In Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the river plays many roles and holds a prominent theme throughout much of the story. Huck and Jim seem to be happiest and most at peace when on the river. Although probably not to the point of having its own personality, the river has a deeper meaning than just water and mud. It provides the two characters a means of escape. As says Marx, "The very words with which Clemens launches Huck and Jim upon their voyage indicate that theirs in not a boy's lark but a quest for freedom" (338): a freedo ....