How Does Twain Present Racism In Huck Finn

Huckleberry Finn is not a racist.. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  By: Mark Twain is quite the opposite of a racist book. You would think saving someone’s life instead of getting money is the correct decision, right? In this essay I will describe how this story tells how Huckleberry Finn does the right thing even though slavery was accepted at the time. Huck Finn is not racist because he chose the merit of a person over money, he saved lives and helped others, regardless of their color or position in life. Huck Finn did these things that today would be accepted as correct, but at that time, could be viewed as wrong.

Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been controversial ever since its release in 1884. It has been called everything from the root of modern American literature to a piece of racist trash. Many scholars have argued about Huck Finn being prejudiced. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain uses satire to mock many different aspects of the modern world. Despite the fact that many critics have accused Mark Twain’s novel of promoting racism, through close analysis of the text, it becomes remarkably clear that Twain is satirical in his writing as he ridicules slavery and the racist attitudes prevalent in his day.

Apart from being one of the landmarks of American literature, Mark Twain’s classic tale,The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is a mirror of the deeply embedded racist attitudes of the Deep South in the 1880’s. First, not to mention the most controversial and obvious, is the liberal use of the “n” word throughout the book. Taken as a derogatory term by modern-day Americans, Twain’s use of the “n” word is simply a reflection of the times. Huck Finn was written when cruel and unjust treatment of colored people were commonplace and use of such a word didn’t get so much as a second thought.Huck Finn depicts a time when slaves were not treated as people but as things without emotions or personalities, mere property. For instance, Jim is initially known only in relation to whose property he is. He escapes from being continuously treated as property, even sold to a family that will most likely treat him even less humanely.

When people are unfamiliar with those they do not know personally, they tend to generalize and discriminate that group. Huckleberry Finn grew up with a racist point of view. He viewed African American people as one group, instead of seeing them as unique individuals. However when Huck built a relationship with Jim, a runaway slave, he began to see him as unique and not just a part of a group. Huckleberry Finn is a book about about a boy who learned that you can't discriminate against a group of people that you aren't familiar with because once you get to know someone, you realize that everyone is special in their own way.

     The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is one of the greatest, most daring novels in the world. Mark Twain’s style helps to realistically portray early America. Mark Twain tells the story through the voice of Huck, the very kindhearted main character. Everything that Huck says reflects the racism and black stereotypes typical of the era. This has lead to many conflicts from readers since the novel was first printed. However, the story has inspired some. James W. Tuttleton says in an article he wrote that “Huck Finn is regularly denounced as racist trash” (The San Francisco Chronicle [1885] 6) . Yet, again to oppose that is a quote by a reader, “Anyone who is

The famous American writer, Mark Twain, in his novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, writes about the racism that infected society in the 1800s. The story is about a young boy, named Huck Finn, who meets a black slave named Jim and embarks on an adventure to free Jim. Twain writes this book after slavery was abolished to ridicule racism and unveil the frivolous idea of slavery. He writes to the many people who condescend blacks and continue to look down on them. Throughout the novel, Twain satirizes the idea of racism by using hyperbole, ignorance found in society, and irony in order to cause the reader to reflect on human's vices.

When taking a look at Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn, racism is a large theme that seems to be reoccurring. What some may think to be racism in Twain's words, can also be explained as, good story telling appropriate to the era the story takes place in.

     When Huck crosses paths with Jim, he sees him as an equal; “ I was ever so glad to see Jim. I warn’t lonesome now.'; This was a shunned idea and it must have taken a lot of intelligence to be such a free-thinker and accept a ‘nigger’ as an equal. This is an admirable trait of Huck’s, if all people could think like Huck then racism wouldn’t exist.

Mark Twain has always been one of the most controversial authors of all time. Though in recent years, there has been increasing controversy over the ideas expressed in his novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In some extreme cases the novel has even been banned by public school systems and censored by public libraries. The basis for this censorship is the argument that Mark Twain's book is racist, but in reality Twain was against racism and used this book to make people aware of what was going on in the south. He did this by using the regional dialect of the south, showing the attitude of the other characters in the novel toward black people, and showing his depiction of black characters. If one were to "read between the lines"

Many creative people take the matter of equality into their own hands, because the voices of colored people, become silenced under the many societal issues, therefore it takes books like the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and movies like Black Panther to invoke a passion for equality among people. Many people of color were, and still today are discriminated against, throughout the years people have not been very concerned with taking action. The voices of the colored population have been muffled by the many other societal issues. People claim it is not as important for these people to get the justice they deserve as many others require more help than people of color. To give these people a voice it takes subliminal protests by various sources of media. Books, movies, and other sources promoting the rights

Through different situations, Twain is able to represent racism issues through drastically contrasting characters, including a drunk, a nun, and a slave. However, besides the white, young, pure main character, Huck’s experience with the pressures of society on racism, Twain was also able to give the readers the point of view of fully grown white men at the time: the Duke and the King. The Duke and the King, unlike Finn, have already been subjected to years of brainwashing by society on the topic of racism. Yet these men are more concerned on survival than on social values and appropriation. This sets a circumstance to consider racism when the living state of the immoral, white crooks are at the level of “dirty”, runaway blacks under the law

As their relationship evolves, the portrayal of injustice and prejudice comes up through the way Huck treats Jim. As they escape, conflicts come up, in which race plays a big factor. One of these disputes serves as a turning point, as Huck lies to Jim about being separated in the fog; in other words, Huck "denies his vulnerability by projecting it onto the slave" (Lott) . Eventually, Huck apologizes to Jim, but it’s only after mentioning that it took him fifteen minutes to “work [himself] up to go and humble [himself] to a nigger” (96). This remark made by Huck enables the understanding that, although he is an outsider himself and he sees things differently than other because of his circumstances, he is still “imprisoned by [his] social milieu” (Evans).

As an enormous success in Samuel Clemens; most commonly known by the alias: Mark Twain, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn had been the landmark novel in Samuel’s career concerning the prejudice of society during the mid-1830s to mid-1840s. Reoccurring instances of racism, hate crimes, unfair treatment, and/or pure hatred toward those of differing appearance or style, were thoroughly revealed throughout the course of Huck Finn and Jim’s venture toward salvation. The story of Huckleberry Finn reveals the world like a mirror: Uncovering the hermetic rectitude that is the deep South.

People often hesitate to accept what they do not understand. In the absence of love and compassion, it is no question that fear, ignorance, and hatred, all contribute to a melting pot of negativity in the world. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, is about the love and friendship cultivated by a young boy and a black slave on the Mississippi River. Despite the pair’s differences, they are able to endure the struggles and difficulties that the toilsome journey brings. Mark Twain, in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, emphasizes the shift in Huck’s view towards slavery by contrasting Huck’s initial tone of reflectiveness to his assertive tone, both collectively addressing the issue of racism in society.

Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain over seven years, is considered one of the best American masterpieces ever published, and a very socially active novel. Through the plot and development of the main characters, Twain discussed the paradox of slavery in a free country, as well as his abolitionist beliefs on slavery. Throughout his life, he witnessed slavery in the United States as a whole and its impact on his life, which was transferred to include slavery in this novel. Throughout the novel Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain discusses the paradox of slavery in a free country and expresses a clear social statement about the immorality of slavery.