Picaresque+Novel+Notes

=__Notes__=

//The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn// as a Picaresque Novel
What is a picaro? A picaro is a rogue; a person of low character but who is likable; also has a connotation as a "defective specimen"

Hence, "picaro" evolves into the Picaresque Novel, a novel about a "picaro," or "rogue"

Main Characteristics of a Picaresque Novel

A. The main character is a picaro or rogue (doh!)

B. The story is told from the main character's point of view (first person POV)

C. The story is a series of episodes with no defined plot (hence, no rising action or climax; though there may be plots within the episodes)

D. The main character grows and matures as a result of his or her adventures

So the question, then, will be posed: How is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn an example of a picaresque novel? Cite details from the novel in explaining your observations. Be specific.

Most famous picaresque novel? //Don Quixote// by Miguel de Cervantes (Spanish novel)

=__Homework__=

//The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn// is a picaresque novel. Huck Finn is an uneducated, teenage delinquent who runs away, skips school, and lives in the woods sometimes. He is roguish in the ways he acts. The story is also told from his point of view (first person). These two first characteristics can be shown by the quote: "At first I hated the school...". Also, the book tells a story made up of multiple storylines and no big plot. Some of these plots are: the part with the Grangerfords, scamming the friends of Mr. Wilks, and the jailbreak at the Phelps family. At the end of the story, Huck learns that black people have emotions and are human too. He also agreees to be civilized by Mrs. Phelps. All these show how //The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn// is a picaresque novel. (Caron)

Huck Finn meets all elements of a Picaresque novel. twain does a great job making huck very rough and tuff. he shows little ot no emiton the whole novel. he a young boy who smokes, rebels aurhtoirty, lacking of manners, and steals. Huck is the one telling the story tghrough the whole book as mr logan calls him an unreiable narrator. there is no real climax in the book. we are taken with huck through a jounrey of matturity. he faces many interanl battles in the novel such as turning jim in. he has to unlearn his rasicst ways he was taught by his father adn we see him do it. (Ellisabeth)

Another example of a picaresque novel is the "Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger. It is a great example of a picaresque novel, literature in which a low social class hero experiences adventures that satirize the larger society.(((Parker)))