Pap Finn is Huckleberry Finn's biological father, defined by severe alcoholism and chronic neglect. He abandoned his son long before the story begins, leaving Huck homeless on St. Petersburg's streets. Upon learning of Huck's treasure-derived wealth, Pap abruptly returns solely to exploit it financially. He forcibly seizes Huck from his guardian, the Widow Douglas, imprisoning him in an isolated, decaying woodland cabin. During this captivity, Pap repeatedly assaults Huck and fiercely opposes his education, perceiving literacy as a threat to his dominance. His disheveled appearance mirrors his destitution—ragged clothing drapes a figure with "ghostlike white skin." Pap obsessively pursues legal control of Huck’s fortune. Thwarted by Judge Thatcher’s protection of the money, his behavior escalates into volatility. Amid delirium tremens fueled by heavy drinking, he turns violently erratic and attempts to murder Huck. This attack directly prompts Huck to stage his death and flee. After Huck’s disappearance, Pap faces initial suspicion for the presumed murder, though suspicion soon shifts to Jim. Pap’s fate concludes offscreen: his corpse surfaces in a river-floating house, identified by Jim. Jim deliberately conceals this traumatic truth from Huck. The character undergoes no development, persisting as a static embodiment of selfishness, abuse, greed, and addiction. He functions as an antagonistic catalyst for Huck’s journey, symbolizing both familial collapse and societal decay.