Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Is Jim intelligent?

I do consider Jim to be intelligent. While he does not have a formal education, he does demonstrate his intelligence through his conversations with Huck. When Jim ran away from Ms. Watson’s house. He planned his escape with caution and thought ahead to the result of his actions. “I knowed ole missus en de widder wuz goin' to start to de camp-meet'n' right arter breakfas' en be gone all day, en dey knows I goes off wid de cattle 'bout daylight, so dey wouldn' 'spec to see me roun' de place, en so dey wouldn' miss me tell arter dark in de evenin'. De yuther servants wouldn' miss me, kase dey'd shin out en take holiday soon as de ole folks 'uz out'n de way. Well, when it come dark I tuck out up de river road, en went 'bout two mile er more to whah dey warn't no houses. I'd made up my mine 'bout what I's agwyne to do. You see, ef I kep' on tryin' to git away afoot, de dogs 'ud track me; ef I stole a skift to cross over, dey'd miss dat skift, you see, en dey'd know 'bout whah I'd lan' on de yuther side, en whah to pick up my track. So I says, a raff is what I's arter; it doan' make no track” (Twain 44). Jim thought out his plan carefully, making sure there wasn’t anyone or anything that could track him down. Unlike any other slave, he didn’t just run, but thought out a plan to make sure he wasn’t caught. Jim also showed intelligence when he tricked Huck into believing that he could tell the future with a hairball and got Huck to give him money for the false service. Jim demonstrates his intelligence through his conversation with Huck on the raft. Unlike Huck, Jim is able to understand the point of the King Solomon biblical piece. He can relate to it and sees an allegory behind it. Also, when Jim and Huck come across the cave while adventuring the island, it was Jim’s ideas to hide in the cave, rather than out in the open. Even Jim’s crazy superstitions came true. Jim may not have an education, but he is able to adapt to nature and use his intelligence and skills to stay alive. Even Huck began to recognize Jim’s intelligence and humanity. Throughout the novel, Jim demonstrates his intelligence through his actions and conversations.

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