilized society.
Twain shows that Huck and Jim are foolish. They are uneducated and leave.

There was many kinds of superstitions in the book Huck Finn. One of the superstitions is picking up a rattlesnakes skin with your hands. Doing this they believe would give you VERY bad luck. The second superstition was killing a spider, this they think will also bring you bad luck. Jim believed in witches, and that they could put you in a trance. They believed in bewitchment. They also think that when two chickens fly by, it will rain. Jim was the most superstitious, along with Huck, and Pap. Mark Twain isnt saying they are stupid for thinking this, it is just what people did during this time. They were very superstitious.

Huck believes in superstitions, the first one is throwing salt over his shoulders to wear off bad luck. The second superstitions is where Jim touched the rattle snake with his bare hands and in return got biten on the foot. Jim believe's that if you touch a rattle snake with your bare hands it brings the worse luck possible to your life. Mark Twain makes his charcters believe in superstitions to make fun of Romantics, and how they believe in all this make believe stuff. The realism that he is trying to get across is that Huck is learning that no matter what you do bad things happen to you.

They believed that touching the snakes skin was bad luck and a spider was crawling up his shoulder and he flicked it and burned it. He believed that spilling the salt was also bad luck. I think he was saying that mostly the characters and people believe about superstition more then their religion. They listen to the people about superstitions and they kind of ignore or forget about their religion.

They believe that killing a spider is bad luck. And that having a metal cross made out of nails on the heel of your shoe will keep ghosts and demons away. Touching a snake skin with your bare hands is some of the worst bad luck. Seeing a new moon over your left shoulder is the worst bad luck ever. And Jim believes that the hairball that he got out of an ox's stomach is all knowing.

Mark Twain is saying that these characters are superstitious and careful and believe in ghosts and demons. He is also saying that people in this era of society were very skeptic and always on edge.

when huck burned the spider he freaked out and his dad having the cross on his boot and jim having the hair ball thingy they pick superstitions over religion cuz they can phyicaly change do things and see things most people beleaved in religion. blaaaaah

hucks dad has the cross in his shoe to keep bad luck and all that stuff away, Jim has a whole load of the stuff with his hairball, rattle snake stuff, and the witches incodent. Huck thinks alot of stuff gives him bad luck like the spider and looking at the moon over your left shoulder. they think every thing will give them bad luck and screw with them. Mark Twain was saying people were very gulable and didn't have very good logic back then.

One superstition is the one where Huckleberry Finn believes, because of the widow, that if he lets an african american free, he'll "go to the bad place." A second one is where Huckleberry Finn believes that if he throws salt over his shoulder, it'll bring him good luck. Another is the one where Huckleberry Finn believes that if he burns a spider in the fire, it'll bring him unfortunate luck and witches will come after him as a result. Mark Twain is trying to say that these characters are foolish and uneducated to believe these superstitions because they're unrealistic; and there's no proof that they're real. As for American Society at that time, he's saying that we were too into romantism, and needed to use realism, because many of the things we believed were not true. In addition, he's implying through his writing that at this time American Society wasn't educated very well.

They believe that you shouldn't touch rattlesnake skin or you will have bad things happen to you, and you will have bad luck. They also believe that you shouldn't kill a spider because you will have bad luck. When Huck flicked a spider off of his shoulder and it landed on a candle he got scared and shook his clothes, and then he turned in his tracks three times. What Mark Twain is saying is that superstitions aren't right, because later Huck believes in romantisism. So he starts to believe in realism.

They believe that is you kill a spider it will bring bad luck. Also to touch a snakes skin they also believe that's bad luck. When Mark Twain writes these I think he is trying to set a diffrence from romatics and religion. The way I think of it is that Hucks young he wants a long life but he hasn't really had many experiences with reliogion. I remember when my cousin was younger she would hold her breath going by a grave yard thinking it would bring bad luck and we were going to church for Easter and she colored the hole service! Then when we got home she said " I can't believe people go to that every Sunday!D:" so I don't think huck or Jim( cause of his race) knew any better.

One superstition that Huck had was that if you killed a spider you would have very bad luck and bad thing would come your way. Another superstition was that if you touched rattlesnake skin that something bad would happen to you and that you would have bad luck. These superstitions came about when people were trying to explain the unexplainable, like bad luck. Mark Twain is trying to prove that even with all of these superstitions, things happen for a reason.

Some of the superstitions were that touching a snake skin and killing a spider were bad luck. Jim also believes in witches, and Tome thinks that if he throws salt over his shoulder he will have good luck. Huck is trying to get away from society. Society is somewhat represented by Aunt Polly and the Widow who are talked about praying all the time. Huck doesnt understand why, also his father is very superstitious.

Superstitions are a big part in this book. For examples Huck killing a spider which is "bad luck", The hair-ball used to tell fortunes, and the rattle-snake skin huck touches that brings huck and jim good and bad luck. Mark Twain is saying that characters in the story are very superstitious about certain things throughout this book.

the touching of the snake skin and the spider was bad luck for them. and Mark Twain's characters have alot of superstitions, they have alot thoughout the book.

Huck doesn't really believe in religion or goes to church so i think that is a superstition. Also like taking the spider and killing people would say that is a superstition. Jim believes in witches and thinks they are real. If you take the time and think about what witches do, it is basically all superstitions. I think Huck believes in some superstitions, but not all of them. Jim for sure does believe in all of them. Jim probably believes that they can help him in the future, and Huck he thinks it is just there to be there, it doen't really affect him. I am sure American Society back then probably believed in this, but not as many as in todays world. Mark Twain is saying that Huck and Jim have different opinions and back then that is what most people believed in.

Jim wears a five cent piece tom left for the candles, and he believes it's a charm from the devil that has the power to cure sickness. Huck believes killing a black spider is bad luck.! That tom's romanticism and Huck's skepticism to show that both points of view can prove equally misleading if taken to extremes.

Jim believes in witches and thinks they are real. If you take the time and think about what witches do, it is basically all superstitions. He thinks that the touching of the snake skin and the spider was bad luck for them. The last one i can remember is when the salt over the sholder thing.

that if huck prays that he is going to have bad luck. the reason Mark Twain has that in their is that if is pointless to belive in superstition because it isnt real.

One of the superstitions was that if you kill a snake its mate will go and find where it is and lay by it. i think that in the time period they lived in if you say something that alot of people will believe in what you said and they will tell other people about it.