Category: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Mark Twain’s classic tale,The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is a reluquent example of the deep racist attitudes of the Deep South in the 1880’s. This tale has major examples of racism throughout the story that occur during the 1800s, in which the time racism was a deep tread throughout history between the white’s and the black’s. In such manner, throughout history racism has always been a major part of American History, even today in America racism is still on the rise.

One of the first controversial and obvious, is the liberal term used throughout the book “Nigger”, this term is used throughout the book and even in today’s world. Huck Finn was written when cruel treatment of blacks were commonplace and use of such a word didn’t get so much as a second thought. Now a days, the term of “Nigger” in this day an age that term is a huge impact on society. Supposedly, in America we are all created equal in today’s world but, back when Huck Finn wrote this is when the black’s were treated very cruelly were to the point the white’s overruled the black’s.

One of the most exquisite quotes I have picked out of the tale that shows racism is one of the main sources in the story is, “Now I struck an idea, and fetched it out: ‘It warn’t the grounding -that didn’t keep us back but a little. We blowed out a cylinderhead.” ‘Good gracious! anybody hurt?’ ‘No’m. Killed a nigger.’ This quote that showed the few lines of dialogue say all there is to say about how blacks are viewed at that time . They viewed that they are “nobody”, less than human, with lives that are of little or no value to anyone. They value these black’s as nobody, they have no value to society which is cruel back then, the way the treated them back then.

Racism is still relevant today and is a serious problem. We can’t keep denying that it isn’t a problem that we are having in the U.S. Still today racism is a huge problem in society, actually the racism impact on society has gotten better since the 1800s. In the 1800s the black’s were slaves, now a days they have become national leaders, and great influencers in today’s world. We have changed the system of racism for the better in certain ways. In America we do not enslave people anymore, and bless them with American freedom to equal the black’s and white’s.

Introduction

Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, states that when we talk about racism today, we are not only referring to the explicit racism of yesterday, we are referring to colorblind racism, the new form of racism. In Racism Without Racists, Bonilla-Silva points out distinguishable frames of colorblind racism to include abstract liberalism, naturalization, cultural racism, and minimization of racism. Bonilla-Silva categorically explains how these frames are widely used, and asserts that to be a white person who claims to not see color, is to perpetuate widespread racial categorization that awards white privilege

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an American movie classic adaptation of Mark Twain’s novel, directed by Peter H. Hunt. In the movie, Twain illustrates the social climate in America mainly through the issue of slavery. The movie was released in the year 1986, with Patrick Day staring as the lead protagonist of the story, Huckleberry Finn. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn follow the journey of Huck, a poor white boy, and Jim, a black runaway slave in their quest for freedom. Ultimately, Huck is running from an abusive father while Jim is running away from the institution of slavery. The movie explicitly identifies cultural themes about race in American society.

The main purpose of this essay is to analyze how three important quotes and how the use of the N-word illustrates the social climate of racism in American society influenced by Twain’s film adaptation in the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Further, it illustrates Bonilla-Silva’s four frames of colorblind racism.

Like, Bonilla-Silva, Twain, aims to decode the various elements of racial prejudice, discrimination, inequality, and blatant racial hypocrisy not apparent in American Society during their time. Although, Bonilla-Silva and Twain approach racism in different times, if we take their line of reasoning seriously, the consequent is equality and progression amongst all races in American society. In the movie, the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, one can see the effect of inequality and race relations among blacks and whites in American society

The framework of Abstract liberalism

Abstract liberalism encompasses beliefs connected with civic liberty such as, an equal opportunity which holds that coercion should not be harnessed to fulfill social legislation and economic freedom (e.g, choice individualism) abstractly to explain racial matters (Bonilla-Silva). In the movie, the social climate of America during the 19th century created chaos. Realism emerged in America during the time of industrialization and urbanization, and shortly after the Civil War, a time of great tensions between the northern and southern states on issues of slavery, federal authority versus states’ rights, along with the westward expansion.

Twain shows white society’s dehumanization of blacks in postbellum America. In the movie, Twain uses Huck’s father Pap to illustrate southern white society’s pro-slavery stance. For instance, Pap says, “It was ‘lection day, and I was just about to go and vote myself if I wasn’t too drunk to get there; but when they told me there was a State in this country where they’d let that nigger vote, I drawed out.” In short, Pap will sacrifice his civil liberty to participate in free elections simply because a black man might be eligible to vote elsewhere in the country.

This, therefore, relates to Bonilla Silva’s examples of how the framework of Abstract liberalism can favor racism. For example, slaves can vote based on a state’s choice, this alternative justifies segregation. According to Bonilla Silva, if we take this line of reasoning seriously, the implications are that it allows some states to deny blacks their right to vote and remain segregated. However, the movie’s representation of Pap as the ignorant town drunk serves as a metaphor to show the social climate of ignorance in the south and prevalent racism at the time.

The framework of Cultural Racism

Today, cultural racism targets minorities of color for the justification of ongoing disparities, a criticize the-victim approach. With cultural racism people of color experience a wide gap in measurements required for advancement. For example, cultural racism consists of family structures that maintain disequilibrium and do not value education (Bonilla-Silva). As an illustration, the movie underpins determinants traditionally associated with cultural racism such as the use of the N-word.

While the movie uses the dialect to address blacks in that time, the use of the N-word now sparks controversy. The N-word in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a racial slur that denotes blacks as inhuman, inferior and ignorant. Likewise, the use of the N-word in American society today can be seen as cultural racism because although some argue that the term is non-racial because it no longer holds the same meaning, rather it can be used to imply a form of empowerment. However, if we take this line of reasoning seriously, the implications are that continued use of such a term once used to demoralize blacks will only help to perpetuate racism towards blacks and create further stereotypes.

The rooted definition of the term does not represent what it means to be black, also today’s social acceptability of the N-word is not an absolute form of empowerment., and creates stereotypes that are not always an accurate representation of people of color. Hence, continued use of this term will, in turn, create the inability to control how a group is viewed. The manifestations of racism in the United States, as Bonilla-Silva himself acknowledges, has transformed under the guise of being ‘subtle, institutional and apparently non-racial’ (Bonilla-Silva). Therefore, today’s social acquiescence of the N-word is a form of cultural racism that can lead to the stereotypes of racial inequality, socio-political, socio-demographic, and socioeconomic disparities among blacks and whites.

Like Bonilla-Silva, Mark Twain’s film adaptation of the Adventures of Huck Fin equips both whites and people of color with the tools to recognize, understand and disassemble this softer, kinder and deflective form of racism. () In the movie, the N-word came with certain stereotypes, likewise today. The N-word was culturally acceptable then, and still culturally acceptable today, but negative stereotyping with the N-word has not disappeared regardless of redefining or cultural acceptability.

The framework of Naturalization

To Bonilla Silva, naturalism holds that segregation, and racial preferences, are produced through social processes, with naturalism whites can claim segregation is natural because people from all backgrounds gravitate towards likeness. (Bonilla-Silva) As an illustration, the film underpins determinants traditionally associated with naturalization. For example, Huck says to Jim, “I couldn’t help a runaway slave Jim why folks would say I was no better than a low down abolitionist.” () Namely, helping Jim to freedom would be an act against his kind because despite being poor, he is still white. To Huck, he does not want to be a low down white abolitionist, because the abolitionist is going against the grain, against what it means to be white, thus accompanying the characteristic of white inferiority, so long as they chose to help black people gain freedom.

