Introduction
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been a piece of American literary work for many years despite the criticism that has happened to the book and refusal of study of the book in schools. Mark Twain's novel has been widely read in the country despite the initial disapproval by the whites and its later criticism by the African Americans. The dissimilarities in perceptions of the novel's handling of racial themes go far beyond educational attainment and race (Fikes 240). In this term paper, I will simply explain how the views of Twain’s time has changed and the literature from which the way he writes has changed. There are many ways to interrupt the novel; therefore, I will give my input on the way I see the theme and story of the novel.
Mark Twain lived during a very dark time in the southern part of the U.S. Twain’s book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was a comedic and history piece of literary work that was published in 1884. Racism was crucial in the part of the time before the post-Civil War and after the Civil War. Plantations and many more types of slavery happened during Mark Twain's life while he was writing. Twain grew up in a household that slavery was just a common thing back then.
Twain uses his writings, though to speak about the events of America back in a realistic way. Twain used Huckleberry Finn to focus on the south’s major problem of racism during the time. Dialect was different while writing this book which uses the “N” word was a common word used during this time. Huckleberry Finn gains a lot of discredit due to the fact of dialect. One of the character's names of Huckleberry Finn was “Nigger Jim” the way Twain uses his dialogue and grammar are very key to the way people betrayed them (Twain et al. 56). Twain is criticized nowadays because, of the dialogue and dialect of which he uses even though it was very realistic. However, the language is an accurate representation of the language that as being spoken by rural populations in the Pre-civil War South (Mensh and Mensh 88).
Unveiling Hypocrisy, Society, and Humanity in Literary Representations
Twain’s representations was characteristic of the time. As a boy, Twain was a notorious truant who skipped school many times. He also witnessed various murders and also became friends with prisoners and slaves. He also attended minstrel shows. These events did not corrupt him. However, they informed many of his fictional works. A more “sivilized” upbringing would have robbed the country of important literature and also bored Twain. It was strong criticism of race and slavery. Twain was a satire who sought to represent the hypocrisy of the society in which he grew up. In the 1840s, Huck is a teenager who is a picaro from a low-class society. He is unlearned and rising in the world through his adventure. He is also portrayed as a holy fool and naïve revealing the problems that affect people in the society (Twain et al 67).
Navigating Racism, Morality, and Misinterpretation
Huck grew up in an environment surrounded by the n-word that is why he uses it without thinking. Twain tries to show how natural and morally accurate racism was for a character like Huck. Twain understood the pervasiveness of racism because he had encountered it firsthand. Twain grew up in a slave-owning family and therefore held racist beliefs from a young age. His ideas changed through the years because he interacted with abolitionists. Twain’s intention in the book was to show the corrosive and dehumanizing impact of slavery on slave owners and slaves (Fikes 240).
Many people though also think Twain was never racist. Huck was a white boy, and Jim was a grown black man, we see this the way of life through a kid, not Twain. Readers think that Twain used his ideas and opinions through Huck. All realness though Twain used Huck to bring to the readers what many White Americans thought during this age. Twain's intentions were misread during this book he was presenting the way many White Americans felt during this time.
The book is antiracist. It portrays the life of a white boy and a runaway slave who are looking for freedom together. They take on a raft to run down on a raft down the Mississippi river. Twain's novel explores various themes including freedom, loyalty, morality, friendship and America. Huck has a sound heart that triumphs over a deformed conscience and therefore makes a decision that he will “go to hell” rather than sell out his friend to slavery (Twain et al 56).
Even though the book Huckleberry was written after many years after the end of the civil war and the emancipation proclamation, the era was still struggling with racism and the effects of slavery. The period of reconstruction that sought to bring the United States together and integrate the freed slaves into society was a difficult time. Race relations were difficult. During Twain’s time, even though slavery had been abolished, black people were still being oppressed in the south. Therefore Twain's work was an allegorical representation of the condition that black people were facing after the abolition of slavery (Arac 34).
Today readers and many authors think Twain was racist for due to the way the story betrayed between Huck and Jim in the way he wrote and betrayed Huck laughing about Jim’s logical thoughts and thinking his were sane. The reader gathers from because, Jim is black, and Huck is white that Twain was racist. Twain never said though that Huck was better than Jim at this point most Americans thought they were better than most African Americans due to the skin color.
