In what ways is Huck dependent on Jim in the novel "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn"?
In others words, why is Huck more dependent on Jim than Jim is on Huck?
Huck depends on Jim for companionship as well as a moral sense of right and wrong. He sees how Jim cares about his family as well as how Jim cares about him. This teaches Huck about how wrong slavery is as well as how important loyalty is. Huck depends on Jim as a confidant and a good friend.
It doesn't take long to surmise that Huck and Jim are kindred spirit. Their fateful meeting on Jackson's Island, in the middle of the Mississippi River, began a friendship based on sincerity and respect. Huck wrestled with the notion of aiding an escaped slave but his inner values won out over ugly Southern social norms. Both Huck and Jim seem to understand each other without having to say much. They both long for freedom in their own ways and they compliment each other. Jim doesn't tell Huck about his dead Pap because he simply thought that telling Huck would do Huck more harm than good. He cared about how Huck felt.
