Thunderbolt Kid and Huck Finn - Essay Example

The American Experience in Literature The novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is about an illegitimate child, called Huck, who experiences overwhemling adventures throughout the Mississipi River, as the main setting in the novel where Huck and his companion, Jim, try to seek for humanity and conformity in the world of unfamiliar civilization. On the other hand, the masterpiece, The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson is a memoir about Bryson’s childhood who pictures his childood as an ideal one, living the life of a typical American child of the 50s, a child with wide imaginations.

The two novels resemble each other in certain contexts in presenting the American experiences. Both have favored ‘escapism’, whether the child presented is dissatisfied with his life as with Huck or simply is living in harmony as with Bill. The former character has taken a lot of risks when on the Mississipi River, for he has been exposed to different threats such as murder, robbery and encountering bandits or gangs, but to him it was better than living with his father who was greedy for his money.

As for Bill, the ideal child, referring to imagination is another a mental escape with recognition of the flying part as quoted ‘I come from des Moines. Somebody had to.’ Moreover, in an underlying meaning, this could mean that being too proud of being an American may indulge someone into far-reached fanatsies. His escape could be due to the war’s aftermaths and its dilemmas such as the lame life of an average American family that ridiculously consumes food, water and electricity. Another satirical American experience of the two characters is the growing part.

They both take the hard, weird and funny ways in growing up as does any American child. Adventures and taking risks assist in developing a child’s character and they advance their concepts of the actual world without needing to experience it easily, otherwise that’s not simple growth. Both authors add hilarious scenes and satirical comments during the experiences of the two characters, for example, the conversation between Huck and his friend imply adventuring weirdly thus practically, for practice teaches better than lectures, words or theories.Ransomed? Whats that?

I dont know. But thats what they do. Ive seen it in books; and so of course thats what weve got to do.But how can we do it if we dont know what it is?Why blame it all, weve got to do it. Dont I tell you its in the books? Do you want to go to doing different from whats in the books, and get things all muddled up? The novels could also be seen from the political perspective. The quote from the novel, The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid, "I cant imagine there has ever been a more gratifying time or place to be alive than American in the 1950s," presents the political lives of all Americans during the 50s, probably the American’s fear from nuclear threats.

Therefore, it would be wiser, healthier or even easier to fantasize than to deal with reality. In other words, being a non-American at that time would have been better than being an American. Simultaneously, Huck’s continuous misadventures emphasizes on his belief and that is to pursue with the the things he has believed were right, but are eventually characterized as wrong habits, are another political manifestation of what attitude is politically condemned and what is accepted. Due to the political concepts analyzed from the novel, it has been banned from some American schools to not teach the children of illegal adventures.

Works Cited“The Wikepedia Foundation.” Wikepedia The free Encyclopedia. N.d., Web 29 August 2011th http://en.wikepedia.org/wiki/Main_Page