An example is the story about Claudette Colvin, nestled in the chapter dealing with civil rights and Brown v. Board of Education. Youve successfully purchased a group discount. By entering your email address you agree to receive emails from SparkNotes and verify that you are over the age of 13. Your subscription will continue automatically once the free trial period is over. It is a fascinating overview of American Society and its treatment of childhood throughout the centuries. Initially, while they are on the first island, Huck and Jim have only the canoe that Huck stole from his father. What dreams and plans does Jim have for his future once he successfully escapes from slavery? Do not use an Oxford Academic personal account. The boy is brought in semi-conscious on a mattress, accompanied by a crowd including Jim, in chains, and the doctor. A few townspeople become skeptical, and Huck, who grows to admire the Wilks sisters, decides to thwart the scam. This book is an interesting history of the United States from the perspective of children that takes on the myth of the idealized childhood - one enjoyed by precious few children, mostly prosperous Read full review, "Children have long served as a lightning rod for America's anxieties about society as a whole," writes historian Mintz, who successfully lays the foundation for his statement in this intriguing new Read full review, Check out the new look and enjoy easier access to your favorite features, Reviews aren't verified, but Google checks for and removes fake content when it's identified. It is inconceivable to think that a year has passed since Russia first launched its devastating invasion of Ukraine. As a result of his adventure, Huck gained quite a bit of money, which the bank held for him in trust. PopMatters is wholly independent, women-owned and operated. Should children be sheltered and protected from the world, or are they ready to work and be a part of society from a young age? All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Another type of transportation might not have had this issue, so the raft once again serves to get Jim and Huck into adventures and move the plot along. The last date is today's The men, one around 70 and the other around 30 years old, join Huck and Jim on the raft. Having given this alarm so that the men on the boat will not be stranded and will. Get Annual Plans at a discount when you buy 2 or more! This article about an education-related book is a stub. Superbowl Sunday, London Style: A Conversation, Dougie Poole Spins the Wheel of Rules and Lands on Transcendence, Formerly Banned French Crime Film A Woman Kills Slips Out of the Shadowy Margins, A Juggernaut of Jokes: An Oral History of Silkworms Italian Platinum, Everything Everywhere All at Once and the Politics of Genre, PopMatters Seeks Film Critics and Essayists, PopMatters Seeks Television Critics and Essayists. If youve read any sort of previous tome (for example, on immigrant children in urban centers, or the Lowell mill girls, or railroad transients in the Depression), be warned: The respective chapters will feel like a recap. See details. Why is Jims imprisonment on Silas Phelpss plantation a lucky coincidence for Huck and Jim? At the beginning of this comprehensive and overarching narrative of the history of children in America, Steven Mintz outlines several myths about childhood that offer food for thought and a reason for this books very existence. The task Mintz sets himself is daunting: to trace the history of childhood in the United States from the beginning until the start of the 21st century, giving attention to both the commonalities and the crucial differences in the experiences of children of different races, genders, classes, and cultural backgrounds. By entering your email address you agree to receive emails from SparkNotes and verify that you are over the age of 13. Already a member? Sumit Guha. What trick does Huck play on Jim after they get separated in the fog? 0674015088 9780674015081. eeee. Choose this option to get remote access when outside your institution. on 2-49 accounts, Save 30% Steven Mintz's impeccably researched, convincingly argued, and wonderfully original synthesis of the monographic literature on childhood in American history debunks this notion. date the date you are citing the material. 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An odyssey of psychological self-discovery and growth, this book suggests a vision of childhood that embraces risk and freedomlike the daring adventure on Huck's raft. Clearly, then, the raft in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is more than just a means of transportation. 