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.