Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
by Mark Twain
Contents
CHAPTER XXXII
Overview
Huck reaches the Phelps plantation and is mistaken by Aunt Sally for Tom Sawyer, a stroke of luck that grants him trust and access. He sustains the ruse with improvised tales but, fearing the real Tom’s arrival, leaves to intercept him. This sets the stage for Huck’s risky rescue of Jim.
Summary
Huck arrives at the quiet, sun-baked Phelps plantation, observing its buildings and fields as he approaches the kitchen. A pack of hounds swarms him, but a Black woman, Lize, chases them off, and a white woman—Aunt Sally—rushes out with children, joyfully mistaking Huck for her nephew, Tom Sawyer.
Caught off guard, Huck accepts the identity. Questioned about delays, he invents a story about a steamboat’s cylinder-head explosion, casually reporting that a Black man was killed—an account Aunt Sally treats with chilling indifference. Huck continues weaving details about the Sawyer family to sustain the deception.
When Aunt Sally presses for family news, she hides Huck to prank her husband, Uncle Silas. Silas returns worried that “Tom” hasn’t arrived; Aunt Sally reveals Huck, introducing him as Tom Sawyer. The couple shower him with questions, and Huck elaborates further on his fabricated journey.
Hearing a steamboat, Huck fears the real Tom Sawyer may appear and expose him. To prevent disaster, Huck tells the Phelpses he will fetch his baggage from town and declines Silas’s offer to accompany him. He heads off to intercept Tom before Tom can arrive at the house.
Who Appears
- Huckleberry FinnProtagonist; arrives at the Phelps plantation, is mistaken for Tom Sawyer, sustains the disguise, and goes to intercept Tom.
- Aunt Sally PhelpsWelcomes Huck as her nephew Tom Sawyer, questions him eagerly, and reveals him to Uncle Silas.
- Uncle Silas PhelpsReturns worried about Tom’s arrival; accepts Huck as Tom and offers to help fetch baggage.
- LizeBlack woman at the Phelps plantation; drives off the hounds and is told to prepare breakfast.