Huckleberry Finn is a novel that is accused of perpetrating racism because of its use of the word “nigger” many times throughout the novel. Further, the treatment of Jim and blacks in general in this book is a source of contention whereby most people who were opposed to it believed that blacks were portrayed as uneducated, superstitious and ignorant (Arac 34). Further, there is a belief that Twain was unable to rise above the black stereotypes that defined the black people during the era which most whites enjoyed and expected to use. The racial slurs employed in this book makes people believe that it intended to promote racism. The language used by Twain is considered bad grammar. The effect of the language used is that it continues to contribute to adverse racial stereotypes. There have also been some critics from feminists who believe that Twain uses the language to promote sexist portrayal of females in Huck Finn.
Huck Finn is also racist to some extent. Huck believes that Jim is a different man as opposed to what he is accustomed to what black man is. After Jim extends his help to Tom Sawyer, Huck states that “I know he was a white inside” (Valkeakari 29). Conversely, it is an extension of respect to the black man. However, the statement tends to equate integrity with whiteness. This is basic racism portrayed in the book.
During the chronological period within which Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published. Racism was a common thing as black people were considered inferior to white people. The whites had a superiority because of the colour of their skin. A black person was perceived stereotypically as an immature, physically strong, irresponsible and unintelligent. Blacks were also looked down upon because of their superstitious beliefs in witchcraft (Arac 34).
All these environments are well captured and depicted by Twain’s novel. Hunts father’s superiority and racism are captured in chapter 6 when Hunt observes him drunk and uttering racist rants. The man begins to state how a black college professor is inferior before embarking on a mission to kill Huck. Twain demonstrates the flaws existent in society because an evil man like Huck’s father is considered superior because of his skin colour. At the same time, Jim, who is a kind-hearted person even though black is deemed to be inferior (Mensh and Mensh 89). The other example of racism in the book is the murder of a drunkard older adult named Boggs by Colonel Sherburn. The killing of the old man indicates the superiority that existed in society and how people are looked down by people who hold power.
Even though the language used in this book is hard to understand for teenagers, they get to experience the life that Huck experienced. They understand the importance of keeping secrets in the same way Huck kept his secrets by hiding Jim so that he could not be sold again as a slave. It shows that friends ought to protect those who are in trouble(Valkeakari 32). They get to understand that the worlds they create are more real and intelligible compared to the corruption and hypocrisy that the adult society propagates.
Racial literature has changed since Twain's times because the N-word is no longer accepted in most literary works, especially that which is read in schools. The use of the racial slur is criticized greatly by parents, students, teachers and other critics. Today most literary works that are to be read by children avoid using such direct and naked words as were used in their natural and historical contexts(Valkeakari 42).
The banning of this book prevented it from being studies in school. This prevented students from learning the essential lessons that Twain was trying to teach young people about slavery, race, morality, life during this era and other lessons. This situation shielded students from finding the truth for themselves. It denied students from learning from the mistakes that were done previously that would have been impactful in their lives. When people read the book today, they get a different meaning than it what was intended by the author. This is because of a lack of understanding of the historical context of the book. If the book was understood in its historical context, it is an interesting, informative and coming work of literature.
The failure of the novel to be studied in school due to the various demonstrations towards its ban portrays the book as an evil, immoral and inappropriate. However, this is not the case because after reading the book, a person gets to familiarize with the environment and situation that people during this era lived and the challenges they faced.
Conclusion
In conclusion, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a novel that is accused of perpetuating racism, and that is why it was banned as a learning material in school. However, reading the book, it shows how Twain was influenced by the era he was living in to write about race, slavery, freedom and other injustices. The book indicates the reality of the situation that was being experienced at the time, and it would not be appropriate to hide these experiences. Those who believe the novel promotes racism accuse it of using racial slurs and also stereotypically portraying various characters. However, this was the actual situation during the Civil War, and Twain was, therefore, accurate and appropriate in capturing the situation in its natural form. The failure of the book to be used in schools denied students the opportunity to learn about the history of united states and how slavery affected slaves, slaveowners and society as a whole. Even though the book employs various racist slurs, it aims to reveal the natural and historical context of the book and the reality of the situation, and Twain did not intend for the book to promote racism. I believe the desire was to point racism and to speak against it as well as other forms of oppression and violations against black people.
