Mark Twain--you're ruining my life.

I don't know where I want to go with this essay. I have tried and tried to motivate myself for it but the fact that I don't care the slightest bit about the topic has put quite a burden on my shoulders. The only things that I have to say is that mom was freaking off the wall insane, and if she cares so much about her daughter reading Huck Finn then she should take her daughter out of the class for the duration of the time that they will be focusing on the topic; instead of making a total fool of herself. Personally I don't think that Huck stressed the issue to the extent that he should have. This novel was almost written in a child's perspective, you know how children can see the broader picture but not notice the details? Take sex for example, Mommy is all of a sudden pregnant and a stork will soon drop off the baby that is magically extracted from her stomach on the front step, they don't question how it got into her stomach in the first place, they will just go with the flow and think all is true about what they have been told without further investigation. In a way they are blind to reality. This is the way Huck is with the issue of slavery and demeaning the blacks by using the word Nigger. He has seen and heard it being used therefore he thinks that it is hunky dory for him to use it as well. He does not consider the fact that it might as well be offensive to Jim or to others of the race, it is merely a word representing a color. Adding on to this, I think that we should be exposed to a novel that really illustrates the brutality of the time, as we were while studying the holocaust. We need to take in the fact that slavery was a very real issue and it did happen. People were treated horribly, and history should never repeat itself. Yet why cover it up, it is history, it is what it is. There was no silver lining to it, and thus there shouldn't be any sheltering of what had happened in any novel related to the issue. Moreover, if we are going to be reading a book that is racist (whether or not you find Huck Finn racist, so be it) we should also read a book that is racist toward whites as well. This is not something that we see often, and I think that it would be an interesting followup or even pre-read to a book such as Huck Finn; maybe then people can stop freaking out and come to the conclusion that racism is not only focused on blacks, but the other way as well (being on whites). This was a really lousy book, not that I disliked it, but all of the controversy that it stirred up is ridiculous and I can't wait to be finished with the whole bit. Mark Twain has got to be rolling over in his grave laughing his ass off at all that he has stirred up. [To anyone that is reading this please do not take offense to anything I said, and if you do leave a comment, I do not care]

Huck

The book Huckleberry fin has racist elements, but as a whole is not racist in fact it is an anti racist novel. The concluding chapters is in fact almost a definition of satire on not only the institution of slavery but also the beginning of the reconstruction in which southerners negligently forgot to tell their former slaves oh by the way you’re free. In fact most of this novel’s events off the river are satirical. As far as the question as to wither it should be taught in school or not, it should be taught as an optional assignment in conjunction with Uncle Toms Cabin and other novels that touch upon America’s history with slavery. Passages I plan to cite include the scene on Jackson Island, the third trick played on Jim, the journey down river when it was only Jim and Huck, and the ending it self. To discus the use of this book in school I will use the movie to show that not all students are ready to be taught Huck Fin and teachers must use their discretion to see if students are able to handle the copious amount of Racist elements.

Kenya's Prospectus

Huckleberry Finn was a huge step in literature, especially for the times when it was written. I think that the book expresses an amazing pro-acknowledgment of the realities of slavery. I think that the last 13 chapters are incredibly important in the book because, even though quite satirical they express an incredible reality of the hardships of slavery and the way that white people simply believe that it is just alright.
I want to base my paper first around the three transformations of Huck Finn and how he stepped out from the norms of society (even though he was trying to be forced into them through Ms Watson's rules and schooling). His first transformation happens on Jackson's Island when he says "they are after us," to Jim. His second one is when he says he'll go to hell for the freedom of Jim, and the third is his final ability to humble himself to Jim after playing a rude trick on him. This not only represents the transformation of a young boy, but the idea that one day society may transform into the belief that blacks do too have rights. But does society really change? No. The end of the book proves this through Huck's submission to Tom's cruelty. It's like this glimpse of hope has been snatched up in what is really reality, what is still partially reality today. Still, society has a frame of mind biased towards colored people. Though the cruelty of slavery still may not exist, the reality of racism and outward, demeaning acknowledgment of racism does.
After using the three transformation scenes, I will use different examples of slavery from Tom's harsh cruelty towards Jim in the end. When he makes him write with blood, sleep with snakes, dress as a woman for almost pure enjoyment. I will truly hit hard that he knew all along he was free, making the cruelty even harsher. It represents societies "true knowledge" (I guess you could say atleast some people knew it was wrong) that slavery was immoral. People such as Huck. But they too get sucked back into what is society: slavery.
T.S. Eliot proves my point in saying that "the story descends to the level of Tom Sawyer."
Leo Marx: "Jim's yearning for freedom, is made the object of nonsense. The conclusion, in short, is farce, but the rest of the novel is not."
Trilling: "there is a certain falling off" (at the end) "yet it has a certain formal aptness"

Huck Finn Essay

I loved Huckleberry Finn and I enjoyed it thoroughly, but I am still very undecided on how I am going to write this essay. I believe that this book is an American classic and that it is revolutionary for it's time, not only because it is in the vernacular, but that the language in the book was very accurate to the way they spoke, acted and believed back then. I personally believe that this book should be tought, but I am also a young white teenager. Even though I understand how bad the n word is, I will never be able to feel the hurt that people of color feel when that word is used. Throughout the documentary, "Culture Shock," many of my classmates were annoyed by the mother. She was obviously hurt by the way that her daughter was made to read this book and the manner in which the book was taught to her. This goes against my initial arguement that it should be taught in school. If it is, it must be taught in a very gentle manner and anybody that doesn't want to read this book, because it hurts them, shouldn't be forced to, or cast out.

