Why Huck Choosing to "go to hell" is Ironic

Throughout the majority of chapter 31 Huck is faced with an internal battle with himself. One can tell that his morality is being tested greatly in the situation he is being put in. Jim was sold and Huck has to decide whether he will tell the widow that her slave was sold to another man or if he should go find Jim himself and set him free. The time period that this novel takes place in was a time when slavery and racism were very popular. It was against the law to steal a slave and that is exactly what Huck was debating doing. Huck was taught by everyone his whole life to hate Black people and that they were inferior. If he were to save Jim it would mean he would go to Hell. “ I was trying to make my mouth  say I would do the right thing and the clean thing, and go and write  to that nigger’s owner and tell where he was; but deep down in me I knowed it was a lie, and He knowed it. You can’t pray a lie-I found that out” (Twain 206). Huck tried to do his best and do what he thought society would consider moral behavior so he prayed to God about telling the widow but he knew it was wrong. He couldn’t pray to God if he knew it was wrong. Huck had to deal with a lot of confusion because he knew that the right thing would be to save Jim but he knew that society would not approve.

“It was awful thoughts and awful words, but they was said. And I let them stay said; and never thought no more about reforming” (Twain 207). This is what Huck after he made his decision that he would save Jim and go to Hell. Jim was very important to Huck and the two of them had gotten very close. Jim was the closest person to family that Huck had. He couldn’t just watch him leave when he knew something could be done. He was willing to save Jim and accept the consequences of going to Hell. It is very ironic when someone from this time period reads the situation because Huck shouldn’t be going to Hell for something like this. Huck is doing something very selfless and saving his friend. Huck thinks he is going to go to Hell for doing this but all the readers know that that would not be the case since he is actually doing a good deed which makes the situation of Huck going to Hell very ironic.