What are the biblical allusions in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn?
In chapter XIV Huck Finn and Jim are discussing kings. The subject of Solomon comes up:
I read considerable to Jim about kings and dukes and earls and such, and how gaudy they dressed, and how much style they put on, and called each other your majesty, and your grace, and your lordship, and so on, 'stead of mister; and Jim's eyes bugged out, and he was interested. He says:
“I didn' know dey was so many un um. I hain't hearn 'bout none un um, skasely, but ole King Sollermun, onless you counts dem kings dat's in a pack er k'yards. How much do a king git?”
Even an illiterate slave has some vague understanding of the Bible. Indeed, the Bible was most likely to be the only book with which slaves had any acquaintance. Huck tells Jim that Solomon had a million wives. In that case, Jim concludes, he couldn't have been that wise otherwise he wouldn't have chosen to live with all those quarreling wives. He'd never get a moment's peace.
In chapter XXIV, Jim and Huck are drifting along on their raft with the King and the Duke, a couple of charlatans and con artists. But Huck has to admit that the King looks quite distinguished in his all-black outfit:
Why, before, he looked like the orneriest old rip that ever was; but now, when he'd take off his new white beaver and make a bow and do a smile, he looked that grand and good and pious that you'd say he had walked right out of the ark, and maybe was old Leviticus himself.
Huck's knowledge of the Bible is a tad hazy. He is, of course, referring to Noah; Leviticus is one of the books of the Old Testament.
But Hines is onto the King and the Duke. He knows all about their dastardly plan to rob the Wilks family of the gold left to them by their dearly departed father and husband, Peter. But he doesn't just point the finger at those two old rapscallions; as far as he's concerned, Huck's also part of the gang and so is ripe for a good old lynching. There's only one thing for it: Huck needs to split, and fast. But big old Hines won't let go of him, dragging him all the way to the cemetery for the exhumation of Peter Wilks's body:
I couldn't bear to think about it; and yet, somehow, I couldn't think about nothing else. It got darker and darker, and it was a beautiful time to give the crowd the slip; but that big husky had me by the wrist—Hines—and a body might as well try to give Goliar the slip.
Huck is referring to Goliath, the giant warrior of the Phillistines. And just like the hulking great monster of a man in the Bible, Hines also loses out to a smaller, more nimble opponent. He's so thrilled at the sight of the bag of gold on Peter's chest that he starts whooping and hollering, letting go of his viselike grip of Huck's wrist. Our hero doesn't need a second invitation and quickly makes a run for it.
Finally, we're in chapter XXXIII. Tom Sawyer, cunningly disguised as one William Thompson, is enjoying the gracious Southern hospitality of his Aunt Sally. Suddenly, he gives her a big kiss, and on the lips. It's fair to say she's confused. But she's not to know that it's her nephew Tom. (Or her nephew Tom pretending to be her other nephew, Sid.) Anyway, before she finds any of this out, she lets "William" know exactly what she thinks of his outrageous presumption:
“No'm, I'm honest about it; I won't ever do it again—till you ask me.”
“Till I ask you! Well, I never see the beat of it in my born days! I lay you'll be the Methusalem—numskull of creation before ever I ask you—or the likes of you.”
In the Book of Genesis, Methuselah lived to the ripe old age of 969. By calling him a "Methusalem-numskull (sic)," Aunt Sally's saying in no uncertain terms that the impertinent little pup in front of her would have to be nearly Methuselah's age before she'd ever consider asking him for a kiss.
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