For Huck, it seems natural that Jim is a slave, hence, the racial hierarchy between blacks and whites is also natural. Therefore, relates to Bonilla Silva’s examples of how the framework of naturalism can promote racism. To Bonilla Silva, the people who use the naturalization frame are trying to argue that we should not try to fight nature. We should not try to address segregation because mixing people is unnatural. (Bonilla-Silva) In this scene, Huck uses naturalism to justify why he will not lead Jim to freedom nor try to address segregation, for Huck being a white abolitionist is unnatural. The frame of naturalization in Huck’s quote suggests racial hierarchies, segregation, and acceptance of the inhumane act of slavery.

However, as the movie unfolds, Huck grapples with whether to turn Jim in, when they thought they almost reached Cairo, where Jim would gain his freedom. In this scene, the key concept is that Twain allows Huck to approach slavery through his practicality and rationalization, by analyzing his feelings he can act on Huck’s nature instead of society’s unjust, hypocrite nature of holding people as slaves simply because of their race.

The framework of Minimization of Racism

Minimization of racism is a frame that suggests discrimination is no longer a central factor affecting minorities’ life chances and that it’s better now than the past mindset (Bonilla-Silva) The movie underpins determinants traditionally associated with the minimization of racism. For example, Huck says to Jim, “it would be a thousand times better to be a slave back where your family is”( ) In this scene, Huck exemplifies Bonilla Silva minimization of racism framework because the frame of minimization of racism uses the acceptance of racism and discrimination as a starting point but immediately attempts to dismiss its extent and effect. (Bonilla-Silva)

Huck plays down the inhumanity of racism, and the savagery of slavery, by saying alternatively it is better to be a slave in one region, rather than the other. In this quote, Huck still struggles to understand that the institution of slavery is inherently wrong, merciless and barbarous, no matter the region. Ultimately, like the minimization of racism suggest Huck unfeelingly disregards the severity and consequence of slavery. Hence, if we take this line of reasoning seriously, the implications are that the institution of slavery in some regions across America is allowable because whites will ignore the severity of racism. Correspondingly, the minimization of racism frame today allows whites to ignore claims of racial discrimination from people who are experiencing it. (Bonilla-Silva)

However, Jim’s response to Huck is I ain’t got to be a slave, and ain’t gon be a slave, am gonna be free as soon as we get to Caro. ( ) In short, Jim’s response to Huck shows that racial inequality and the institution of slavery are undesirable despite geographic location. Twain allows Huck to understand the severity and undesirability of slavery through Jim’s reasoning, as a result, both Huck and Jim establish oneness regardless of racial differences, just as, awareness of minimization of racism today will ensure unity and togetherness in societies and therefore, elimination of colorblindness. (Bonilla-Silva)

Finally, although, Bonilla-Silva and Twain approach racism in different times, the movie demonstrates the typical colorblind pattern that Bonilla-Silva describes in Racism Without Racists. As an illustration, both Bonilla Silva and Mark Twain explicitly decode the various elements of racial prejudice, discrimination, inequality, and racial hypocrisy not blatantly apparent in American society during their time. For example, in the movie, the N-word came with certain stereotypes, likewise today. Although the N-word was culturally acceptable then and still culturally acceptable today, negative stereotyping with the N-word has not vanished despite redefining and cultural acceptability. These negative stereotypes underpin determinants traditionally associated with cultural racism because it targets people of color for the justification of ongoing inequality, a criticize the-victim approach. (Bonilla-Silva)

Twain and Silva call for equality and progression amongst all races in American society. Throughout the movie, the main inference draws attention to the hypocrisy of racism through the moral development of Huck, just as Bonilla-Silva discusses the effect of colorblind racism today through four frameworks.

Like Bonilla Silva, Twain aims to expose slavery and examine race relations. Similarly, Bonilla-Silva sheds light on the reality of colorblind racism in American society today amongst people of color. The key concept we need to understand in the movie is that the relationship between Huck and Jim has the dimension to rise above racism and progress against society’s position on slavery. Correspondingly, the frameworks of colorblind racism illustrate the hypocrisy of racial impartiality, and how to identify hidden prejudice, so in turn, we can achieve absolute transracial democracy in American society today.

The novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, consists of many messages and themes that can be interpreted by the readers. One theme that this novel continues to demonstrate throughout the story is the one of freedom, more specifically the freedom of the protagonist Huck Finn. This gives a short explanation in depth of why Huck ran away, “Huck is running from a civilization that attempts to control him, rather than running in pursuit of something tangible. He is representative of the American frontiersman who chooses the unknown over the tyranny of society” (9, Pearl, James). Mark Twain uses the struggles that Huckleberry Finn faces throughout his drought adventure to help the audience capture this message and comprehend the true meaning of fighting for freedom. He also uses the character, Jim, to elaborate on this and to demonstrate the importance of a father figure. Throughout this chapter in his life, Huckleberry was faced with constant obstacles threatening his survival. In the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, the main character Huckleberry Finn is in a constant fight for his freedom; this is demonstrated through his adventures, Jim and his survival.

Huckleberry soon realizes living with Mrs. Watson, who had adopted him was not the way he wanted to live his life. Huck wanted to get away from his dad, who was the town drunk, and from his family the Watsons and he concluded that the only way that was going to happen was if he ran away. For example, Huck didn’t like his dad, which was a big part of why he wanted to run away, “Pap he hadn’t been seen for more than a year, and that was comfortable for me; I didn’t want to see him no more. He used to always whale me when he was sober and could get his hands on me; though I used to take to the woods most of the time when he was around” (20, Twain). Little did Huck know running away started a long adventure fighting for his freedom. Though it was tough for Huck, he had many outdoor skills such as being able to hunt, fish and start fires that helped him survive along his journey. Being homeless most of his life gave him the confidence to run away and survive on his own. Setting off downstream in a little raft settling comfortably on Jackson’s island. Thinking of where to go, he meets a man named Jim who was also on the island trying to do the same thing as Huck, get away from his past life. They were helping each other in their quests for freedom and this is when Huck realized that, “It hadn’t ever come to me before, what this thing was I was doing. But now it did; and it staid with me, and scorched me more and more. I tried to make out to myself that I warn’t to blame, because I didn’t run Jim off from his rightful owner; but it warn’s no use, conscience up and says, every time, “But you knowed he was running for his freedom, and you could a paddled ashore and told somebody” (100, Twain) Jim was one of Mrs. Watson’s slaves who also wanted to live freely. The long journey began and after getting to know each other, hucks goal was to get Jim to a free state in Illinois. Not knowing what he would do just being a young boy Huck embarked on this trip. The long adventure wasn’t as peaceful as he expected. They were forced to overcome several obstacles, such as splitting up and running away from people who tried to turn them in and more. No matter what hit them they constantly pushed through and fought for their freedom. For example, one of the major obstacles for the two is when a steamboat coming up the river runs over their raft. This is the point in their adventure the two get separated. Huck then gets adopted by another family, after a few days of living with them he finds an opening to escape and takes it. Huck is reunited with Jim who has been hiding in the woods. After their long adventure, they find out that Mrs. Watson died and that in her will it was stated that Jim could now become a free man. To conclude, after a long, almost pointless adventure for Jim, he achieves his final goal of freedom by chance of leaving Huck to continue up the Mississippi river alone.

