Huck Finn and Kohlberg's Theory

Several decades ago, Lawrence Kohlberg proposed that people progressed in their moral reasoning through a series of stages. These six steps brought a person from an egocentric mentality to one that is concerned with the well being of others. He further divided the six stages into three levels: premoral, conventional, and principled morality. Kohlberg believed that the stages were sequential, or one couldn’t advance from stage 1 to 3 without first experiencing stage 2. He also believed …

…unknowingly became a more weary citizen. Because Huck is a child, he is open-minded enough to experience this kind of development. Even though Huck knows what’s “right” deep down inside, he doesn’t have the same guidance as a child growing up in a stable family and community would have. It is extremely difficult for anyone to reach Stage Six of Kohlberg’s Theory, but it does set certain reasonable goals to strive for.