NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
Controversial in death as he was in life, Mark Twain has been accused by some of being a "racist writer, " whose writing is offensive to black readers, "Perpetuates cheap slave-era stereotypes, and deserves no place on today's bookshelves. " I personally believe that no book should be banned, however, I do believe that it should not be taught in class rooms, where teachers do not have enough patience to help the students to closely follow the story, because when students don't read closely, the plot line is missed and the students don't get Huck Finn's true meaning. For Twain's critics, the novel is racist on the face of it, and for the most obvious reason: many characters use the word "nigger" throughout the story (about once per page). Since the book takes place in the South twenty years before the Civil War, I think it would be amazing if they didn't use that word. A closer reading also reveals Twain's true intent. In one scene, for instance, Aunt Sally hears of a steamboat explosion. "Good gracious! Anybody hurt?" She asks. "No'm, " comes the answer, "Killed a nigger. " But anyone who imagines that Mark Twain meant this literally is missing the point.
Twain is using this casual dialogue ironically, as a way to underscore the harsh truth about the "old south", that it was a society where perfectly "nice" people didn't consider the death of a black person worth their notice. To drive the point home, Twain has the lady continue: "Well, it's lucky, because sometimes people do get hurt. " What is the book really about? It's about a slave who breaks the law and risks his life to win his freedom and be reunited with his family, and a white boy who becomes his friend and helps him escape. Because of his upbringing, the boy starts out believing that slavery is part of the natural order; but as the story unfolds, he wrestles with what his values really are, and when the crucial moment comes, he decides he "will be damned to the flames of hell" rather than betray his black friend.
I don't think an old racist man from the "old south" would write something like this. If Mark Twain were really a racist, he probably would have written something talking about how the slaves were "inferior to white people." Some people say that Mark Twain's character Jim is portrayed as a "stupid Negro", but I say that the way Twain presents him, is hardly a caricature. (Like Jar Jar Binks, or Howard The Duck, both of which bumbled around like clumsy oafs purely for comical relief. Jar Jar and Howard managed to offend three social groups, who for many years endured society's intolerance. ) Rather, he is the moral center of the book, a man of courage and nobility, who risks his freedom and his life, for the sake of his friend Huck. Note, too, that it is not just white critics who make this point.
Booker T. Washington noted how Twain "succeeded in making his readers feel a genuine respect for 'Jim, '" and pointed out that Twain, in creating Jim's character, had "exhibited his sympathy and interest in the masses of the Negro people. " The great black novelist Ralph Elision, too, noted how Twain allows Jim's "dignity and human capacity" to emerge in the novel. "Huckleberry Finn knew, as did Mark Twain [Elision wrote], that Jim was not only a slave but a human being [and] a symbol of humanity... and in freeing Jim, Huck makes a bid to free himself of the conventionalized evil taken for civilization by the town" -- in other words, of the abomination of slavery itself. After careful research, I have arrived at the conclusion that Huck Finn is not racist novel. Although I appreciate other people's opinions, I think the fact that some people are offended by this story is no reason to overlook its literary value. Huck Finn is a treasured piece of American literature.
Just because we don't like a part of our past doesn't mean that we should cover it up and forget about it. Our heritage is a part of who we are, and the past gives us the chance to learn from the mistakes of others so we don't repeat them. (Note, I am overlooking the ending, it's horrible; there's no excuse for Tom and Huck to waste time with who know what, while Jim is in jail) Bibliography:
Free research essays on topics related to: mark twain, huck, huck finn, twain, noted how twain
Research essay sample on Is Huck Finn A Racist Book