Jim plays a very important role in the novel. Huck not having a family or a father figure in his life to look up to, Jim steps in Huck’s life and takes the role of being his dad. “The main point I wish to make in this paper is that Jim is not merely a noble cause or an ignoble foil, in either of which cases he would be more particularly important for the action episodes of the book than he in fact is; he is rather what one might call a moral catalyst, and thereby of central importance in the portrayal and illumination of the character of Huckleberry Finn”(21, Frances V Brownell). Huck only being fourteen, he doesn’t have much guidance. After Hucks run away to Jackson’s Island, Huck meets Jim. He then goes on to tell Huck his story and why he ran away asking Huck to keep it a secret. To keep this secret is a big deal because he knows Jim will be hunted and any white person who sees him will try and take him into custody. Furthermore, other white people will despise Huck for helping a runaway slave, Huck doesn’t care about this too much because he’s spent his whole life not living by the rules. Jim and Huck become really good friends, this is the point in the novel where Jim starts to be the dad figure. Jim plays the role of the father by providing for Huck’s physical, emotional well being. Even though Huck is good at hunting, fishing he is only fourteen and wouldn’t have been able to survive the adventure without Jim. He provides food and shelter for Huck, by constantly fishing and fixing meals for Huck. For example, Jim builds a little roof on the raft for Huck to get under when the weather is bad. Jim, also provides physical affection for the boy, by calling him nice names and hugging him when he’s cold. Lastly, Jim provides a true friendship to Huck. Before Huck he’s never any true friends, he’s been on his own his whole life. To conclude, Huck would not have been able to do it on his own, being that young and having to feed and stay warm himself. Being able to share the adventure with Jim brought several positive memories to Huck, to feel accomplished and to never give up no matter what was thrown at him.

From the very beginning of the novel, Huck was in a constant fight for survival. He knew fighting for his freedom would lead to several moments where his life would be at risk. At the beginning of the novel, Jim predicts Huck’s future in a way and says “Sometimes you gwyne to git hurt, en sometimes you gwyne to git sick; but every time you’s gwyne to git well agin” (27, Twain). This is a clever way the author tells the reader that Huck will be in a constant fight for his survival. Pap, Huck’s dad comes back to town to get the authority of his child. Huck is then kidnapped by his dad and left in a wooden cabin that was locked for three days. Pap is so abusive that he nearly murders his child in the lodge, he was hallucinating from the alcohol. This episode powers Huck to understand that his dad is dangerous to his life and he should getaway. His arrangement to escape is very clever and creative. He makes a grisly scene with the blood of a pig he killed, crushed the entryway, left some of his hair on a hatchet, making the impression that he was slaughtered by burglars; his arrangement is a triumph. Throughout the novel, Huck was running away from all humans, the reason being he was wanted and also he was protecting a slave. These people constantly were trying to capture, adopt him and Jim. The few times they did get captured and were being held prisoners, they were able to escape with the help of their tenacity and grit. Not every escape went as planned, near the end of the novel, Jim was taken and was being held prisoner at a farm along the river. Huck not knowing what to do, he went to the nearest house for help, it turned out being the family of Tom Sawyer, Tom happened to be there. Tom and Huck have been friends on and off for a long time. After they helped Jim escape the owner of the farm who was also keeping Jim prisoner came running out and started shooting his shotgun. This is another example where Huck was fighting for his survival. Tom was running right beside Huck and was shot in the leg almost instantly which easily could have been Huck. Dodging bullets, they finally get to shelter. To conclude, Huck was constantly fighting for his survival throughout the novel with the help of Jim they survived. Huck has a long journey ahead of him, fighting for his survival is going to be an everyday thing for Huck.

In the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn written by Mark Twain, the protagonist Huckleberry Finn is in a constant fight for his freedom; this is determined by his adventures, Jim and his survival. Finally, it may be concluded that because of the previous reasons Mark Twain successfully demonstrated that Huckleberry Finn was in a constant fight for his freedom. His never-ending adventure with Jim leads to several life-threatening moments that helped him overcome his imprisoned childhood and made him one step closer to having the free life he’s always dreamt of.

Money is an important topic to most adults in our society. It appears to be that our lives revolve around the journey for money. Although, this mentality often only applies to adults and not children. In The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain their society is focused on money. In the novel, Huck, the protagonist and Jim,who is a slave, run away from their civilized town where Jim or Huck are allowed to be free. Pap, Huck’s father, was a reason as to why Huck ran away because of the mistreatment toward him. On their journey, they meet different people including the money hungry frauds, the duke and king. In their society being wealthy identified what kind of person they were. Huck values his money and spends it with care but is not greedy. Jim’s true quest is to free his family. Throughout the novel, wealth influences Huck, Jim, Pap, and the king and duke.

Huck Finn, the protagonist, is a young boy who in fact is rich but does not believe that money is everything so he runs away from home in search of his pursuit of happiness. In the beginning of the novel, Twain clearly describes the amount of money Huck had. Huck does not like to speak about his money “yet in this novel money is always being discussed, measured, hidden, taken, paid,found, exploited” (Slattery). Since money is always being discussed in his society Huck does not care about the money. Money influences his mind because he feels like he is becoming one of the civilized folks in his town. Ever since Huck become wealthy others intended to civilize and educate him. He was unhappy and felt trapped. Huck’s money affect him negatively because he was abused by his father. Pap scream at Huck,“Looky here—mind how you talk to me; I’m a-standing about all I can stand now—so don’t gimme no sass. I’ve been in town two days, and I hain’t heard nothing but about you bein’ rich. I heard about it away down the river, too. That’s why I come. You git me that money tomorrow—I want it.” (22). Money influenced Huck in a negative way because Pap had a desire for his money which was motivated by alcoholism. Huck then decided he never did not want to be around his father and ran away leaving his money behind without hesitation. In the end, Huck learns that being free is actually what he has always wanted. Tom Sawyer, his partner in crime that helped him gain money, tells him that all of his money was there and that Huck would be adopted. Huck had another idea, “ I reckon I got to light out for the Territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally she’s going to adopt me and sivilize me, and I can’t stand it. I been there before” (295). In Huck’s eyes money causes nothing but problems. Huck sees his money as a chain due to the fact that people want to make him civil. He would rather leave his money behind then be in a place where he is always being forced to be someone he is not. With Pap being dead Huck can finally be free in peace so he runs away to find his happiness and leave all the problem money created for him. Huck learned that money makes people act different and he did not want that for himself.

