The Credibility of Characters in Twain’s Huckleberry Finn

The credibility of a novel is defined as the quality of it being believable or trustworthy. This simply means that the novel provides a story which can essentially take place in the real world. If this were to be the case in a novel, then the many aspects of the story would have to be credible. The novel would have to take place in a realistic setting, for example. Also the events that take place in the novel would have to reflect events which can occur in reality. Other aspects that also need to be credible in a novel are the characters. In such a novel the readers need to be able to relate to the characters. An author that does this successfully with the characters is Mark Twain. In one of his more famous novels, Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain gives credibility to the characters by presenting them with major flaws, which helps readers relate to these characters. These characters include Tom, Huck, and Jim. Tom Sawyer has flaws which come to surface early in the novel. “Because it ain’t in the books so—that’s why. Now Ben Rogers, do you want to do things regular, or don’t you?—that’s the idea. Don’t you reckon that the people that made the books knows what’s the correct thing to do?...No, sir, we’ll just go on and ransom them in a regular way” (p. 12). Twain presents Tom as a character who portrays romantic ideals. When he says he wants to go by the book, he reveals that he is taking many of his ideas from fictitious works. This results in his absurd ideas, such as his suggestion of starting the band of robbers. His romantic notions create a sense that he lacks much reasoning or common sense. This lack of common sense can easily be viewed as a character flaw, as it may potentially be a threat to his survival, among other things. This also gives Tom Sawyer credibility as a character, since the