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The Treasure
In the harrowing experience of surviving several days lost in MacDougal's Cave, Tom's proves his manhood. Like the island, the cave involves physical isolation from the village community. While Tom runs away to the island with dreams of personal glory as an outlaw, in the cave he acts wisely and resourcefully as Becky's male protector. Twain describes the experience in a realistic, unromantic style that speaks for the seriousness required of the adult behaviors Tom performs in rescuing Becky.
The Cave Quotes in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
The The Adventures of Tom Sawyer quotes below all refer to the symbol of The Cave. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 31
Quotes
Tom got down on his knees and felt below, and then as far around the corner as he could reach with his hands conveniently; he made an effort to stretch yet a little further to the right, and at that moment, not twenty yards away, a human hand, holding a candle, appeared from behind a rock! Tom lifted up a glorious shout, and instantly that hand was followed by the body it belonged to—Injun Joe's! Tom was paralyzed ; he could not move. He was instantly gratified, the next moment, to see the "Spaniard" take to his heels and get himself out of sight.
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Chapter 33
Quotes
Injun Joe lay stretched upon the ground, dead, with his face close to the crack of the door, as if his longing eyes had been fixed, to the latest moment, upon the light and the cheer of the free world outside. Tom was touched, for he knew by his own experience how this wretch had suffered.
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The Cave Symbol Timeline in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
The timeline below shows where the symbol The Cave appears in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 30
...Tom is. The other children confess that the pair may well still be in the cave.
(full context)
Chapter 31
...to tell the story of what happened to Tom and Becky. They're playing in the cave along with their friends. They split off to explore a more distant part of the...
(full context)
Chapter 32
At the Thatchers' house, Tom tells of their time in the cave, adding self-aggrandizing embellishments. He explains how he finally found a way out when he saw...
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Chapter 33
Judge Thatcher, Tom, and several boatloads of men immediately head to the cave's entrance. Removing its barrier, they find Injun Joe's dead body. Tom realizes he's relieved to...
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Chapter 35
Judge Thatcher thinks highly of Tom for having rescued Becky from the cave. Becky has even told him about how Tom took her punishment at school. Judge Thatcher...
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