Huck Finn and Twain

It tooke me a while to figure out exactly what I was going to argue about this book because there were just too many options I could try. I decided that my strongest argument would be to argue that the book is neither racist nor anti-racist, it's simply a product of the times in which it was written. I also feel that this book should be taught in schools because though the ending (one of the greatest flaws of the work) is a satire which few people seem to pick up on.

I love Mark Twain as a writer, so my argument about this book is going to biased, but that being said, I do recognize the flaws in this novel and there fore will not try to make the case that this is the single greatest american novel, there are much better works out there. My case is, however, going to be based in the fact that Twain was not a very serious person. He took is work very seriously, but very rarely did he write something that was dead serious.

Another thing that I would love to address, but I don't want to argue too many things at once, is the fact that maybe the point of the end, though a satire, is just as much about Jim becoming a father figure to Huck's moral awakening, seeing as Jim saves Tom in the end even though he makes Jim's life a living hell in the end.

Critics such as Peaches Henry, and James Cox I've found might be useful, as would be Marx. I sould love to find a critic that had a strong argument against mine which I could use to help strengthen my own point (like Sanders did to Rushdie) but I definitely find those 3 critics helpful in their points.

As for direct scenes, I am obviously going to be focusing on the ending to make the case of the satire which Twain created, and in doing so I can reference the gang of "robbers" which Tom Sawyer creates to help reiterate some of the cyclical formatting Twain used. I can extend this argument about satire past Tom by including the humorous retelling of Romeo & Juliet with the Grangerfords.

However, my argument that the book is a product of the times rather than racist I'm finding slightly difficult. I can make the argument that the word usage and some of the actions are clearly what would be expected in the time it was written, much less set in, but I really am trying to figure out scenes which might strengthen this argument. While I could use many scenes from the novel where Huck makes a moral decision, these seem to be making more of a racist/anti-racist message, while my argument is that it is neither.

Either way, I know my argument and I can write a good paper off of it, but if there are any critics or scenes that might help me, point me to them. Thanks

Huckleberry Finn

I think that while Huckleberry Finn is a blatantly racist novel, it was not written with the intent of condoning racism or slavery. In my essay, I want to talk about the whole "racism VS. realism" issue. I believe that the very act of trying to write a realistic story based in the 1840's South is inherently racist. You cannot write a true tale of the south in that timeperiod without mentioning slavery or including racism. However, I don't believe Mark Twain was racist. I think, if anything, he was mocking racism, its cruelty, and its prevalence in the story's society; Huckleberry Finn is a satire, not a book written to encourage or discourage racism. I also don't think this book should be taught in school. I believe that since the book's publication, its audience has taken the novel way too seriosly. I mean, come on, this book is a satire, a joke, about a couple of guys floating down a river, not some epic novel that was written to change lives. I believe this book has little literary value other than an interesting and informative view of Southern culture and vernacular in the 1840's. I can understand using this book in school to teach about racism and such, and to see where we come from, but I think that subject would be better suited to a humanities class of some sort. It seems strange to me that so many English teachers use this book in their curriculum when its literary value is pretty, well, nonexistant.
I'm not sure what passages in the book I want to use to encourage this argument. There are plenty of passages that are outrageous enough that I can use them to highlight the satirical side of this book. And, of course, the examples of racism within the novel are almost limitless - the entire novel is comprised of racial slurs. It's these slurs and other examples that I can use to show how the book is not some literary jewel and is completely overrated.
For critics, I think I'll use Shelly Fishkin from that documentary to show that the book was not written to condone racism. While, due to the use of the n word and other racial slurs, that book is wraught with racism in the writing, I don't believe the sentiment behind the novel is racist. I think I will also quote Langston Hughes, who said that (I paraphrase) "Before Mark Twain's Huck Finn, there was no unromantisized view of the South, or the view of slaves in the South." This quote highlights the realism of the novel; it's the realism that gives the novel it's value, in my opinion. I will also be quoting the documentary when it says that "great writers should be causing trouble and asking controversial questions" to note that while the book is on a very touchy subject, it can be used to teach (however, it's that controversial topic that should be taught in schools, not the litereary value of the book). I will also use a few quotes form T.S. Elliot. However, I will be relying most heavily on Leo Marx for my quotes. He agrees with me that the book is a satire and should not be taken too seriously. One of my favorite quotes from his essay is "...Clemens certainly did not intend us to read [Huck Finn] solemnly. Surely the tone...is familar to readers of Mark Twain."
I'm not so sure on the logistics of the essay, and how I want to construct it.