14 day loan required to access EPUB and PDF files. Huck's Raft is a history of American childhood and youth, written by Steven Mintz. Your group members can use the joining link below to redeem their group membership. After minimal schooling, impoverished pre- adolescent children were drawn into the labor force to work long hours under appalling conditions. Mintz is at his best in providing cogent overviews that illustrate changing attitudes toward young people. It's possible this book is better than I give it credit for. For a reader who picks up this book with little or no knowledge of the history of childhood in America, the read will remain fascinating for much of its length. Wed love to have you back! The second is the date of for a group? Unfortunately for Huck and Jim, the duke and the dauphin make it back to the raft just as Huck and Jim are pushing off. Get Annual Plans at a discount when you buy 2 or more! The reason weve never heard about her: Montgomerys black leaders were looking for a symbol around which to organize antisegregation protests, Mintz says, and decided that Claudette was not appropriate. (She was a rebellious teenager who got pregnant right after the incident.). Why does Huck write the letter to Miss Watson informing her of Jims whereabouts? In the end, Huckleberry Finn moves beyond questions of slavery, to broader questions of morality and race. In the meantime, a letter arrives from Aunt Polly, Sallys sister. It was great to read about how the major historical events that I teach about in my U.S. History class affected children in different ways. Lotu Tii Huck introduces himself as a character from Mark Twain's earlier novel, "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer." Huck says that, while the book is mostly true, Twain told some "stretchers," or lies, but that that's okay, because most people tell lies one time or another. Mintz compares Puritan childlife, full of work, to the world of Native American tribes, where children were coddled and allowed to play. The raft in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is one of the objects that stays with Huck and Jim the longest. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. Miss Watson, although she has done the right thing by freeing Jim, sullies her good intentions by making the action a provision of her will, something to be carried out in the futureat her deathrather than immediately. The bullet in Toms leg seems rather deserved when Tom reveals that he has known all along that Miss Watson has been dead for two months and that she freed Jim in her will. You'll be billed after your free trial ends. Huck goes to the shed to warn Jim and Tom, but news of the armed men only excites Tom even more. I got this book at a workshop I attended last year. Includes a summary of the book in 100 words. I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. Throughout its part of the novel, the raft serves as a plot device. Due to a planned power outage on Friday, 1/14, between 8am-1pm PST, some services may be impacted. I found the end of the book, which looked at childhoods in the 1990s a bit less interesting, just because it felt like it was edging the line of assumption and judgement at times. The angry townspeople hold both sets of Wilks claimants, and the duke and the dauphin just barely escape in the ensuing confusion. Finally, he considers more recent times, considering societys inadequacy in meeting childrens health, welfare, and educational needs. Several days travel takes them past St. Louis, and they have a close encounter with a gang of robbers on a wrecked steamboat. He doesn't quite succeed--that would require many more pages--but he has produced a very useful reference book which will be of use to students and scholars who want a quick take on the status of children during particular historical eras. Why does Huck write the letter to Miss Watson informing her of Jims whereabouts? Book Review. (But be aware the print on each page is tiny and dense, and reading it will take you twice as long as you think!). Huck tells the watchman (who also turns out to be the owner) of the boat that his family is on board the wreck. on the Internet. creating and saving your own notes as you read. In a way, the knowledge of Jims emancipation erases the novel that has come before it. (one code per order). How do Pap Finn, the Widow Douglas, and Judge Thatcher dispute over the custody of Huck? As it is, the old men catch up with them, and the storyline concerning the four of them continues. Since it is big enough to hold a shelter, it also provides Jim with a place to hide when they land if they pass populated areas or sections of the river with heavy traffic. This was one of those books that I found in a list of references while reading an assigned text. Jim has, technically, been a free man almost the entire time. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. It's just that the author is interested primarily in the legal and economic aspects of childhood, much much less about the quiddities of the everyday lives of children, and not at all about the mythology, internal and external, of childhood and how it is romanticized or reimagined either by art or by children themselves. Social reformers had minimal success controlling the exploitation of such children. As Jim and Huck float downriver, Jim restlessly searches the riverbank for the town of Cairo. If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. ISSN 0028-792X. Huck and Jim team up, despite Hucks uncertainty about the legality or morality of helping a runaway slave. Huck also learns that a reward has been offered for Jims capture. The raft gets them into trouble later. The bibliography is a great resource; rather than rely on extant histories, the author unearths a lot of primary sources that nobody has looked