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Mark Twain's Use Of The N Word Analysis

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Although he wrote the novel in the 1880s, Mark Twain’s novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, still remains a controversy today because of Twain’s use of the “N-word.” Why does Twain use the word “nigger” over 100 times in his novel? What impact is he trying to create by using this derogatory term? Although a multitude number of schools banned Twain’s novel because of the use of the derogatory “term,” Mark Twain’s utilization of the “n-word” satirizes the white American society in the 1880s by reminding his readers that racism was considered a social norm and illustrates how much society attained in terms of racism and discrimination from when slavery was prominent. Furthermore, Twain utilizes the “n-word” because it is his work of literature and changing his words deprives the reader of its purpose and is considered to be a form of censorship. Although President Lincoln abolished slavery with the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, the existence of slavery still continued to play a factor during the 1880s when freed slaves tried to assimilate into society. Now, a question arises how is Mark Twain’s use of the “n-word” relevant to the existence of slavery? Twain wanted to depict the evilness of slavery and how it impacted the freed slaves even after they gained freedom and rights. By using the “N-word,” Twain reminds his …show more content…

Even though The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn still remains controversial today, Twain employs the “n-word,” to satirize the white society he lived in and how common racism was towards the freed slaves, even though they were considered free. Moreover, Mark Twain wish to use the “n-word” in his novel because he wanted to illustrate how racism can degrade an individual’s status down to an animal. By changing the novel because it contains an obscene term, one changes the purpose Twain wished to create in his novel, which is considered to be a form of censorship. Clearly, Mark Twain’s use of the “n-word” serves people to see the bigger

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