Social Responsibility-an ethical theory that an entity, be it an organization or individual, has an obligation to act to benefit society at large. Social responsibility is a duty every individual has to perform so as to maintain a balance between the economy and the ecosystems.
In chapters one to five Huck experiences pressure from society, the Widow Douglas, Miss Watson, Tom Sawyer, and even himself.
Widow Douglas- Page 2 “She put me in them new clothes again, and I couldn’t do nothing but sweat and sweat, and feel all cramped up. Well, then, the old thing commenced again. The widow rung a bell for supper, and you had to come to time. When you got to the table you couldn’t go right to eating. But you had to wait for the widow to tuck down her head and grumble a little over the victuals, thought there warn’t really anything the matter with them.”
This quote from page two shows that when Huck is in the house with the widow she believes that she is making him cultured and he does not understand her way of living. The Widow Douglas is trying to make Huck into a respectable young man that conforms with society and her views on life.
Also on Page 2- “Pretty soon I wanted to smoke, and asked the widow to let me. But she wouldn’t. She said it was a mean practice and wasn’t clean, and I must try to not do it any more.”
This quote shows another situation in which the Widow Douglas tries to make Huck Finn conform for his own benefit.
Miss Watson- Page 11”Well, I got a good going-over in the morning, from old Ms. Watson on account of my clothes;”
This quote from chapter three shows that Ms. Watson wants Huck to be prim and proper. She believes in discipline and wants Huck to conform to society quickly. Although in this particular instance Ms. Watson did not scold Huck.
Tom Sawyer- Page 1- “But Tom Sawyer, he hunted me up and said he was going to start a band of robbers, and I might join if I would go back to the widow and be respectable.”
Here it is seen that Tom sawyer, Huck’s best friend is trying to look after him. While Tom is rebellious like Huck is with creative ideas like a band of pirates, Tom is a goody-two-shoe and knows that the best place is with adults. By looking out for Huck Tom is attempting to make him conform for the values of society and go back to the widow and “be respectable.”
Huck Finn-Page 15- “I had been to school most all the time, and could spell, and read, and write just a little, and could say the multiplication table up to six times seven is thirty-five,”.
In this excerpt Huck is beginning to motivate himself to be like society’s standards. He has attended school and made an effort to learn. He can now read, write, spell, and do arithmetic (almost). Huck is beginning to conform to society by his own volition.
Responsibility to Family tradition- Page 20 and 23 “’You think you’re better’n your father, now, don’t you, because he can’t?’” (read and write)
“There’s a hand that was the hand of a hog; but it ain’t so no more; it’s the hand of a man that started in on a new life, and ‘ll die before he’ll go back.”
These quotes show that Huck’s father believes that family should stick together, which is a societal value, but his father believes that Huck should not be better than him and should live the life that he (his father) lived. The second quote shows that Huck’s father understands the values of society. He knows that drinking himself to the point of being unaware is not accepted, that he should take care of his son, and find a job. On the other hand, later in the chapter, Huck’s father shows that he cannot follow the values of society when he leaves the house of the judge and begins to drink again.
5 comments:
I think that social responsibility is based on point of view. For example, its Huck's social responsibility to go to school because society says that kids should go to school. Meanwhile he also has a social responsibility to not go to school because his dad does not want him to be any smarter than himself. I think Huck should go along with his own social responsibility that benefits himself not the people around him. What I like about Huck is that he goes along with his own societal values anyway.
I agree with the idea that Miss Watson wants Huck Finn to conform to society's standards in what is right and what is wrong. In the first five chapters, she is constantly telling him what he should do and what he can't do. It kind of makes you wonder how hard it was for him to adjust. I mean, he went from basically doing whatever he wants to having all the rules and guidelines to how he should behave himself and what he should do with his time. He had a father who abused him, but didn't provide him with an idea of what responsibility is and then there's Miss Watson, who's all about doing what society feels you are supposed to do.
To what extent can we hold society responsible for the outcome of the characters? For instance, do we blame society for Pap's condition - drunk and poor and uneducated? Or does that just make society a scapegoat?
I definitely agree with Rita on it being based on point of view. When growing up it is your parents job and responsibility (as society teaches us) to teach their children the morals and responsibilities that will help the next generation transition smoothly into a part of our society. We can't very much blame society, however, for our outcomes either if we technically all are “society”. I think everyone has a different way of looking at what is “acceptable”. It’s more than obvious when it comes to parenting in the story because the Widow Douglas teaches Huck social responsibility in a structured and accepted manner while Huck’s Pap thinks of teaching him in a whole other manner altogether.
Society can be held responsibly to an extent. While I believe society has an obligation to look after children and teens, adults should be allowed to make their own decisions. Society may have failed Pap as a child, but as an adult they have no responsibility towards him. He is his own man and can make his own choices.
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