huck

Ugh. I hate this book. There is something so frustrating about it. I don't feel like it was well thought out at all. Mark Twain has no control over the story. On event follows another and so on and so forth. There is no true excellence or appreciation for the reader. He just drags them down the Mississippi River. He disregards the questions a reader may have and simple gives them a time line of an uneventful and terribly written scenario. Whether it is racist or not truly should have no effect in why it shouldn't be read. It shouldn't be read because the book sucks. Reading a book like " The Handmaid's Tale" where Margaret Atwood is so conscientious of the reader and the connection they make with the characters and then reading a book like "Huck Finn" it is hard to recognize the authors hand in any of it. The reader wants to give Mark Twain their trust but it is difficult to do so when he so flippantly leaves the reader in the wake of his story. Yeah, I hate this book.

Kids Need Crap Too.

Is Huck Finn racist? Of course it is. It may not be a blatant sermon for white power, but the language and characterizations are plenty racially motivated. Is this the great American book? Of course not. The idea that any novel in which even it's most excited supporters cannot defend effectively the plot and development should never disgrace it's country by being declared a national classic. In short, Huck Finn is a racially insensitive, poorly written, indecisive, bewilderingly bad book. But we should teach it nonetheless.

The idea that children can flourish knowing only what to do is naive. We must know what not to do as well. If children were only taught how great condoms are but not how bad teen pregnancy is few would use protection. This is the dangerous path English education has taken. By teaching only the "great" books we have sabotaged the wide view of literature our children need. The preposterous reviews by Trilling and Elliot are a blessing in disguise, for they have sneaked a bad book into classrooms, and have given good teachers a chance to show kids all sides of literature; the good, the bad, and the ugly.

I will use the aforementioned essays to point out how children must learn not to be bought off too easily by cheap arguments. I will use the essays of Leo Marx and Smiley to show that they have good arguments about the lack of literary merits about this book, but had they not been taught it they would have skipped that important critical step. From the book I will take specific passages as well as the progression as a whole to use as examples of how children should not write.

Almost all of the books taught in English classrooms are "great." Yet they loose their respect because if all that is taught are great books children have nothing to compare them with. By teaching Huck Finn we can reinforce the value of good books, and encourage a healthy skepticism. If good examples were all we needed the dunce cap would never have been invented. Mark Twain would look good in one.

To introduce my argument I will first do background on the time period. I will discuss the attitude of many people towards African Americans in this time period. I will hope this will support my argument that the book is not racist and simply a product of its times. People in this period were brought up to think of African Americans as inferior people without the mental capabilities of white people. The book uses the word "nigger" because it was a common word in the time period. While it is natural for some people to become offended by the use of the word, reading this novel shows a window into a different time, a time when the attitude towards minorities was different than it is today. By keeping this thought in mind, you can simply view the book as a piece of history, a tale from a different age where the ideals and ideas where much different than now. I argue that America during this time was extremely racist, so should all the books and ideas that came out of it. In today's society equality is the popular movement, so modern people should be able to read this book, knowing the ideas are wrong and simply reading it for what it is, a tale from another time.
As for whether it should be taught in schools, honestly beyond the fact that it is racist, i don't think the book is simply good enough to be taught in schools. Did I enjoy the read, of course. I feel like all you get is simply a fun tale from a different time, with the only discussion to go over is whether it is racist or not. I have enjoyed our class discussion, I just don't believe the quality of the book overshadows its massive controversy. Even if i don't agree with them, people are offended by this book and causing a major uproar about it being put on a required reading list, and honestly i dont think it is good enough to stand against the massive opposition.

Racist? Nonracist? Where is the line?

How is it that a book such as Huckleberry Finn can create such a controversy that people would move to have it banned from high school curriculum? Can a book represent both racism and anti racism at the same time? At this time period it is true that the word ‘nigger’ was the common term for a person of color. So does using this word in a realistic novel automatically make the novel racist? And can’t one argue that Huck is a person who can look past the stereotype given to African Americans during this time in age? Now is this because he no longer is bound by society, or merely the fact that he has come to the realization that Jim is a human being? It seems to me that the growth that Huckleberry goes through should be taught to children of all ages. It is a necessity to learn from our past history so that we don’t repeat it. On the other hand I can see that this book could be offensive to any that do not separate what is said and what is implied. I feel as though I have a biased when it comes to this book, as I am not African American, I cannot truly feel as they feel they read this book. On the other hand if the term did not mean anything in today’s time period I would be surprised to find as much controversy as they is circling this book. The real question that comes to mind is what restrictions can be put on realism? Is it not the point of realism to make things as realistic as possible? I can see that many people have elevated this book to the top of American literature, all the while there have been others trying to dispense of this book. In order for Huck to undergo his emotional growth there has to be an aspect of racism involved within the novel. Would it make sense to write a book that is suppose to be realistic in this time period without involving the aspect of racism.

