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Racism And Slavery In Huck Finn

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Ryan Scaggs Mrs. Johnson Huck Finn Essay October 25, 2015 Racism and Slavery Throughout Throughout his novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain exposes many themes that related well with the 1880s America during which Twain wrote the novel. Many important themes are at the center of the book, such as the conflict between civilization and Huck’s “natural life”. However, the most well-known thematic aspect of this novel is the inclusion of racism and slavery in that day’s society. Twain’s perspective on slavery and ideas regarding racism had been a source of debate. This theme of racism and slavery and Twain’s perception of it is developed throughout the “plot” events of the book. Twain was passionately anti-slavery during his
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The black man on the back porch is afraid of the rattle snake because it is bad luck, or the innocent little slave is quick to believe everything one tells them at the drop of the hat. These are just some of the many racist stereotypes of the 1840s. A character named Jim is the star African American whom Twain bestoys the mission of being the stereotypical black man to prove a point. He along with his much more pallor companion Huck go on exciting adventures that unfold the events which expose the racist conduct of the time. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain saturates his novel with potent images of acute racism severe enough as to create a satirical mien that exposes the absurdity of prejudice.

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Twain uses the word “nigger” throughout his novel to convey the dehumanizing views and the actions of a racist society that the slaves

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Twain’s work The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is known by defenders and critics alike for both subtly raising challenges to dehumanizing racial expectations and for perpetuating negative racial stereotypes. In her literary criticism of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Tuire Valkeakari evaluates the extent to which inconsistent and confusing representations of race in Twain’s classic work demonstrate the incomplete attempt by both Twain and Huck to reject the racial expectations of the 19th century. According to Valkeakari, Huck’s views on race closely parallel both Twain’s own complicated views on race and the confusing status of African American human rights during reconstruction. This is demonstrated by Huck’s tendency to be easily influenced by racism in his environment--for example, when Huck is easily convinced by Tom Sawyer to pull the snake prank on Jim.

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Racism is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as the poor treatment of or violence against people because of their race. In the novel “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain racism and slavery are the main themes covered. Racism usually occurs because people believe that their culture is superior to someone else’s and therefore they act like they are better. This can also occur because of what social class people are in or how much money they have.

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Just like how Pap not allowing Huck to attend school hindered the growth of Huck’s moral compass, when students are not allowed to read this book it is preventing them from developing their moral compass because analyzing the book helps them to learn what is right, and in turn helps them to develop their moral compass. Although some may argue that the novel will encourage bigotry, however the novel will actually have the opposite effect. Because of how blatantly racist the novel is, students are able to analyze quotes and discover why and how the language used is offensive. If the novel was to be replaced by one that is not as blatantly racist, the student’s analysis may only lead them to discover that the novel is racist, but not how or why

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Ever since its publication, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain has been critiqued and criticized for its stance on slavery. Although it was written after the Civil War, slavery and racism were still a major key in the American life. With racism prevalent and accepted at that time, Huck Finn was looked down upon by having a low class white boy helping a black man escape slavery as the main plot. People felt that it was an uprising against white society and praising the black. Now, as slavery has long faded, the attitude toward Huck Finn has shifted to where some critics believe that it is actually racist it how it depicts Huck, the white boy, above Jim, the black man Huck is trying to free, and how Jim relies heavily on Huck throughout

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Although Twain intended Jim’s behavior to be satire, readers cannot tell the difference and misread the novel. In Tom Quirk’s literary criticism, he explains that “the question is not whether or not Huckleberry Finn is racist, but… it is... ‘Do… students possess the literary sophistication to discern… its subtleties regarding race?’ If readers… profoundly misread the novel, can we truly expect high school students to get it right?” (Quirk 167). Whether the novel is racist does not matter; what matters is how readers perceive it.

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The article also goes on to talk about how the story of Huck Finn has many different themes pertaining to race, identity, and moral conflict. These themes, however, are expressed with regards to the past, more specifically the southern part of the United States in the mid1800’s. The purpose of this was to expose the prejudice and discrimination that occurred in that time frame (Macleod, Christine). Over time Mark Twain’s goal of objecting slavery has been lost in translation and controversy regarding race has

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In the book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, slavery plays an important role throughout the novel. Slavery was an inhumane and demeaning way to treat others. Twain uses one of the main characters Jim to represent the humanity of all slaves. In the beginning, Huck thinks of Jim as nothing more than a slave. But as the book progresses Huck and Jim share a bond from their friendship.

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Through Huck’s moral regression as well as his failure to recognize more than just Jim as his equal, the final chapters are inconsistent with the novel’s overall goal to satirize racism. Huck’s failure to continue his moral growth and undermines the earlier message that Twain conveys through satire. An integral part of Huck’s morality is his integrity and refusal to tell needless lies, and to “do whichever come handiest” (Twain 69). Twain has Huck go against convention and lie to protect Jim, demonstrating the power of Huck’s morality over societal racism.

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The 1880s marked a conflicting time in American history, as post-Civil War Reconstruction failed in the South and Jim Crow laws were instituted. During Reconstruction, Civil War Amendments passed to ensure the rights of newly emancipated African-Americans. Through these amendments, blacks became legally equal to whites; however, white Southerners remained prejudiced against blacks. Democratic southern whites disenfranchised African-Americans through Jim Crow laws, such as the requirement to pass a literacy test to vote. Likewise, in Mark Twain’s

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I believe that every high-school student should be required to read Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, for it is an excellent novel that majorly touches on an issue that remains prevalent today: racism. In our current society, there seem to be recurring tragedies dealing with the manner in which our country’s police force interact with African Americans. Whether they arrest them for no real reason or use weapons or force against them, the police act a lot towards African Americans like how the white men did in the novel towards the slaves. Throughout the story, Huck recounts how both he and others treated Jim: they often took advantage of him because they thought that they could get away with it. There is also a passage in the novel in which Huck

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However, despite Twain’s Confederate influences, his opinion on slavery was not impacted, showing that regardless of the fact that he had seen the South’s opinion on slavery he knew that someone was responsible to address the cultural tensions that the nation faced. Nevertheless, there are people who greet this novel with unjust disapproval. Stephen Carter says “Once upon a time, people hated the book because it struck them as coarse. Twain himself wrote that the book’s banners considered the novel ‘trash and suitable only for the slums.’”. The idea that this novel faced such a negative response at release is almost a social commentary that speaks for itself, and unquestionably confirms the fact that this was one of the first real attempts in American literature on social reformation that was met with such

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Mark Twain displays several key themes in his famous American classic, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The themes show the lifestyle and mindset of the region at the time. Many consider this novel Twain’s greatest work as it captures countless memories throughout Huck Finn’s life. Throughout the novel, the reader follows Huck’s unique outdoor experiences as he leaves home to live a life on the river. Mark Twain demonstrates three particular themes that express how people lived at the time the story was written, but all of which have improved significantly through the years: abuse, escape, and racism.

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