Chapter Summaries
Chapter 39:
In this chapter, Huck and Tom decide to fill up Jim's shed with wildlife. They accidentally get the snakes and rats into the Phelps' house as well. Silas wants to find out where Jim came from, so he decides to run an ad in a newspaper. It will say that he has a runaway slave and the newspaper would probably reach back to Miss Watson. To keep Jim safe, Tom writes a letter the the Phelps' that says danger is coming. They get freaked out, and they don't know who the letter is coming from. Tom then sends another one pretending to be a gangster planning on stealing Jim.
Chapter 40:
In chapter 40, Huck and Tom get shut up in their room by Aunt Sally. She wants them to avoid the danger coming, which are the gangsters coming to get Jim. Huck sees armed men in the Phelps' house, and warns Tom, and they go to the shed to warn Jim. The men then storm the shed, and the boys and Jim barely escape through the hole they made in the wall. They climb the fence, and attract noise. The men start shooting at them, and they get to their raft and start sailing again. They find out that Tom got shot in his leg, but he is happy that he has a battle scar. Jim suggests that they should find a doctor for Tom.
Discussion Questions:
How does Twain begin to build the climax of Jim's escape plan by using the element of suspense in chapter 39?
Tom writing the letters to the Phelps' makes them invite the gunned men into their home to go out and search for thieves. The group of men standing in their living room holding guns makes you wonder what their here for. When they storm the shed, Huck, Tom and Jim barely make it out, and it's suspenseful since you don't know if they'll make it out alive or not.
Explain the verbal irony in Huck's statement: "We was glad as we could be, but Tom was the gladdest of all because he had a bullet in the calf of his leg"
This is ironic because normally, people would be upset if they had gotten shot. They would be glad they escaped, but angry about their injury. Tom, on the other hand, was happy to have a wound that he could show off.
What startling revelation does Huck come to regarding Jim?
When Jim suggests that Tom should see a doctor, Huck sees how kind he is. He decides that Jim is a "white-man inside"
Reflections
This is the first time we see the boys and Tom in real danger. They've been on the run for a while, but never in life threatening danger. Tom also makes up scenarios that would be life threatening, but they're really not. When they get into real danger, it's interesting to see how they react. Instead of planning for adventure, they just do their best to get out safely.