The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn | Chapter 41 | Summary

Summary

Huck finds the doctor and comes up with a story. While the doctor goes off, Huck falls asleep. He awakens the next morning and runs into Uncle Silas. He brings Huck back home, and Aunt Sally is relieved to see him. The farmers and their wives are there, and they are discussing Jim's escape, not realizing it was Tom's handiwork. They cannot figure how Jim could have worked it out.

Aunt Sally is extremely kind and caring toward Huck and continues to worry about Tom. She makes Huck promise he'll stay in bed all night. Huck wants to comply, but he feels he must go and look for Tom and Jim. Every time he tries to go, Aunt Sally is waiting up in the window looking for him.

Analysis

With Tom out of this picture Huck is again center stage. The reader is reminded of Huck's good heart. Unlike Tom, Huck is moved by Aunt Sally's kindness and feels bad about hurting her feelings. He is not solely interested in his own fun and games. Huck realizes all that he and Tom have put her through. His concern for Aunt Sally causes Huck to have another internal conflict—go check on Tom and Jim, or stay and respect his promise to Aunt Sally.

The Phelps live in a small town where little happens. The incident with Jim has been more excitement than these people might ever have seen. It's a reason for a social call, and the people gather and try figure out what exactly has happened. They think Jim must be crazy, not realizing it was the result of Tom's craziness they are seeing.