Money influences Jim because it is equal to freedom. Jim is a slave and with him being a slave he is worth some money. Jim was part of a corrupt industry and “…[a few] readers notice that even in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn a concern for money permeates the novel and accentuates the major theme of corruption in a materialistic society” (McMahan). Jim’s true quest was to run away to become a free man and be able to buy his family out of slavery. He is not able to fulfil his quest because he is treated as a property and not a human. Money influenced Jim because he is on a quest for wealth. Jim wants to gain some money so he can buy his wife and two children out of slavery. Jim is upset that his children and wife are not “free” and he is willing to do anything to gain their freedom. Once Jim and Huck were getting closer to Cairo, Jim would talk about how “how the first thing he would do when he got to a free State he would go to saving up money and never spend a single cent, and when he got enough he would buy his wife” and once Jim and his wife were together “they would both work to buy the two children, and if their master wouldn’t sell them, they’d get an Ab’litionist to go and steal them.” (91-92). Jim ran away because he wanted to become wealthy enough to buy his family’s freedom. He wants to unchain his family from an unjust industry. Money would allow Jim to raise his status in society. In chapter 43, Jim reminds Huck of their previous conversation where he claimed that having hairy arms and a hairy chest composes an omen for wealth. Jim states, “I tole you I ben rich wunst, en gwineter to be rich agin; en it’s come true; en heah she is! dah, now! doan’ talk to me—signs is signs, mine I tell you; en I knowed jis’ ‘s well ‘at I ‘uz gwineter be rich agin as I’s a-stannin’ heah dis minute” (294-295). Tom believes the the omen was obtained but Jim’s sense of fulfillment emphasizes the significance of his turnaround of fortune. Although, Jim has a large amount of money, forty dollars, Jim is still part of a racist society and is somewhat still a prisoner in a figurative sense. However, Jim had a happy ending but not all characters did.

Money had an effect on Pap. He is an excellent example of how money can be effortlessly spent. When he obtained money from Huck “he took it and bit it to see if it was good, and then he said he was going down town to get some whisky; he said he hadn’t had a drink all day”(23). Pap would make Huck give him money for his alcohol and if Huck would not he would beat him. Pap was not able to control himself so he would drink his money away. Pap was extremely greedy because all he wanted was Huck’s money. His desire for money was so strong “pretty soon the old man was up and around again, and then he went for Judge Thatcher in the courts to make him give up that money, and he went for me, too, for not stopping school” (25). Pap was greedy and felt entitled to Huck’s money even though he was not there for Huck as often. Pap thought Huck did not even need the money especially not for an education. At the end, money guides his death. At the beginning of the novel, Huck and Jim found a body but they were clueless on who could it be. Huck feared to go back to town because he did not want to see Pap and believed he wasted all of his money. Tom Sawyer confirmed that Huck’s money was still there and even more. Jim reveals Pap’s destiny, “Doan’ you ‘member de house dat was float’n down de river, en dey wuz a man in dah, kivered up, en I went in en unkivered him and didn’ let you come in? Well, den, you kin git yo’ money when you wants it, kase dat wuz him” (295). Money sways Pap’s death because he was drunk and if he did not have money then he would not have purchased the alcohol. Just like Pap the King was also impacted by money.

The king and duke were influenced by money throughout the novel. The king and duke are con artists who claim to be part of royalty from France and take control of the gang. They are willing to do anything to get money. They lie and steal to get as much money as possible. The king and duke’s greed is shown when they try to run a scam at a sacred event. Once the King figures out how it worked he pretends to be a preacher “ He told them he was a pirate—been a pirate for thirty years out in the Indian Ocean… and thanks to goodness he’d been robbed last night and put ashore off of a steamboat without a cent, and he was glad of it; it was the blessedest thing that ever happened to him, because he was a changed man now, and happy for the first time in his life; and, poor as he was” (130). The King decides to make up a story that is completely false for his own benefit. He has manipulated people to give him money and feel sorry. The King was persuaded by money to ask for others to give him money. Another way the king and duke are guided by money is when they decide that they will pretend to be the Walkins in order to get Peter Walkins’ fortune. They ask a young boy that was in charge of picking up the real brothers all about what had happened and the boy explained to them that “He left a letter behind for Harvey, and said he’d told in it where his money was hid, and how he wanted the rest of the property divided up so George’s g’yirls would be all right—for George didn’t leave nothing. And that letter was all they could get him to put a pen to” (162). Later on we see that all the money influenced them to want more so the king and duke plan to leave three young girls without their father’s fortune. The initial plan was to leave with the money and sell the properties to where they would leave the girls homeless. Then, the King was brainwashed and sold Jim. He had sold Jim for “got forty dollars, and when we found him in the doggery the loafers had matched half-dollars with him and got every cent but what he’d spent for whisky; and when I got him home late last night and found the raft gone, we said, ‘That little rascal has stole our raft and shook us, and run off down the river’” (142). The king was so miserable and desperate for money, he decided to sell Jim without telling Huck. Jim did not belong to the King but he only thought of his own benefit. Although, the duke feel guilty that the king sold Jim he still tried to lie to Huck. The King was a very greedy man and the duke was often influenced by the king and money.

For the duration of the novel, money influenced main characters in negative and positive ways. The influence money had on Huck was that he did care for but he was not greedy. Money freed Jim because he was sold for forty dollars and got forty dollars. Pap drank his money away and so did the King. Money had an impact on some characters that shaped how the book was written. Huck is a rich man but does not like speaking about how wealthy he actually is. In their society, people were identified by how much money he had but for Huck having money was a luxury to him. Jim is finally a free man and was able to fully have his freedom when Tom Sawyer gave him money in order to go back with his family. Pap was an abusive alcoholic that only wanted to take away his son’s money. He wasted his time looking for ways to trapp Huck he ended up dead. The King lost his morality, if he had some when he sold Jim for forty dollars. He sold Jim so he could buy some alcohol because they were doomed.

Works Cited

1. McMahan, Elizabeth E. “The Money Motif:Economic Implications In ‘Huckleberry Finn.’ Mark Twain Journal, vol. 15, no. 4, 1971, pp. 5-10. JSTOR, www.jrstor.org/stable/41640909.
2. Slattery, Denis Patric. “The Via Dollarosa: Money Matters in ‘Huckleberry Finn.’” South Central Review vol. 5, no. 4, 1988, pp. 29-41. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/3189048.
3. Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Glassbook Classics, PDF file, https://content Server.asobe.com/store/books/HuckFinn.pdf.

In the novel “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”, the family Because there are many parallels between the characters and events within Huck Finn and the events and individuals surrounding Twain’s life, an examination of the biographical and historical context surrounding the novel’s composition reveals that Twain was influenced both socially and personally by the declining moral and social conditions of the family in the late 1800s. The events of the period induced him to indirectly voice his concerns, cautions, and beliefs through the perceived innocence of a young boy and his adventures.

The character of Jim, Huck’s Negro friend, is indebted to a former slave of Twain’s uncle John Quarles, Uncle Dan’l, whom Twain knew in his boyhood and to whom Twain owed his strong appreciation of the black race. Regarding Emmeline Grangerford’s character, Blair writes that “Twain had [long] been fascinated and delighted with the comic possibilities of lugubrious poems about death” and after reading the obituary poems produced by many American humorists Twain “was destined to work this vein”. Blair suggests that the individual who most influenced the creation of Emmeline’s person was an obituary poet and singer named Julia A. Moore. Similar to Emmeline Grangerford, Moore composed “sentimental” songs and poems “inspired by her memories, her reading in books and newspapers… [and] by the deaths of neighbors”.

