The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain - 1508 Words

Many authors use satire to poke fun at certain issues to expose and call awareness to it. One author that has a history of using satire in his novels and other literary works to indulge the reader deeper into the meaning of his writing is Mark Twain. By using satire, he humorously draws attention to some issues faced in American culture and other places around the world. A perfect example of his use of satire is his novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Twain’s widely read novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn uses satire as a tool to expose a few key issues faced in America, which are organized religion, violence in American culture, human ignorance and gullibility. In 1861, Mark Twain visited Salt Lake City, the Mormon capital of the†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"They laid him on the floor, and put one large Bible under his head, and opened another one and spread it on his breast† (Amare, Manning 207). This scene from Adventures of Huckleberry Finn reproduces a m emory from Twain’s childhood. About how there is one major difference from Twain’s real life account based off of two men name Owsley and Smarr, and his fictional account including Sherburn and Boggs. â€Å"As judge, Twain’s father collected twenty-eight depositions; the verbal exchange between Boggs and Sherburn resembles Smarr and Owsley’s. However, Leo Marx notes that: The Bible placed on Bogg’s breast is one of the few details for which no basis can be found in the twenty-eight depositions†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Amare, Manning 207). Twain was also known for satirizing politician’s names. Lilburn W. Boggs was the governor of Missouri in 1838, when he gave an extermination order to kill all the Mormons in the winter if they did not leave Missouri. Four years later, Boggs was shot but survived. â€Å"The symbolism of the Bibles laid on the dying Boggs becomes clear: Mormons were persecuted as a threat to Orthodox Christianity, which Governor Boggs â€Å"defended,† and he was himself â€Å"martyred† for that orthodoxy (for which Twain himself had little respect)† (Amare, Manning 208). The bible being placed on Bogg’s chest when he dies has a deeper meaning than just the surface layer. This satirizes