at in ages. Why is To The Lighthouse, by Virginia Woolf, considered a classic? Includes 5 business days handling time after receipt of cleared payment. Summary and Analysis Chapters 19-20. A personal account can be used to get email alerts, save searches, purchase content, and activate subscriptions. Tom wakes and gleefully details how they set Jim free. February 28, 2023, SNPLUSROCKS20 Log in here. Having both it and the canoe allows Huck to scout ahead when they reach a town and keep Jim from being caught by slavers. Huck's Raft: A History of American Childhood Paperback - April 30, 2006 by Steven Mintz (Author) 126 ratings See all formats and editions Kindle $15.93 Read with Our Free App Hardcover $20.00 10 Used from $19.99 4 New from $39.74 1 Collectible from $10.00 Paperback $30.00 17 Used from $15.82 16 New from $25.64 However, in chapter 5 of "Huck's Raft", Mintz explores the experiences of children in the early 20th century who were often forced to work in factories and on farms to support their families. Just then, Aunt Polly walks into the room. This allows the whole subplot with the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons to occur. Vol. Pp. The duke and the dauphin enter the town pretending to be Wilkss brothers. Jim is freed, but a pursuer shoots Tom in the leg. Any reader of the popular press is aware of the current central cultural debates over the raising of children how much to schedule their activities; how to punish them when they do wrong; how to shield them (or not) from the events of the world; how to prepare them to be sexual beings (or not). Why is education important and how did it change? And in general, the parts of the book that are the most interesting are the anecdotes about specific childrens lives. 28 Feb. 2023 . At the end of Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, a poor boy with a drunken bum for a father, and his friend Tom Sawyer, a middle-class boy with an imagination too active for his own good, found a robbers stash of gold. All rights reserved. Now, Steven Mintz gives us the first comprehensive history of American childhood encompassing both the child's and the adult's tumultuous early years of life. What dreams and plans does Jim have for his future once he successfully escapes from slavery? This method really allowed me to get the feel for the time period, it is defiantly something Ill keep in mind for my own writings. Tom hatches a wild plan to free Jim, adding all sorts of unnecessary obstacles even though Jim is only lightly secured. Book Summary. Huck's Raft: A History of American childhood By Steven Mintz. An outstanding work of cultural history--accessible, engrossing, enlightening, and fascinating. Huck and Jim spy a log raft and a house floating past the island. Your group members can use the joining link below to redeem their group membership. Your subscription will continue automatically once the free trial period is over. Huck has a brief moral crisis about concealing stolen propertyJim, after all, belongs to Miss Watsonbut then lies to the men and tells them that his father is on the raft suffering from smallpox. The elopement of a Grangerford daughter with a Shepherdson son leads to a gun battle in which many in the families are killed. Finding it allows them to abandon the thieves' boat, which might have caused trouble later on. SparkNotes PLUS The ending of Huckleberry Finn reveals Tom to be even more callous and manipulative than we realized. In this way the raft provides extra suspense and helps get them needed supplies. What a smart history of childhood in this country. This engaging and compelling account of the history of childhood in America is a tonic by a first-rate historian that is both scholarly and beautifully written. In many cases. The Industrial Revolution spawned the establishment of public schools designed to train compliant workers. Purchasing When on the society site, please use the credentials provided by that society. You can view our. He posits that some Indian captives may have refused to return to their Puritan villages because life was no fun for them there. With a nod to the past, Mintz revisits an alternative to the goal-driven realities of contemporary childhood. When on the institution site, please use the credentials provided by your institution. I don't usually say this about non-fiction books but I couldn't put this book down. 37. pp. This is one of the BEST books I have ever read! 6 chapters | What does it mean to be a child? Continue to start your free trial. Ed. Subscribe now. Enter your library card number to sign in. He quickly heads back to where the raft was to try and escape, only to find it's broken away. By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy. It intersects facts with quotes from the people of the time, from letters and diaries. It covers being a Native American child during the time of colonization, a protestant child during the revolution, and everything in-between. You can view our. for a group? They make it to their canoe and set off downstream toward the island where the raft is hidden. Possibly the most troubling aspect of the novels close is the realization that all has been for naught. 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