Emmeline’s father, Colonel Grangerford, originated from more than one individual, including a character from one of Bret Harte’s books, Colonel Culpepper Starbottle, and Twain’s own father, John Clemens, who, like the colonel, “often wore a blue swallow-tail coat with brass buttons,” was “very tall … with a long, thin smooth-shaven face,” had a look that “could stare his family into obedience,” and “had elaborate manners”. Blair also records Twain reminiscing about certain personal experiences that generated the writing of the feud between the Grangerfords and Shepherdsons in Huck Finn. In his early adventures on the Mississippi River, Twain encountered a feud between the Darnell and Watson families who, like the feuding families in Huck Finn, each lived on either side of the Mississippi River. During the feud, several instances took place, all parallel to the Shepherdson/Grangerford episode, in which a man shot a twelve-year-old boy from the rival family, the men of the families attended church armed with shotguns, and one family ambushed the wagon of the other family while both were returning home from church. In the case of the two con men, the Duke and the King, who join Huck and Jim in their river journey, they bear resemblances to two men of Twain’s acquaintances: respectively, Jesse Leathers, a distant cousin of Twain’s, and Charles C. Duncan, the captain of the ship on which Twain sailed on his expedition to the Holy Land in 1867.

The typical family structures of the Gilded Age, along with the gradual shifts in family values during that period, allow for a more in-depth understanding of Mark Twain’s view of the family. Rodney Carlisle points out that “by this time in history the family had lost … its role as an economically productive unit or a means of maintaining order and control in society” and, consequently, public and private institutions assumed these tasks. William Bridges attests that the “stereotyped” nineteenth-century American family with “the image of a closely-knit, stable, patriarchal, self-sustaining, well-disciplined family group” is a great misconception and that in fact, many writers of that era were characterizing children as “having their own way,” with “self-assertion, and conceit… insubordination … and a general want of respect for age”. Even as early as 1817 it was written that children “are absolute masters of their fates. The authority of the parents is no restraint at all”. Although according to Steven Mintz, “the family was expected to serve the political order by diffusing self-serving needs and by instilling the values of willing obedience, service, and rational impartiality”, there had been a major failure in this area, which “seemed to explain an alarming increase in violence, robbery, and drunkenness”. The gradual disintegration of the relationships of family members as their traditional or expected roles and responsibilities became blurred. When the men of working-class families discovered that it was often easier and more lucrative to desert their families and wander as a drunk or a beggar, they contributed to a growing number of fatherless families in which the “women and children [were forced] either to assume the man’s role of breadwinning or to turn to the charities for the economic support they should have found at home”.

Mark Twain was greatly influenced by the culture around him, and these previously mentioned aspects of Gilded Age society and family structure are perceptible in the various families depicted in Huck Finn. The mounting unruliness and independence of children in that era are clearly replicated in Huck as he narrates his adventures, and from the very beginning his strong-willed, self-reliant nature emerges vividly. While living with the Widow Douglas, a punctilious elderly woman, and her sister Miss Watson, a pious, finicky, “tolerable slim old maid”, Huck displays his determination and independence in striking contrast to the regulated, proper ways of the women. They are constantly in conflict with Huck’s more wild habits and uncivilized manners, and their chief goal as far as Huck is concerned is to “sivilize” his wild ways, convert his soul, and educate his unlearned mind. But Huck vehemently opposed to his guardians’ brand of civilization, views that life as “rough living” and the women as “dismal regular and decent”, and longs to be free of restraint and regulation.

A major contributor to Huck’s manner of living is his father, to whom Huck refers as Pap. Pap’s vagrant, drunken lifestyle is an illustration of the common situation in the Gilded Age; a tramp-like father and a destitute family. Because of Pap’s abusive treatment, Huck dreads Pap’s return from his wanderings, which always signals a renewal of abuse toward Huck. Although Huck encounters many family groups throughout his adventures, he constantly yearns for freedom and ultimately follows in the footsteps of his father, assuming a wanderer’s life detached from the obligations and responsibilities of a family.

The symbolism in the novel “The adventures of Huckleberry Finn” is very prominent throughout the novel in many aspects. Through family life and the deterioration of it, and the characters’ connections to important people in Twain’s life. The novel voices his concern to the rapid decline of the imagined “perfect” family lifestyle through this extravagantly wonderful novel.

Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, despite being one of the best selling and top-rated books has brought about a lot of controversies that have stirred mixed emotions among his readers. One of the most popular controversies about his book is the character Jim, who provokes the strongest reactions from readers. Some readers argue that Twain’s characterization of Jim portrays him as racist and that his purpose of creating such a character was/is to ridicule Jim and all southern slaves in general, however, this is not something I particularly agree with. In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Twain uses satire to illustrate a realistic idea on how slaves were treated and also presumed to be in the early nineteen hundreds by painting Jim in a very stereotypical and to talk on topics such as racism/prejudice, loyalty, and tradition.

Our first introduction to Jim was not a glorious one. He first appears when Huck and Tom decide to him. Twain describes him, and right there and then conclusions could be made. A few pages later, Jim is once again stereotyped as superstitious(84) and later we could see Jim very gullible to everything Huck says (141). These stereotypes continue throughout the whole book, but Twain exaggerates it so much that it becomes satirical and almost hysterical to think about. Though I do not agree with the stereotypes associated with Jim and slaves in general, Twain’s intelligent use of satire to combat prejudice? racism? is an excellent to show how ridiculous those stereotypes were, by exaggerating these stereotypes, character traits, he achieves his goal. Despite all the stereotypes attached to Jim, Mark Twain allowed Jim to break some racist stereotypes. For instance, when Jim started talking about his family and how he missed and wanted to come for them later, it shared a common emotion with the reader. It showed that slaves had emotions too, thus humanizing him and making him feel more like a real person with emotions and feelings. Despite that scene being one of my favorites, it was a turning point of Jim.

Jim’s role in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is more than just a runaway slave traveling down a river with a little white boy. The story does not revolve around him, but he is very essential to the story in many ways. Jim could be described as the only real adult in the novel, and the only one who provides a positive, respectable example for Huck to follow. Jim acts as a noble human being and a loyal friend to Huck and protected him from difficult situations and encounters including the sight of the dead body of his father when they were on Jackson Island ().“Most importantly, Jim’s actual role in the book was to guide Huck in moral growth.

Throughout the journey with Jim, Huck learns a lot about humanity and morality. At the beginning of the book, Huck was just ignorant and inconsiderate of a slave’s feelings, but in chapter 31 which I consider the turning point of the book, Huck decides that he would rather go to hell and help his “friend” Jim than conform to societal expectations. This explained to readers how important of a role, how important it was that Jim is included in this story and how big of an impact he made in Huck and even some readers’ lives by supporting huck and his struggles.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a novel written by American writer, Mark Twain. It was published first in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United States in February 1885. “Mark Twain” however, was only the writer’s pen name. Along with “Josh” and “Thomas Jefferson Snodgrass.” His real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens and he was born and raised in Hannibal, Missouri. This is significant because it is also where his story “Huckleberry Finn” takes place. Mark Twain had a very wild life. He traveled all over the world and met all sorts of people, becoming close friends with Nikola Tesla. Despite making a significant amount of money through his writing, he lost a large sum of it to investments that he made. In particular, he spent $300,000 which translates to about $9,000,000 now on the “Paige Typesetting Machine” which worked incredibly when it did, however it was very prone to breakdown. Regardless of all this, Twain is regarded as one of the greatest American writers because of his two works “Huck Finn” and “Tom Sawyer.” However, we will be focusing on “Huck Finn” for this essay. This story follows the life of Huck Finn. His first appearance is in another novel of Mark Twain’s titled “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” as a co-protagonist to the book’s main protagonist “Tom Sawyer.” This book continues after the story with Tom Sawyer, now focusing on Huck and his life. In this story, we will come to understand Mark Twain’s views on society and its flaws at the time.

