In Chapter 3, the practical Huck again struggles to understand religion. When Miss Watson tells Huck he can receive anything he wants through prayer, the literal Huck believes he can receive fishing gear. He contemplates the concept of prayer and wonders why, if someone can get anything, he cannot get any fish-hooks, the widow cannot reclaim her stolen silver snuff-box, and Miss Watson cannot “fat up”? The humorous moment is another example of Huck’s literal approach to his surroundings. Because Huck takes everything at face value, he cannot understand the concept of prayer or “spiritual gifts.” He does not reject religion, but his literal mindset has difficulty with beliefs that, on the surface, appear to be impractical or untrue.
More important, Huck’s struggle compares and contrasts the religions of the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson as he begins to see that religion is practiced differently by his guardians. Through Huck, Twain is exploring his own reservations about religion and its ties to the institution of slavery. It is not incidental that it is Miss Watson who owns Jim and not the Widow Douglas, and Huck continues to question religion and the rules of his society. Huck eventually decides that there are two kinds of Providence, and he would like to avoid Miss Watson’s and go to the one the Widow Douglas describes.