I feel as though this book should be taught in high school merely for the racial aspect presented. It is important to understand others and our own culture. I also believe that if this book it taught that the teacher must teach it in a way that doesn't make anyone feel less like a human. It needs to be addressed in a critical view point, one that is separated from the negative aspect and more involved in what the overall message.

People I plan on quoting-
Jane Smiley- I disagree with her point of view on many aspects of the novel Huckleberry Finn and feel as though she will help further my own personal point of view.
T.S. Eliot- He made the novel to be a great work of American Literature and is very apparent in his feelings that this is a anti racist novel.
"Born to Trouble"- James Miller made an incredible point in the beginning of the movie about racism and how it comes about. I want to incorporate this into my paper to prove that racism and anti racism depends on the person.
Mark Twain- The scene when Huck humbles himself to a nigger.
Leo Marx- His point of view on the ending of the novel.

Huck Finn, Racism, Idiots, and Lobo's take on it all.

The basic arguement of my essay will be as follows: Huck Finn is racist in it's setting, but the ideas in the book and the interactions of the main characters are very anti-racist. Unfortunately most high-school students are idiots. (No offense to anyone here) Because of this general idioticy most high school students, especially ones who don't have Huck Finn taught to them properly, aren't going to get this anti-racism. So a lot of them will inevitably end up being offended. So I think that this book should be taught in schools for a few reasons, they being: #1 Everyone who reads it will gain from it. People who get the anti-racism get to read a great book, and enjoy the colorful vernacular that makes this book so fun. The people who get offended because they think it is racist, will get to be offended. This is good because what point is an education that never causes you to be offended? What good is going to high school and learning how to live in the world if you never learn how to be offended. The world is always going to throw insults around, and will always try to beat you down. Thats just the way the world works. So why would we not want our high school students to learn how to handle being offended? It's an essential life skill. If we let ourselves learn to run away from offense then is that really going to create a strong populace? #2 is that for those who understand, or are taught to properly there is a beautiful novel to enjoy. Not only is the book an outstanding anti-slavery novel, but it is also (and i say this without sarcasm) a heartwarming tale of love and courage. Plus that vernacular is really fun!

So the general outline of my paper will be as follows:
My first page or two will be used to argue my point that the book is very anti-slavery. I will use the scenes of huck tearing the letter, the third trick played on Jim (the one where Huck humbles himself to a nigger), and will compare the early characterization of Jim to the tricks that the King and Duke play as they travel down the river.

After setting that up, I will use the movie and critics to set up that there are many people who find the book offensive. Then I will argue that the racism is because of the time period. Then I will transition to my arguement that it should be taught in schools, and that people should be offended. that arguement should get me 3-4 pages, so with a brief and admittedly underveloped conclusion I should arrive at 5-6 1/2 pages.

Huck Finn -Perspective of a small white child

Perspective is everything. The reality of the situation from one persons eyes might be completely different from another’s eyes. Some say that Huck Finn is a racist book and other’s say it is anti-racist. It shows slavery in the south through a small white boys eyes. This causes the tone of the book to be lighthearted and fun, as opposed to the way it realistically was in the south. Although there are times where you will hear an outrageously racist comment in the book, it doesn’t serve the reality of the racist south justice. The book has a very warped perception of how things really were in the south. After all the struggle black people had to go through, their struggle is communicated very poorly through the eyes of a little white boy. This in itself is frustrating and outrageous. As for the ending, it does not communicate any moral message about racism, Huck doesn’t grow from his experiences, it merely ends with two selfish white children exacerbating Jim’s struggle for freedom. It returns to the playful make believe that the book starts out with, Tom and Huck breaking Jim out of jail the way its done in the “books.” This makes any moral value that Huck gained meaningless because for him it is all a little game. You can never know what Huck perceives as reality and what he perceives as make believe. I will use Julius Lester's critical essay to support my point. I will focus my essay around the beginning and end of the book to show that Huck thinks the same in the end as he did in the beginning. I will point out that throughout the book, you never encounter other slaves besides Jim. I will also point out that the most struggle Jim has to go through is caused by the two boys when they make him play their games in the end. You never actually see the struggle and hardships that black people had to go through.

Many lessons to be learned from Huck Finn

Intro (1 page)

Although this book is regarded as “one of the central documents of American culture” and is one of the greatest anti-racist novels in american history, because of the era it is set in, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has become a book of great controversy (Trilling). The late 1800’s were a period of racial tension in the United States, and Huck Finn was one of the first literary critiques of how embedded racism is in our culture. The use of Mississippi dialects, picaresque short stories, and complex characters, make Huck Finn a book that experts still argue over.

