Huckleberry Finn ( Huck Finn ) - Racism Essay - 572 Words

Huck Finn Racism Is Huck Finn A Racist Book? Ever since its publication over a hundred years ago, controversy has swarmed around one of Mark Twain’s most popular novels, Huck Finn. Even then, many educators supported its dismissal from school libraries. For post Civil-War Americans, the argument stemmed from Twain’s use of spelling errors, poor grammar, and curse words. In the politically correct 1990’s however, the point of argument has now shifted to one of the major themes of the book: Racism. John Wallace once said of the book, â€Å"It’s the most grotesque version of racist trash† ever written. Were Twain’s archetypal characters and use of vernacular language an assertion of his own racist views, or a critique of the injustice of†¦show more content†¦Huck Finn is not racist: It is a profound social statement on the inhumanity of slavery and of every individual’s born right to freedom. In chapter 32, Aunt Sally and Huck discuss a steamboat explosion: â€Å"Good Gracious! Anyone hurt?† asks Aunt Sally. â€Å" No’m. Killed a nigger.† â€Å" Well it’s lucky; because sometimes people do get hurt.† This passage highlights Twain’s use of satire. On the surface, it could easily be interpreted as dehumanizing and bigoted, but Twain only uses it to reveal the cold truths of white attitudes in the 1800’s. It also presents the fact that Aunt Polly, one of the simplest and gentlest characters in the book, does not think twice about the violent death of a black person. While disguised as racism, Twain cleverly breaks down white-black relations to the inanities of prejudice. Less subtle are Huck’s observations of Jim as their relationship progresses. Jim at first is nothing but a source of amusement for Huck, but Huck slowly discovers the real person inside. In Chapter 23, Huck states, â€Å"†¦I do believe that he cared just as much for his people as white folks does for ther’n.† Later, Huck goes even further to say, â€Å"I knowed Jim was really white inside.† From Huck, this naà ¯ve statement was the highest compliment he could have given Jim, and reiterates the idea that a black man can have true emotions and real feelings, something that was not commonly believed at theShow MoreRelatedThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain Essay1055 Words   |  5 PagesJhonatan Zambrano Mrs. Patmor AP Lit-Period 5 28 September 2016 Adventures of Huckleberry Finn 1835 Mark Twain embodies realism in almost every aspect of his writing not excluding The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which in he portrays such a lifelike setting that it almost gives you this sense of reality through the point of view of a young man that has an urge for freedom yet struggles to conform to society s norms due to his adolescence. 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In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain uses satire to mock many different aspects of the modern world. Despite the fact that many critics have accused Mark Twain’s novel of promoting racismRead MoreMark Twain : Seeing America s Flaws1593 Words   |  7 Pagesfirst line in Mark Twain’s controversial book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Samuel L. Clemens, as a young boy, grew up on the Mississippi and learned the ways of southern society. Clemens grew up to travel the world and write many successful and failed novels, along with many other types of literature. Receiving his education on the Mississippi, Mark Twain wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn which p ointed out the flaws of America and became masterpieces