Tuesday, December 15, 2015

The United States of Tuck(Tom and Huck)

Tom Sawyer, in Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, would be described as quite the mischievous deceiver. Huckleberry Finn, from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, on the other hand would be described as a witty, thoughtful outcast. Both characters come to be responsible, intelligent, and morally stable boys. Today's America, in my perspective, is the United States of Huck and of Tom in a sense. 
I believe that America's society today could be viewed as the United States of Tom in multiple ways. Until one comes to terms with their self identity, essentially, one is lying to his or herself. The reflects the falsifying side of Tom that is portrayed in our culture. The government is also a source of this reflection. While we always seem to know that our country is in financial debt, it never seems to be something that is a topic of conversation within our politicians. Even though America is facing plenty of other issues that need to be handled, our economic struggle is always present. 
In another respect, our community could also be visualized as the United States of Huck. Huck is an introspective boy, which I tend to believe that more of our youth is coming to be. I think that our generation of kids is more conscious of what is going on in the world around us. We may fall victim to certain stereotypes of the "technology era", but as some would see this as a disadvantage (creating distraction from reality as well as increasing the diagnoses of ADHD), I would view it as an advantage. I also believe that our society is more like Huck in the sense that we have come to accept and appreciate outcasts, rather separate them. We, today, live in both the United States of Huck and of Tom while our nation embodies hiding the truth along with reflecting on our inner thoughts.

1 comment:

  1. This post makes a really interesting point-- I like how you said that a lot of America simply conceals their "Tom" side. It brings out a really unique perspective on American society as a whole.

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