TOM SAWYER

One of the most interesting things that I found about Tom Sawyer is how likeable a character he is, yet he does create mischief and trick others around him for his own personal gain. This passage is an example of one of the ways he convinces a boy to do something mischievous.
“Say. Jim, I’ll fetch the water if you’ll whitewasl some.”
Jim Shook his head and said:
“Can’t, Mars Tom. Ole Missis, she tole me I goe to go an’ git dis water an’ not stop foolin’ roun’ wid anybody. She say she spec’ Mars Tom gwine to ax me to whitewash, an’ so she tole me to go ‘long an’ ‘tend to my own business-she ‘lowed she’d ‘tend to de whitewashin’.”
“Oh, never you mind what she said, Jim. That’s the way she always talks. Gimme the bucket- I won’t be gone only a minute. She won’t ever know.” (409).
Tom goes on to convince Jim, assuring him that he will not really get in trouble and that his punishment will never as bad as it seems. This shows one of the many ways that Tom is excellent at tricking people into getting his way. Even though he deceives and tricks a lot of people, we all still love him. In another passage we see Tom persuading the kids that painting is fun, “Tom swept his brush daintily back and forth-stepped back to note the effect-added a touch here and there-criticized the effect again- Ben watching every move and getting more and more interested, more and more absorbed” (413). Tom made painting look like so much fun that kids where paying him things such as a key, marbles, and bottle glass to be able to paint. Tom had an extremely strong personality that always got him his way, especially when he wanted other people to do his work for him. Even though we see this as extreme laziness, his witty personality made people like him as a character.