Huck Finn

Huck Finn

Americans of Mark Twain’s time and somewhat after tended to cherish him as a nostalgic recorder of boyhood, high-jinks, a general harmless entertainer. I believe that that people are taking this story too seriously and need to realize that although controversial, it is a story of how it really was during times of slavery. Twain could have written it differently, but then the facts and information presented would not have been accurate. Twain believed that it was henceforward the duty of white people to make amends for the crimes of slavery. He may have been the least “racist” of all the major writers of his time Huckleberry Finn is a matchless satire on racism, bigotry, and property rights in human beings.

When Huck and Jim were floating down the river, away from society and from the things that made them different, there was no social class, making Huck and Finn even. Society was structured in such a way that it did not allow a black man to raise himself up, even if he or she did the actions that were required to do so. When Jim was on land, he was bound to those stereotypes and laws. However, when Jim was on the raft with Huck, they created their own social structure, where no one was of a higher class then anybody else. As the book began, Jim was portrayed as a simple, tired man who claimed he had seen the devil, and been attacked by witches. This simple image of Jim was just an introduction to the prejudice nature that Twain wanted his audience to hear at first. His true character, one of depth and thoughtfulness would be portrayed later, especially during times that the two were on the river. I think that Twain’s purpose in all of this, was to change the common thought that whites had about slaves at that time. It was believed that black men did not have rational thought, and should be treated as savages. Every action that Jim committed was against those stereotypes. I do not believe that this was a coincidence, but rather a clear goal that Twain had while writing the book. It is not possible to tell what spurred these thoughts into Twain’s mind, but maybe it was a distinct observation that Twain made of a slave during that time, and wanted to get the truth to the people, telling them that their stereotype was wrong.

Another matter that has caused great controversy is the casual and repetitive use of the word “nigger”. It is used by Huck and the townspeople alike. Many that read the book in the present day are very insulted by the use of this words, and this is one of the main reasons that they want