Secrets

an essay in response to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain

Last week your co-worker told you their deepest secret about their childhood. Ironically it involves your spouse, but they made you swear on your life not to tell anybody. Every day you go to bed and wake up with it burning a hole in your conscience. Every time that you are about to tell the secret to your spouse you are unable to because your co-worker’s face pops into your mind. Tom has his fair share of secrets and realizes their consequense in the novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Everybody has at least their fair share of secrets in their life, both that they have told and those that have been told to them, but it is their responsibility to do with the secret whatever they wish.

Having a secret isn’t always as it was in elementary school. Two young boys mere ages of around ten, are forced to keep a secret of knowing a murderer was not even a suspect in the case of the murder which he committed. As Tom and Huck are faced with this tugging feeling in their gut, they keep in the secret because of fear. Their fear is driven by the crazy, revenge driven murderer who is on the loose. That man is Injun Joe. When Tom does eventually tell the courtroom that Injun Joe did kill the doctor Joe jumps out of the room, and runs from the police until the search is given up. This symbol blatantly represents as we face our fears they never truly go away, but lurk in the deepest, darkest corners known and unknown to mankind, poised unleash a terrible wrath on the one who banished it to such places.

Keeping secrets can also bring immediate consequences just because you hold the secret. This happens to Tom when he takes the whippings intended for Becky. Tom took the whippings out of love. The book states "'Rebecca Thatcher' [Tom glanced at her face -- it was white with terror] -- 'did you tear -- no, look me in the face' [her hands rose in appeal] -- 'did you tear this book?' A thought shot like lightning through Tom's brain. He sprang to his feet and shouted -- 'I done it!'" Going into the day Tom knew that Becky had done something wrong and thought he wanted to see her punished but when the matter came down to it he couldn't bear the guilt that would have come with it.

The deep hardship that is holding onto secrets is endured by every person in their life, but only few can hold onto the secret and use it properly. Tom told his secret at the sole time that it would be important and not immediately life threatening. He used this secret for its full purpose. This is one of the skills that mankind should learn from this romantic and classic novel.