Racist? No! (3 pages)

• Huck’s relationship with Jim evolves from slave, to acquaintance, to father figure:
• “for in Jim he finds his true father” - Trilling,
• “what he considers the clear dictates of moral reason are not merely the engrained customary beliefs of his time and place.” - Trilling
• Huck and Jim become a pair, with Huck referring to Jim’s freedom as “our” job and “we” must continue on and they’re after “us”
• “There ain’t a minute to lose. They’re after us!” - Huck Finn.
• “His unpremeditated identification with Jim’s flight from slavery is an unforgettable moment in American experience” - Marx.
• “After all this long journey...here was it all come to nothing, everything all busted up and ruined, because they could have the heart to serve Jim such a trick as that, and make him a slave again all his life, and amongst strangers, too, for forty dirty dollars. (200-01) - Huck Finn.
• Huck as a character transforms within, going from wanting to turn Jim in and thinking that is the right and moral thing to do, to “going to hell” to help a “nigger” escape
• “He has a great sense of sadness of human life” - Trilling
• Language used is simply from the era: the warning by Twain at the beginning of the novel

Taught in schools? Yes! (3 pages)

There are a significant amount of lessons to be learned from Huck Finn. The style, history of racism, and society’s bondage are all morals that can be taught.

• Literary style: going from the river to ashore
• Historical depiction of slavery
• Society’s structure and rules
• “his escape from society is but his way of reaching what society ideally dreams of for itself,” - Trilling,
• “He belongs neither to the Sunday School nor the Reformatory” - Eliot
• Points out what was coevally wrong with America
• “Twain couldn’t solve the problem that America couldn’t solve” - David Bradley in terms of what do with the institution of slavery, it’s wrong but how do we deal with changing it?
• The ending makes Huck return to society (Tom) and fall back into his old habits. On the river he was a changed boy, with Jim, but once back at a white supremacist farm with Tom, he falls back into society’s mold
• “the conscience of a southern boy in the middle of the last century” - Trilling

What I will write!

To introduce the controversy regarding Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn I think I am going to start by using phrases from Trilling and Smiley to showcase both extremes. I will probably open by presenting a little background for both arguments. To support the assertion that Huck Finn is not a racist novel and should be taught in school I will use Trilling’s statement that it is “one of the central documents of American culture.” (Pg. 1) I will further paraphrase some of Eliot’s central arguments to accentuate the novel’s anti-racist qualities. In transition from this point of view I will utilize Smiley’s bold accusation that “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has little to offer in the way of greatness.” (Pg. 62) Once I have clearly determined both arguments regarding the value of Huck Finn I will strategically discredit Smiley’s opinion and elevate Trilling and Eliot’s as the more plausible conclusion. I would like to embed Eliot’s belief that Huck Finn “is the only one of Mark Twain’s various books which can be called a masterpiece,” (Pg. 286) to reveal the novel’s role in literature throughout history. Ultimately I will make the case that Huck Finn is far from a racist novel because it genuinely depicts the relationship between a young white boy and a runaway slave, who manage to surpass the rules of society and form a bond despite racial norms of the 1840’s. Once I have established Huck Finn as an anti-racist novel that succeeds in depicting the evils of society by revealing the hypocrisy of slavery in the South, I will shift into the debate regarding the novel and its role in the high school curriculum. I will use several speakers from ‘Culture Shock’ to depict the controversy regarding Huck Finn’s inclusion in the mandatory reading list for high school students. I will contradict David Bradley’s argument that “language hurts people,” in reference to use of the word ‘nigger’ throughout the novel, seeing as African American’s today use the word without any sense of degradation or hurtful intention. The student involved in the Tempe case argued that although the word doesn’t offend her and that she “is immune” to the word, she hates to see it affect other African Americans in a negative way. If she feels so strongly regarding this word, shouldn’t she take up arms with her fellow high school students who have popularized the word and stripped it of its negative connotations? Also people seem to forget that Twain strategically utilized the vernacular form of speech to relate the story to the time period in which it was set. Therefore, the use of the ‘n’ word is in no way meant to degrade or offend African American readers. Regarding the end of the novel, I will argue that, although the last 13 chapters of Huck Finn appear to discredit Huck and Jim’s relationship aboard the raft, ultimately the ending allows the reader to decide if the racial norms of society have been defeated by the two along their journey to freedom. My central argument that Huck Finn should be included in the high school curriculum is supported by the fact that it is so controversial, and no single analysis is correct or superior. It allows for thoughtful, substantial debate within a classroom setting that most novels fail to facilitate. So basically my ‘thesis’ statement will be something along the lines of: Although a superficial analysis of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn may conclude that the novel is indeed racist, a more in depth account of the story will reveal Twain’s use of satire, hypocrisy, and realism to emphasize the evils of falling victim to the rules of society. Furthermore, such a complex novel should be integrated into the high school curriculum in order to allow students to form judgments based solely what they hold to be true of Huck Finn. To organize my thoughts I will start with one or two pages of introduction, 3 to 4 pages showcasing the novel’s anti-racist qualities, 3-4 pages arguing that Huck Finn should be included in the curriculum, and 1 to 2 pages of conclusion to clearly restate my thoughts and drive home my argument.

