Heart of a Child (in response to Chris' post)

I believe that the very last two lines of Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in some sense entail what Chris is trying to convey. Huck states that, "I reckon I got to light out for the Territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally she's going to adopt me and sivilize me and I can't stand it." This statement shows that Huck, despite all the growing up that he has had to do, is still a child at heart and desires to build his life upon that. I believe that Huck doesn't want to be tainted by the ill-will and depravity of this world and would rather grow up unbound by society's standards. There is something in the faith of a child, and perhaps the naivety of child, that we lose as we grow up. We forget to enjoy and to embrace the freedom and the simple pleasures life has thrown at us.

Twain, throughout the novel, has constantly striven to convey this sense of child-like innocence in Huck. Perhaps he is trying to remind his readers of the child we all used to be—or still are—and to never fully let go of that. Even though every human being must at some point grow up and take responsibility for his or her actions—that is not to say that he or she must let go of the freedom learned in childhood. If one looks hard enough and opens their heart wide enough, there is always something to be taken to heart from the candidness and innocence of a child.