The Escape Theme in Sonny’s Blues and The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin

Escape in â€Å"Sonny’s Blues† by James Baldwin and Huck in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain Both the narrator in â€Å"Sonny’s Blues† by James Baldwin and Huck in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain feel the urge to escape from their reality as a means of attaining happiness and finding their way in life. However, their reasons for escaping are completely different and so are the ways in which they manage to do so. The aim of this essay is, therefore, to discuss the how and why the Narrator in â€Å"Sonny’s Blues† and Huck escape. We will start by briefly looking into both characters’ backgrounds in order to be able to understand the reasons and circumstances that led them to escape. First, it is worth mentioning that while â€Å"Sonny’s Blues† takes place in New York in the mid 20th century, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is mostly set in the Mississippi River (as it runs deep into the south) before the American Civil War in the mid 19th century. Despite the fact that the Narrator in â€Å"Sonny’s Blues† and Huck belong to different places and times, both societies in which they live are plagued with discrimination against black people who are regarded as second class citizens having to endure violence and injustices from the white community . Both characters belong to low social class families. However, the Narrator in â€Å"Sonny’s blues† is a black middle aged, well educated man who has a family whereas Huck is a white child of about 12 years of age who is une...