Huck Finn is an African American boy around the age of thirteen at the time of the book, living (mainly) in Missouri. In this book, Mark Twain emulates his humor through his characters. One example of this is when Huck Finn is talking to Jim about kings, but Jim had only heard of King Solomon. “Yit dey say Sollermun de wises’ man dat ever live’. I doan’ take no stock in dat.’” The humor here is that Jim considers Solomon a fool for wanting to cut a child in half. There are countless instances of Twain’s humor being shown in the book, with the use of the dialect used at the time, there’s an odd quirkiness to the comedy of the novel. However, what I believe to be the focus of the book, is its realism. Amid his satire and humor, Twain adds a sense of realism into the mix with dire situations and real issues. There is the issue of deceit, the gullibility of society, hypocrisy, etc. strewn throughout the book and I believe it was Mark Twain’s goal to show this rather than to just write a meaningless, yet fun, book.

The book has several elements to it. It keeps the reader entertained using Mark Twain’s peculiar sense of humor. It satirizes the state of society at the time and its perceived flaws and issues. Then, it holds very real aspects in its story. Mark Twain shows aspects of society at the time that many readers would not have thought of otherwise. Although it may not be as prominent, the sheer realism displayed by Twain in this novel is what should be taken away after reading, while the humor and satire may still be enjoyed.

Mark Twain is one of the most well-known American authors and most prominently uses his sense of humor, satire, and realism in his writing. In the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the most prominent of these is his sense of realism. He uses this to convey his views of the world through the way he depicts things in society such as education, religion, slavery, and government. For example, when the king and the duke collect money from the people at a camp meeting. The king makes up a story about being a pirate and losing his men at sea, to which the people take pity and gather money for him. This is a demonstration of Twain’s use of realism as it shows the gullibility of society and how easily we are fooled. Today, this is very important as it is easy to get carried away with the mob mentality and simply go along with what everyone else says. However, Twain’s writing shows that sometimes skepticism may be what we need in certain situations. Mark also creates a very real picture of life at the time by writing the entire book of Huckleberry Finn (and Tom Sawyer) in the American slang that was used at the time. From the particular way that Jim spoke, as a slave with little education, to the Missourian slang of others. Having grown up in the same area that his characters into, surely allowed him to create this sense of realism to the fullest. In the book, it seems that Huck is the lens through which the author wants the reader to see the world through. Huck is a free-spirited young boy who is relatively unaccustomed to the mentality of the old folk and society in general. By creating this kind of character, Twain is able to write the world surrounding him in a very honest sense. He is able to write the world as he truly sees it, because Huck, in a sense, is him. At least, he is as far as how he interprets the world.

Despite all of the previously mentioned statements, it is clearly stated at the beginning of the book that there is nothing to be taken away from the writing. It states, “Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot.” This is placed at the beginning of the book very clearly to dissuade readers from seeking any greater meaning from the book than what is blatantly written. So is the book truly just meaningless fiction? The author wrote himself that seeking anything more is heavily discouraged. However, I believe that this is simply in order for the reader to enter the world of Huck Finn blindly. By ridding the reader of any pre-set standards, they can simply enjoy the book for what it is and ponder its deeper meaning over time. I believe that Mark Twain wanted the books to evoke thought, but not initially. It was likely written to be taken in layers. First, to enjoy the book for what it is at face value; a story of a young boy going through life in Missouri. Second, to realize that the issues and problems found in the story are not entirely different from those found in our own lives, but in fact, very similar. And lastly, to see the world the way that Mark Twain did and to form our own opinions and judgements from that.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an American Literature classic for all for all of the right reasons. It provides comedy to keep typically uninterested readers entertained. It provides satirical jabs on the world at the time for those who pick up on it. And it shows the reality of the way that things are in the world. Although it is a fictional story, it provides a very real setting and real society for the reader to become immersed in. By placing the story in the very place that he grew up, Mark Twain is able to finely sculpt his story into one of both adventurous joy, and an emulator of his own views in life.

The name Mark Twain is widely associated with being a very courageous writer, not fearing to go where many other authors will not go. In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain does an excellent job of showing the important historical issue of racial discrimination and the poor treatment of slaves in the Antebellum South by using two men of the opposite colour to tell his story. In Huck and Jim’s story of their escape to freedom, Mark Twain shows the depth of the inhumanity and immorality of racism and slavery in the Antebellum South by showing how black people are treated like a commodity, the hypocrisy shown by white people regarding black people and how black people’s emotional well-being is not a relevant concern for white people.

To begin, in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, black people are not seen as human beings but instead seen as property or an object. Pap is Huckleberry Finn’s racist father who finds out there is a free black man in Ohio who is being allowed to vote. Through Pap, Twain shows the inhumanity towards the African Americans in the Antebellum South. Like many of the other white people in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Pap believes that black people should not have the same rights as white people and that they should be treated as property. Pap is angry when he says, “when they told me there was a State in this country where they’d let that nigger vote, I drawed out. I says I’ll never vote agin. Them’s the very words I said; they all heard me; and the country may rot for all me – I’ll never vote agin as long as I live. And to see the cool way of that nigger – why, he wouldn’t a give me the road if I hadn’t shoved him out o’ the way. I says to the people, why ain’t this nigger put up at auction and sold? – that’s what I want to know” (Twain 24). By saying the nigger should be put up for auction and sold, Pap shows the reader how black people are seen as a commodity, not a human being. This inhumanity is demonstrated again when Huck pretends he is Tom Sawyer and stays with Tom’s Aunt Sally. He makes up lies to gain her trust. In one of his lies, he tells Aunt Sally that he is delayed getting there because the steamship he was on ran aground after its cylinder-head blew. Aunt Sally seems caring and concerned when she asks Huck whether anybody was hurt. When Huck says no one was hurt but a nigger was killed, Aunt Sally’s replies, “Well, it’s lucky; because sometimes people do get hurt” (Twain 185). Afterwards, Aunt Sally speaks about a white man who is killed in a similar circumstance years ago and there is no mention of any concern for the black man who is recently killed. The black man who is killed is dismissed and by this conversation, Sally confirms that a black man is not seen as a person but an insignificant thing. David L. Smith is an African American author who argues this discrimination in his journal article, “Huck, Jim, and American Racial Discourse.” He shows readers how racism affects the lives of African Americans in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. He argues that Twain strategically uses the word nigger to teach readers about how black people are seen in this era. He states that it “clearly designates the “nigger” as a piece of property: a commodity, a slave” (D. Smith). Smith shows readers that in Twain’s novel, African Americans are considered inferior to white people and more so as property than actual people. Although black people are not treated as poorly today, after reading Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the reader can envision the harsh treatment they suffered through this era and feel sympathy for those who suffered through slavery and discrimination.