Twainer

I believe that HuckFinn is a decent novel that has its place in history due to its own ambiguity. tHE VERY FACT THe THE NOVEL CAN BE DEBATED AS IT IS IS WHY IT IS SO IMPORTANT. I believe that this book should be taught in upper class men high school classes. It should be so not because of the novel itself, but the significance of the conversation that can derive from it. To tell you the truth, I do not believe that this novel was brutal enough in showing the horrors of slavery or in its depiction of rural life in the south. Therefore, I think that other books should be taught before, or along with HuckFinn, in order for students to better understand this sad time in out nations history. Children need to be exposed to these atrocities. No one should ever forget or try to ignore what happened then. To do so would only lend itself to a future of repeating the pass, instead of learning from it. I will use the passages that depict Huck's inner moral struggle and what he thinks is the "right" thing to do. I will also use the ending, and show how this dry satire screams out to be hated, on purpose. Twain's writings for the San Francisco Chronicle are incredible similar to to the end of HuckFinn. He wants to sicken you. No book that involves slavery shouldn't. But as I said before, students should read Fredrick Douglas or some other authors, preferably perhaps a slave writer, that more accurately and more upsettingly describe the way things were for slaves back in the eighteenth to nineteenth century America. Is the book racist? Yes. Is that what is in important? No. For the time this book was written this novel was incredibly not racist. When this book was written, African Americans were not considered human by many people in our country. We must always remember and learn from the past, as to never even remotely repeat it again.

GET OVER IT!

I strongly disagree with the assumptions that Huck Finn is a Racist Novel. The people that try to back up that argument are blowing it out of proportion. They are looking at such specific details such as the word "nigger," but what they really need to take in to perspective is larger ideas in the book. Yeah, maybe their is some racist dialog in the book, but remember, this is just DIALOG! Twain is only trying to create an accurate picture of life back in the day when slavery was a normal thing. If he wanted he could of lied about how people spoke back then and not incorporate the word, but would this really be helping anything? To my understanding the word in that book on supports the argument of how horrible slavery was back in the day. This is what these upset people need to realize, twain was not trying to degrade people of color; he was attempting to tell the whole truth of how horrible slavery was. “Wherein does its greatness lie? Primarily in its power of telling the truth.”(Lionel Trilling) These haters should stop being so close minded and try to actually finish the novel. If they proceeded to read the whole novel they would see that Huck is constantly going against society to help Jim. He is doing this because he knows that is wrong, and this is the message that Twain was attempting to put out when he wrote it. Twain wants every one to see how bad slavery was, and also how one small boy could overcome the "normal" and evolve to help a slave flee to freedom. As to the argument of if this book should be required to be read in public schools, of coarse it should! The school should make sure that their teachers have read the book and understand its moral before they jump to conclusions or let any of their students jump to conclusions.

Huck Finn

My argument is basically going to be that the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not a racist book and that it should be taught in school, but should be taught to seniors only. One of the parts of the novel that I want to use is when Huck returns to Jackson Island after learning that some of the townsfolk are going to go looking for the runaway slave on Jackson Island and he says "'Git up and hump yourself, Jim! There ain't a minute to lose. They're after us!'" (97) This line shows how Huck is thinking of Jim and him as in the same boat, as comrades. No one is after Huck, because everyone thinks that he's dead. The only one that they're after is Jim, but Huck still says "' They're after us!'" Another scene that I want to use is when Huck meets up with the slave catchers, but protects Jim from them instead of turning him in, which is what he has been taught to do all his life. Before Huck leaves the raft to see what the other men want, Jim says that pretty soon he'll be a free man because of Huck. That Huck is the "'bes' fren' Jim's ever had'" (140) and the only one that he has right now. That makes Huck feel really guilty about having to rat Jim out, and he ends up lying to the slave catchers to help Jim and keep him free. I want to use the part just before that, when Jim is talking about stealing his children and wife when he's free. Huck remarks that he is sorry to hear Jim talk like that, that it is such a lowering of him. This line shows that Huck believed that Jim was a good person, who wouldn't steal from other people. To my knowledge, many slaves were thought to be thieves back then, so Jim's talk wouldn't surprise too many white people, but it is surprising and unexpected to Huck. On page 315, Huck escapes from the King and the Duke and lites out to Jim and the raft. At that point, Huck 'borrows' a canoe to get to the raft, and in the storm that was going on, Huck could have easily left Jim and continued down the river on his own. Instead, he goes to the raft and tries to leave the Duke and the King with Jim. This action shows that Huck shares a feeling of comradeship with Jim, and sees him as a friend who is not to be left behind. I'll use Lionel Trilling mainly, for helping to make my point, and Jane Smiley as well, to argue with and find new passages that I can use. As for organization, I'll use the passages from the book in cronological order first, then use the critics to better finalize my points, and to bring up new ones that I didn't cover from the book passages.

