The characteristics and development of a person's inner being are determined by the presence or complete absence of the influence of society. As a society, we learn and grow based on the information and sociocultural influences around us. Therefore, we also grow based on the lack of society in our daily lives and activities. For example, in the satirical story written by Mark Twain, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the audience meets the main protagonist, Huck Finn, at a catalytic moment in his fictional life. He is trapped in the constant struggle between the influence of society and the empty freedom that is presented through nature throughout the text. In context, the influential grip of society never truly engulfs the consciousness of the young Southern mind, while nature never truly frees Huck from sociocultural influences. He finds himself in a constant dark oblivion in which he is never fully immersed in either entity of the story. In the early stages of the novel, the audience meets a young man living in a fictional ancient southern civilization known as St. Petersburg, Missouri. The young boy was adopted by a southern woman in an attempt to civilize his primitive behavior with the outside influences of his friend Tom Sawyer constantly trying to create mischief. However, despite these influences, Huckleberry Finn still shows brief signs of individualistic thoughts and ideas. For example, in an early chapter of the composition, Twain writes: “Tom whispered to me and he wanted to tie Jim to the tree for fun. But I said no; he might wake up and make noise, and then they'd find out I wasn't warned. (Douvain 8). At this current point in the novel, Huckleberry shows no obvious signs of caring... middle of paper ... man being able to create his own self without the outside influences of society. The only way to seek to escape the grip of society is to accept it with an educated perspective and be able to control one's own conscience above all else. Nature, in a sense, is a means to Huckleberry Finn's people, for the most part, has demonstrated an extraordinary maturity in dealing with society throughout the novel. However, society will constantly be a force on the individualistic characteristics of humanity. Works Cited Twain, Mark. “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Electronic Text Center, University of Virginia Library, nd Web. “Birney’s American Churches and Slavery.” Birney's American Churches and Slavery. Np, and Web. November 3, 2013. “Ralph Waldo Emerson Quotes.” » Quotes from Ralph Waldo Emerson. Np, and Web. November 3. 2013.