Furthermore, Twain shows that black people are afflicted with hypocrisy and double standards due to the views of society. He shows these double standards through the Duke and King, who are two frauds who meet up with Huck and Jim and are travelling the countryside conning people out of their money. They try to take money from the Wilks family. Peter Wilks is a wealthy man who dies and leaves his inheritance to his orphan nieces, Mary Jane, Susan and Joanna. The Duke and King pretend to be the dead man’s brothers from England who are there to look after the will. The girls ask them to invest their money and when the Duke and King get the money, they hide it in their bed. The Duke does not think that the bed is the best hiding spot and explains, “Because Mary Jane’ll be in mourning from this out: and first you know the nigger that does up the rooms will get an order to box these duds ups and put’em away; and do you reckon a nigger can run across money and not borrow it?” (Twain 149). What the Duke is saying is that all black men are thieves, which is hypocritical when the Duke and King, who are two white men, are stealing money from a grieving family themselves. The irony is that it is Huckleberry Finn who steals the money. Through the Duke and King, Twain shows how lowly black people are thought of in the Antebellum South. This hypocrisy is shown in Huck’s character as well. Jim is Miss Watson’s slave who escapes for freedom. When Jim is captured and being held at Silas and Sally Phelps’ place, Huck debates whether or not he should write a letter to Tom Sawyer to tell Miss Watson where Jim is. Huck acts like a hypocrite because although he likes Jim, because of the views of society it causes him to hide his true feelings which is obvious when he thinks to himself, “And then think of me! It would get all around, that Huck Finn helped a nigger to get his freedom; and if I was ever to see anybody from that town again, I’d be ready to get down and lick his boots for shame. That’s just the way: a person does a low-down thing, and then he don’t want to take no consequences of it. Thinks as long as he can hide it, it ain’t no disgrace” (Twain 177). If Jim was a white man, Huck would not be having this debate because he would not be worried about being criticized for his decision. Although he knows what is right, the views of society make him question himself. This hypocrisy is discussed by Ron Briley who is Assistant Headmaster at Sandia Preparatory School, which is an independent high school in the Southwest. The high school is composed of college-bound students of mixed races with many of the students being white. He uses Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as part of his American history curriculum when he teaches his students about the institution of slavery and its legacy for racial relations in America. His experience in teaching Adventures of Huckleberry Finn allows him to give a valid analysis of the novel. He discusses racial sensitivity in his news article, “Teaching Huckleberry Finn in Historical Context.” He feels that it is important that Twain uses the word nigger in this novel because “the key for Huckleberry Finn is that the word is employed in a satirical vein which seeks to expose the hypocrisy of Southern racism (Briley). He argues that in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, white people must alter their values of society for this hypocrisy to end. Readers learn how there are very different and unreasonable standards set in this era regarding how black people are treated.

Finally, black people have feelings and emotions the same as white people but there is little empathy shown towards them. In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the reader can see these feelings and emotions in the black characters towards white characters, but these feelings are not reciprocated. The reader can see this inhumanity in Huck Finn’s character as well as other white characters in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. On a foggy night while travelling on the Mississippi River a strong current causes Huck’s canoe and Jim’s raft to get separated. Huck tries to find Jim but because of the fog, he loses his sense of direction. Jim thinks Huck is dead and is so sad and worried that when Huck eventually finds him, he is so thrilled to see Huck alive that he cannot contain himself. Huck tricks Jim into believing the separation was a dream. Jim is very upset with Huck for playing this trick on him, especially after being so worried about him and after seeing Jim’s reaction, Huck feels terrible. Although Huck is not happy about having to apologize to a black person, he does apologize. The reader can see that Huck is not completely comfortable by his decision to apologize when he says, “It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger— but I done it, and I warn’t ever sorry for it afterwards, neither” (Twain 73). Although it is obvious that Huck Finn likes Jim, he is not always as compassionate as the reader thinks he should be. It takes a while for Huck to apologize to Jim because in the rules of society in the Antebellum South, black people’s feelings do not matter to white people. When Huck does this, readers realize the lack of compassion shown towards black people in this era. Again, the discrepancy of empathy being shown towards the black people is seen later in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Secretly, Huck gets a doctor to help Tom after he is shot in the leg. The doctor is by himself with Tom and realizes that he cannot remove the bullet on his own. Tom’s health is deteriorating fast, so he tells Tom he has to get help and when he says this, Jim comes out of hiding and sacrifices his freedom to help his friend Tom. Jim is recaptured and brought back to the Phelps place when the doctor says, “I never see a nigger that was a better nuss or faithfuller, and yet he was resking his freedom to do it, and was all tired out, too, and I see plain enough he’d been worked main hard, lately. I liked the nigger for that; I tell you, gentlemen, a nigger like that is worth a thousand dollars—and kind treatment, too” (Twain 238). Jim is considered a great slave and the doctor mentions that he should be treated well as a slave, but there is no mention that he does not deserve to be a slave or held captive. This lack of empathy shows the reader that although Jim is thoughtful and caring and risks his freedom to help his friend, slavery is a normal part of life in the Antebellum South. It is not because a white person is not capable of being concerned about the feelings of a black person, it is because the rules of society do not allow them to feel concerned about a black person. Cassander L. Smith is the assistant professor of English at the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa with a Ph.D. in early American literature. She discusses this type of inhumanity in her article, ”Nigger’ or ‘slave’: why labels matter for Jim (and Twain) in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ and states, “The ideology of whiteness tells him that it is his right not to have to be concerned about the feelings of someone who is black” (C. Smith). Smith discusses how although Huck’s relationship with Jim complicates this, the ideology of whiteness remains and how little is thought of regarding black people’s well-being in the Antebellum South. They are seen as second-class citizens and treated without any respect, almost like a stray animal. Readers learn how awful these times are and begin to understand how tough it may be to live the life of a slave.

To conclude, Twain uses the brutal treatment of slaves to demonstrate the cruelty suffered by African Americans in the Antebellum South by the comparison of black people’s status to property, demonstrating the hypocrisy of slavery and different moral standards that are set for the black people versus the white people and finally through the lack of compassion white people show toward slaves. Twain successfully brings attention to a controversial issue that was substantial in his era and while not as bad, is still an issue today. Most modern novels fear to go to the places Twain went, but readers are truly lucky to have classics like Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, to educate themselves on life in a different era.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is often seen as a racist work by many people. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was being written during the reconstruction of the South after the American Civil war. At this time tension between the races was very high, especially with things such as the Jim Crowe laws in place. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not a totally racist book, only the ending and language are racist.

