The Bonds that Hold Us Together

Bonds are an important thing to have in life. They keep people from going mad. No one can stay alone for too long. Huck and Jim are no exception to the rule. They have run away from their current situations in Pike County. Now, they are on this long odyssey along the Mississippi river. When two people are along together for a long time, it is normal for them to fond strong bond of some sort with each other. At first, there is not much there between Jim and Huck because of the old beliefs of the South and black slaves. Jim just kind of tagged again with Huck after he faked his death and ran away from his dad. Nothing really grew there from as much. But then at chapter fifteen, the boys get lost in a fog one night. Huck tries to find his way back, but loses all sense of direction. At the end of the ordeal, they manage to find their way back together again. Jim is happy that his only friend is alive, but Huck tricks him into thinking that the whole thing was just a dream. Jim believes it until he sees the debris and dirt on the raft. Huck soon feels guilty because Jim is the only person that really understands how he is and how alone he is. In fact, the hero ends the chapter by saying, “It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a n****r- but I done it, and I warn’t ever sorry for it afterwards, neither. I didn’t do him no more mean tricks, and I wouldn’t done that one if I’d a knowed it would make him feel that way.” (Pg. 160) It would seem that Huck is finally growing up and opening his eyes to Jim as a person some.