huckleberry

I am going to defend Twain's novel. This wonderful story is not racist and the vernacular speech makes it very unique. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be taught in school because it is a renowned classic and it provides a valuable insight into the depths of the past. There are certainly instances where the book should not be taught, or maybe just portions of it. But this book can stimulate controversy and powerful emotions, which make school and discussions interesting. This book can be a very valuable tool, if not to understand great literature, but to understand the differences in society that were evident and still persist today.
Also, it is clear from Clemens' personal actions and view that he is not a racist, therefore it is evident that his novel isn't racist either. Twain's deftness as a satirist and his plea for human rights in other lectures and works make it clear that although the book may appear racist on the surface, just underneath it is a call for humanity. Twain is a skilled writer whose message is humanitarian. I kind of started my essay below...roughly

On our adventures with Huck and Jim, we are taken a bright journey through and to "the truly dark heart of the American Soul and of American History: slave country." This is a bright journey because of the brilliant writing that takes us there and the moral growth of a young child.
This is an adult novel written by an adult who grew up in the peak of slavery in America. Samuel Clemens, whose most famous pen name is Mark Twain, was born and raised in Hannibal, Missouri, the small riverside town that St. Petersburg is supposed to represent in the novel. At the time of Clemen's youth, Missouri was one of the 15 slave states of the South. Twain was continuously surrounded by the presence of slavery

Huck Finn

My opinions about the book are not as black and white as the critics we have read. I don't feel that the book itself is inherently racist, simply written about racist people in a racist time. As to whether it should be taught in schools, I don't think it should be straight out banned nor should it be required reading. It is not such an incredible work that everyone must read it. When the problems caused by the book outweigh its merit, it isn't really worth the trouble. However, in environments where it can be taught appropriately and does not cause tensions, there is no reason it should not be read. I plan to cite Jane Smiley to repute a few of her overstretched claims, and also T.S. Elliot and Lionel Trilling to counter some of their blind worship of the novel. I agree with much of Leo Marx's argument, and will use him to set up ideas. Within the book, I would like to look at both those passages that are celebrated as great anti-racist writing and those condemned as shamefully prejudiced. The Culture Shock movie will provide examples for when the book should be taught and when its just not worth it. Is this too wishy-washy a stance to take?

Huckleberry Finn

In my Huck Finn essay, i'm going to begin with arguing that the novel is an anti-racist novel because a) it's written in the language that was used in the time period, although offensive when used today the language used was not seen as offensive in the 1880's, and b) the novel is about a boy's journey with a slave in the slavery ridden south that transforms to a boy rebelling societies views in order to save the only true 'father figure' he's known, who happens to be a slave. From there I can create a stronger argument as to why the novel should be taught in schools. However the book should not be taught to simply any age group anywhere. I believe the novel should be taught in upper class high school english courses, classes consisting of juniors and senior who can more appropriately handle the controversial material and discuss it. I also think that the book should be taught mostly in mixed racial classes, you get multiple perspectives on the racist and anti-racist content in the book. I think I will be using excerpts from the novel, and quotes from Jane Smiley and Lionel Trilling.

HuCkLeBeRrY FiNn

I am going to argue that HuckFinn is not a racist book but use's racist language of the time period it was written in. The books anti racist plot may have its down moments, but the strong relationship between Huck and Jim is a more powerful message than the hundred plus times twain use's the "N" word. This book teaches great lessons and should be and eye opening experience for all regardless of color. HuckFinn should be a mandatory read in all high schools is the US so everyone can learn is lessons and teachings. If a student dose not agree with this book they should be allowed to skip the ending but not just discard the book completely. In the end the book is very anti racist and should be thought everywhere
AG$

Reading with an Open Mind

Well, my argument will be that the theme of this book is not at all racist and that the only racism in the novel is needed to put forth and back up Twain's theme in the novel. The theme i will argue that should be taken from this book is that of friendship and learning/thinking for yourself. I feel that if you did not take this away from the book you will not think for yourself and just focus on negative words that are used in the novel. The realism that Twain uses can be misinterpreted however, if you actually read the story that is told it is easy to tell that the negative attitudes come from characters that are either minor or ones that the reader will not like unless that reader them self is also a racist. While reading this book one must keep in mind that this is set in times where slavery was an everyday thing in the south and it wasn't a big deal to own one, this is racist but it is also just how it was. Our history teachers are not racist for teaching us of the past so with this being said i believe that Huck Finn is the definition of an anti-racist novel because it was written in one of the most racially segregated times of our history and ultimately it is about how a young kid is learning for himself that his new found friend is intelligent and has feelings as well which is a new idea for him. Twain had to make this character to bring Jim to freedom because the adult minds of this time were too corrupt that it just wouldn't make sense.
I will uses specifice quotes from the book itsself to back up my argument and i will aslo bash Smiley's opinion so bad. in addition to that i will use the help of Lionel Trilling to back up my paper. If that isn't enopugh, which it's not, i will use direct quotes from Twain himself on the issue of race, and some of David Bradley's thoughts on the issue will also help me set up my paper.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

