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. Regressions such as these in Huck’s journey towards acceptance are viewed as problematic by many, but Valkeakari seems to evaluate
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According to her criticism, Twain provides a unique and dynamic representation of an African American. He portrays Jim as not the stereotypical “boy” or “uncle” but as a fatherly figure to Huck. Twain also destroys racial connotations by characterizing the white characters in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as of a lower moral standing than Jim. Jim is wise, humble, and kind, while white characters such as the Duke and the Dauphin are arrogant, greedy, and corrupt. It is my belief that Twain’s anti-racist allusions in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn are exhibited more by his negative portrayal of whites such as the Grangerfords and Sherpardsons, the Duke and the Dauphin, and Colonel Sherburn than by his positive representation of Jim because Jim is portrayed as a submissive and misfit character in many