The majority of the book is not really racist especially for the time that it was written. For the most part the book is not racist. The language could be changed for younger audiences and the ending could be changed. In his criticism Leo Marx says, “I believe that the ending of Huckleberry Finn makes so many readers uneasy because they rightly sense that it jeopardizes the significance of the entire novel” (Norton 293). Here Marx is discussing how the ending is so different from the rest of the book. Through out the book Huck and Jim have a nice relationship, they are friends of sorts, but then at the end of the story that seems to change. At the end of the novel Tom says, “he ain’t no slave; he’s as free as any creetur that walks this earth!” (Norton 287). At the end of the story even though Tom knows that Jim is free he only told him at the end, after their adventure with Jim getting re-caught. In his criticism essay Smith says, “The book takes special note of ways in which racism impinges upon the lives of Afro-American, even when they are legally free” (Norton 296). Here Smith is talking about how the book uses stereotypes to try to combat racism. The book is believed to use popular stereotypes about African American to combat racism. These stereotypes are often misunderstood and seen as the book being racist when critics look back on the book today. In his criticism Lester says, “The novel plays with black reality from the moment Jim runs away and does not immediately seek his freedom” (Norton 295). He Lester seems to imply that Twain purposefully writes Jim to be ‘dumb’. This could be seen as a stereotype at the time, that all slaves are uneducated. The passage that Lester refers to is where Jim and Huck are escaping and end up going further into the South instead of just crossing into Illinois. In his criticism Smith says, “Twains strategy with racial stereotypes is to elaborate them in order to undermine them” (Norton 298). Here Smith refers to the stereotypes that usually make the novel unpopular. These stereotypes are what usually deem the book as racist, but Smith believes that these stereotypes to undermine how the racist ideas at the time. Smith also says, “In fact, the exchange between Huck and Aunt Sally reveals a great deal about how racial discourse operates” (Norton 298). Smith is making another point about stereotypes at the time. He talks about Twains use of stereotypes in his novel, particularly in Aunt Sally who displays how most white people in the South thought at the time. He also mentions the racial discourse that was prominent at the time when he was writing the novel at the end of the reconstruction. While the ending of the book is racist some of the language could also be seen as racist.

The book is not an overly racist book it’s mostly just the language. The language is not horrible considering the time period that it was written in. A prime example is in the book where Jim and other slaves are repeatedly called N-words. For example, in the book where Huck was talking about his passage on the steamboat and says that no one got hurt it just killed a slave (Norton 246). Here Huck uses a slang term for African Americans that was popular at the time, it has only gotten more controversial as time went on. In his criticism essay Gribben states, “Through a succession of firsthand experiences, this editor gradually concluded that an epithet-free edition of Twain’s books is necessary today” (Norton 303). Here Gribben brings up the topic of how he believes that an edited, profanity free version of the book is needed. In her criticism Kakutani says, “Worse, it relieves teachers of the fundamental responsibility of putting such books in context…” (Norton 304). Kakutani is talking about how it is a bad idea to take the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn out of the curriculum. Kakutani also says, “Never mind that attaching the epithet slave to Jim… effectively labels him as property, as the very thing he is trying to escape” (Norton 304). Here Kakutani is bringing up the point that the term slave could be seen as just as bad as the N-word is to some. In her essay Morrison says, “A serious comprehensive discussion of the term by an intelligent teacher would have spared all of us some grief” (Norton 301). Here Morrison is discussing the use of slang in the book. I believe that Morrison is right, that if gone about the right way the book would be alright to read in upper level schools. I believe that an edited version would be better for younger audiences, but that for older audiences the original text would be best to read.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not a totally racist book, only the ending and language are racist. Even though the book has some racist tendencies I do not believe that it is meant to be read as a racist book. I think that the book was written as normal as possible for the time at which it was written and was not meant to offend anyone. At the time that the book was being written it was very common to use the offensive slurs that can be seen in the book. If the language is explained the right way, then the book should be ok when being read by a mature audience. Overall if the language and the ending of the story can be overlooked the story appears to just be a boy helping someone escape slavery and building a friendship along the way.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain has been opposed regularly following its release. The constant usage of bad choice words has really hurt this book’s relationship with many people. The inclusion of the bad words, however, helps explain various details in the book. For example, it talks about the main differences among multiple ethnicities and color. If there is no emphasize made, it will be difficult to understand, and there won’t be that same feeling. The novel really stresses on influential morals and simple beliefs, like the separation between good and bad. I truly believe that the novel should be allowed to students in high school for it to be thoroughly understood. If there are some individuals who feel bad reading this then it would not be forced upon them.

Therefore, many people are very critical of Twain and his novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn because of his approach and overall racist views of certain characters in the book. For instance, there have been situations in which Jim is being described wrongly and immaturely by the author. Though if we actually look into the novel, Twain was never intentionally trying to discriminate or being racist. He was just talking about the values and how modern day life was around that time. To prove he was not a racist individual, there was a letter found in Yale that showed his kind qualities. He had offered to pay the billings of an African American student. In this quote from source F, it talks about his intentions for paying, “I do not believe I would very cheerfully help a white student who would ask a benevolence of a stranger, but I do not feel so about the other color. We have ground the manhood out of them, & the shame is ours, not theirs; & we should pay for it.” What he is trying to say is that it was almost his duty to help the African American man because of all the wrongdoings between the two races in the past, so it was to bring the relationship on the right path. Through this situation, we can all see that as a human being Twain isn’t a racist. His bad words and inappropriate diction as the characters in the novel was just to show how reality and life were back then to make the story even more appealing.

While some of the inappropriate words in the novel are really bad for teenagers like us and younger kids, Twain used them to give the audience the thrill of the story and really experience what was going on. Some may say that he could have utilized other words that have a negative sort of meaning, but the use of bad words bring up the uproar in that time frame. In Source G, one “USA Today” article really stressed about the word choice in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, “Convey the language and attitudes of Missouri in the 1840s, in a book written in the 1880s when Jim Crow laws were being passed in the South to deprive blacks of their civil rights,” To look into it, the story takes place in Missouri, where discrimination and particular word choice is used. There was never really an end to the racism in this moment so Twain has the ability to use some of that diction to show a trend.

Ironically some of the bad words Twain uses are taken more offensive than instances that actually should be cared about in that moment of time. For instance, there should be many judges that should question the original people who genuinely lived these horrible lives and treated human beings like that. There are many critics and school teachers that want to make this novel very appropriate in terms of its language, but that would change what happened in the past which brings no truth in what you will teach the students. When you look at source D, the comic talks about how pointless and awkward it would be to completely change these stories to make them way different than the original work. It’s very simple to understand that Twain’s work has its own meaning and uniqueness. So changing anything will go against the point of the message. Obviously, in our society saying bad words have a sprial effect of consequences. In the novel, these words are very normal to them and thus creating a situation of why was that allowed back then and how will it affect our community going forward..

Likewise, there is a negative vibe and snowball effect to when children do hear such words in books. This is exactly the reason why The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is questionable for readers. It will make schools ban such books and put a negative image on. This is why the Gribben’s addition will be much more appropriate for the general audience. In source G once again Gribben really talks about the changed and redone book will be for specific individuals that truly have an uncomfortable feeling when reading these bad words. One thing that won’t really make sense according to Gribben is to substitute words that won’t give the reader the same reaction and feeling compared to the audience who read the original. There will however be the same passion and basic moral lesson in this book. Logically they should the sell the redone book in children bookstores and school libraries.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn really delivers impactful messages about the wrongdoings in life and the unfortunate path of slavery and the negative connotation it had. It is fair to say that most of the bad words are very inappropriate in our society today, but I defend Mark Twain for not being a racist man. He was just stating and describing what society was like at this time period. Although I firmly believe this content should be taught in high schools because this piece of history is critically important for our future men and women. And I respect anyone who does not feel comfortable reading this material. They can read the Alan Gribbon’s redone book which should give you the necessary understanding of Huck Finn.