When you take a first look at this novel, you see terms that are used that make the book sound racist, but as you look further into the entire meaning, you see that is not what it is at all. The wording and some of the actions such as the tricks Huck and Tom play on Jim are rude but that was the time. The term "nigger" is used in this book it does make the reader feel uncomfortable but without it in the novel meaning would be gone. My argument for this paper is going to be that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not a racist novel. While there are moments where all it seems is that Jim is being treated badly, the whole concept of the novel is how Huck escapes and then helps Jim to get to freedom. On page 140 when Jim says that Huck is the only true friend he has ever had the reader can see that Huck is trying to do good. Also, Huck even says that he will probably go to Hell for this but that he is willing to do so. Another time in the book when Huck trys to go ashore to see if the town they were near was Cario and ran into the two men on the boat, he lies to them in order to save Jim. After he lies the thinks back and says he probably should have told in Jim, but then soon convinces himself that he would feel just as bad as he did now if he would have. This shows that although he has grown up in a white family he can see the importance of people being treated equally. While this is never said, the reader can also look back to Huck's childhood and see how he was badly mistreated by his drunken father and infer that possibly he sees the importance to care for others from that. When him and Jim need to do something together or Huck refers to the both of them instead of lowering Jim to a level below him, he simply uses terms such as us and we. He looks to Jim as another person of fairly equal status and although he still uses some things that point toward him being racist we then look at his life and it makes sense. When this book was written it was during the time period of slavery. Treating African Americans as lower class citizens is just what was done. People did not think of them as people of the same importance and almost not even as the same species. It is like when Jim and Huck have the conversation about the French language and Jim can't understand why they need to speak another language and why since they were all human why French words are words too. This shows how in all groups of people they are slightly different from one another and without the understanding of others, only anger and rudeness will occur. Since Jim doesn't understand it, he almost gets mad in saying that Frenchmen need to speak English but that goes back to how most white people at that time thought everyone should have white skin in order to be human. As for this book being taught in school, I think that is a hard thing to decide. While this book could be viewed as racist, it is also a great starting point for both controvery and education. I think that in order to teach this book in a school environment, the teacher must look at the students in both the class and the school. If there is already a problem of using the n-word in a school, then the teacher then must decide whether reading this book is something that will diminish students ignorance towards other races and tell them what is right or if it will just foster more rude behavior. Is it a school where many kids eyes are closed to the world or is it a place where they know their history and understand how this was a very important time in history? This book has definetly become an American Classic and due to that many teachers feel they NEED to teach it. My opinion on this is that the teacher needs to observe the context of their class, assess how the book will be taken, and then decide whether or not they think it is appropriate. I think this book does have some good lessons in it but if there are students who have been greatly affected by racism, maybe this book will just make them more angry and rebel. Context is key.

"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a book that I personally found really boring but that I consider very interesting from a cultural and historical point of view.
What I plan to do in this essay is writing a comment about the book that will make the readers understand what I think about the story and how it developes throughout the pages.
The friendship that grows between the two main characters along the river represents Huck's realization that blacks are not a property but people with feelings and a dignity that needs to be preserved.
The period in which the story takes place was "dominated" by slavery and racism towards black people. It's a strong, real story that everybody, even today, needs to know and remember because it's important to know where we come from and what happened before us.
I think there is a slight difference between being racist and telling about a racist period of our history which is what the book does. "The adventures of Huckeberry Finn" shouldn't be treated like a novel but rather it should be treated a historical document.
Aside from this, I understand that this book can still hurt, offend and insult black people who see themselves in Jim and in all the blacks who suffered and died under the supremacy of the white race. This is the reason why I don't think the reading of this "novel" shouldn't be imposed.
The essays by Trilling, Marx and Smiley will help me write about the development of the book, the growth of Huck and his relationship with Jim.

Huck Finn Essay: the Road Map

My Huck Finn essay is going to center around this general argument: of course the book is racist and off-color, but it's biggest problem lays in that it is terribly written - the perfect example of an author who a) didn't care and b) didn't know what to write. It is a good book to be taught because of it's controversy but also because it is an excellent example of poor literature.
Sources used will include Lionel Trilling, TS Eliot, Leo Marx, and Jane Smiley. The first two do not agree with me: they thought it was an amazing, classic novel that was perfect in every way and not at all racist. Lionel Trilling will help speak to the horribly writing and the scatter-brained-ness while TS Eliot focuses more on the idea of "Boy and River" and how idealistic and moral the book was (although he made an good point in that the depiction of life in the South was very accurate). Leo Marx believes that the book was ruined in the last thirteen chapters where Tom Sawyer comes in and ruins it (very true but the book was a goner way before Tom Sawyer reappears). Jane Smiley absolutely hated the book period, although she focuses mostly on the tasteless way the African Americans were depicted rather than how poorly it was written.
The passages I plan to use from Huck Finn include our first depiction of Jim, which classified him as a "dumb Negro" and set him up as a caricature; the last thirteen chapters, which quash any growth that Jim has had as a character; and the contrast between when Huck and Jim are on the river as to when Huck is on shore. From the articles we read, I will use quotes that especially address the last thirteen chapters, the "moral growth" of Huck, the narrative, and the racism present in the novel.