Picaresque: What a scary word. What can it mean? By definition, the word picaresque is an adjective describing a genre of prose fiction that describes in realistic and often humorous detail the adventures of a low-class, dishonest hero living by his wits in a lower-class society. Within these novels, a picaresque hero is often a pragmatist who undergoes little or no psychological change (Websters 449). But to fully understand this definition one must be familiar with a dishonest hero. A mischievous hero is a deceitful, undisciplined, playful and mischievous character. After understanding these definitions it can be seen that Huck Finn from Mark Twains' novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a picaresque hero. The novel is told from Huckleberry Finn's point of view and in his dialect. This gives the story a somewhat humorous tone and gives a look inside Huck's mind. He is not very educated and belongs to a lower class. Other examples of how he meets the criteria of a picaresque character are that he uses common sense throughout his adventure, performs numerous dishonest actions, and by the conclusion of the story it is obvious that he has experienced little psychological change. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Throughout his adventure, Huck uses his wits and common sense to get through each day. For example, the beginning of his adventure begins with Huck's personal tactics. He faked his own death by killing a pig and using its blood to make it look like his own, broke down the door with an ax, and left a trail as if a corpse had been swept into the river (Twain 39-41). In this way, he managed to fool all the people of the city into believing that he had been murdered. These actions were not a pre-arranged plan for him; he used his common sense and plotted his own death. Another representation of how Huck uses his wits is when he hid in the trees and used a stick to get bread from the river (46-47). Jim, who was also hiding at the time, did not take the bread because he feared being seen (54). But Huck's common sense enabled him to get bread. Another example of his use of reasoning is when he gets lost in the storm. Although he is scared because he cannot see through the fog and there are many obstacles, he manages to get out safely in the morning (100-102). These examples show how Huck meets the criteria of a picaresque character by using his wits. Another characteristic of a picaresque character is that he uses dishonest actions. This can be seen in Huck multiple times within the novel. He lies many times to get what he wants. Faking your own death is substantial proof of this. Furthermore, when he went to St. Petersburg dressed as a girl and spoke to the woman, he lied to her and told her his name was Sara Williams. He tells her he lives in "Hookerville, seven miles down. I've walked all the way and I'm tired," he says (68). He does this to gain information about his death and what is happening as a result. Huck lies this way to get what he wants several times throughout the novel. Another example of his deceitful ways is when he lies to Jim about the storm. Jim had fallen asleep during the storm and Huck tells him it was all a dream (103-102). Huckleberry's mendacious actions fall under the categorization of a picaresque hero. A picaresque character undergoes little or no psychological change. However, the idea that Huck Finn did not undergo psychological changes is somewhat controversial. It can be argued that Huck is not a picaresque hero because he believes that vision. 1995.