To teach, or not to teach, that seemingly straightforward question comes to a deadlock in school when it comes to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. If readers take a superficial glance at the book, they will be aghast when they find out that n*gger, a derogatory term, is used over 200 times in the book (Rawls). However, readers cannot thumb through the pages and assume that the derogatory term is used for belittlement; rather, it is used in the context of that time period to help readers grasp a better comprehension. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be taught in School because the book considers the treatment of African Americans in pre-Civil War era, presents some of the diverse dialects found throughout the US, and …show more content…
She put me in them new clothes again, and I couldn’t do nothing” (Twain 4). A few pages later, the audience is introduced to Jim’s dialect when he speaks in the book for the first time and says: “‘Say, who is you? Whar is you? Dog my cats ef I didn’ hear sumf’n. Well, I know what I’s gwyne to do: I’s gwyne to set down here and listen tell I hears it agin’” (Twain 10). The usage of these certain dialects in the book aids the audience becomes more accustomed to the historical context portrayed in the book and also supplies the audience with knowledge pertaining to American accents and …show more content…
The usage of such racial epithets was to give the audience a better context of the epoch, to express the dialect used in the book, and to better shine the light on the predicaments of the slaves in the era. These opponents cannot avoid racism forever; however, as a recent study completed by the University of Arkansas found that over 80% of African Americans, 60% of Latinos, and around 40% of Caucasians still experience day to day racism, regardless of if they live in the North or South (Dowe). Moreover, major news channels, including, but not limited to, ABC News and U.S. News & World Report, even have specific, running pages devoted to the prickly issue. Sooner or later, the adversaries’ bliss is going be curtailed as they will face an imminent meeting with the reality that they did not want to
So as you can see the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a great piece of american literature and should be taught in all high schools. not only because it shows how racism was back in the late 1800s but also because it shows the true meaning of the word
Negroes do not like it in any book or play whatsoever, be the book or play ever so sympathetic in its treatment of the basic problems of the race. Even [if] the book or play is written by a Negro, they still [would] not like it” (Henry). In addition, John Wallace believes that the word “nigger” is so offensive that he rewrote the novel without the word “nigger.”
In addition to this, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be taught in schools because it teaches important moral lessons. Early on in the book, after Huck had come across Jim on Jackson Island, he’d decided to play a mean trick on him. He kills a rattlesnake and puts it on the foot of Jim’s blanket and expects that he will react like any stereotypical black person. “Jim’s eyes will bug out; his teeth will chatter; his knees will knock together,” (p.63) The joke turns bad when Jim gets bitten by the snake’s mate, and as a result Huck feels ashamed. But at this early point in the book, Huck doesn't blame himself because all his life, everyone around him had reiterated the idea that black people were property, not people, and they deserved
The discussion of whether the adventures of huckleberry finn should be taught in high school is debatable. But when looking into the details and words and the meaning behind the book, The adventures of Huckleberry finn should definitely be taught in high school.
It has been a major question over the years, should teachers teach their students Huckleberry Finn? Below are some reasons as to why they should or should not allow young students to read this book in class.
I think the old version of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be taught because, the only reason why Mark Twain used the n-word in the first place in the book is because that is how the people talked back in the day. Then you can’t replace the n-word with slave because slave refers to the actual repeal of human rights. That is not what the n-word means. The n-word is just another word for a colored person. “It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger; but I done it, and I warn't ever sorry for it afterwards, neither. I didn't do him no more mean tricks, and I wouldn't done that one
Should Huckleberry Finn be taught in schools? This question has been a topic of discussion over the past years and is still being talked about today. A lot of people say that the book should be banned from schools because of the racial comments in the book. People claim that it could offend the youth, and teach them unfit words. It is understandable for people to be concerned about the books language, but in reality all the book does is enlighten the youth on the history of slavery and many more. In Joan DelFattores article she states. “The elimination of "nigger" is presented not as censorship but as a rescue mission to save Huckleberry Finn from oblivion, because many secondary schools will not teach material that makes students
Moliere said, “Unreasonable haste is the direct road to error”, which is what most people thought when Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain was first published and assigned in classrooms. That allowing such a novel to be taught to children is a disgrace. Assigning the novel Huckleberry Finn, or one like it, in the classroom can result in both positive and negative consequences. In John H. Wallace’s The Case Against Hick Finn he claims this book causes embarrassment for African American children. Similarly, Paul Butler, argues that, despite the historical context, Huck Finn enforced racism among other students in his article Why Bother Reading Huck Finn. Opposingly, in History, Slavery and Thematic Irony in Huckleberry Finn, Richard K. Barksdale argues
In America, a country equipped with racism, there is a debate on whether Huck Finn should be taught in classrooms. NAACP’s and Reinhardt’s believe that the teaching of Huck Finn should not be censored or removed. However, many teachers and parents believe that Huck Finn should either be removed from the schools due to its racist context. Agreeing with NAACP and Reinhardt, the book should be taught in classrooms. If schools remove Huck Finn they are also removing the important teachings behind the novel. By teaching the novel Huck Finn, teachers emotional invest their students in the ugly topic of racism, expose them to a novel that educates them on the harsh reality behind violent words and proves that there is still
It is odd to think that a high school student would pick up the word “nigger” and use it against another student because high school students have already been exposed to topics such as slavery and racism. Therefore, it would be unlikely for a student to use “nigger” against another student given the fact that race is still a “volatile and divisive subject” in this country and high school students is not ignorant infants that can’t distinguish the rights and wrongs about the word “nigger.” (Williams, Randle). At this point in time teenagers are exposed to excessive profanity through the media, music lyrics on TV and many times it is not censored. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be kept in library shelves and schools in its original form because students can receive moral lessons and therefore, mature as human beings. A big part about how a student can react to the novel is how the book is being taught. Teachers should acknowledge the intention and purpose of Mark Twain, which was to appeal to the reader 's emotions through the use of specific diction. Along with teaching the literary elements of the novel the teachers should also imply the ideas and controversies that are being presented in the novel. Twain’s purpose was also to capture the moments that defined the 1800s such as slavery and racism. After all, the novel should be taught in its original
The novel Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain has been controversial on whether or not it should be read in high school. As some critics believe, Twain uses language that is inappropriate and damaging to students. Although some think that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is racist and inappropriate, I believe the novel should be taught because the book exemplifies the changing of morals, the lifestyle of America post Civil War, as well as allowing the students a chance to form their own opinion. The novel's main character, Huck Finn, experiences hardships throughout his early childhood. Huck had little to no guidance from his drunken father he ends up getting adopted by Widow Douglas. Huck's father, Pap, then takes Huck from Widow
With teaching the book as it was written by Twain, there could be some students who find it uncomfortable hearing the word a great deal of times; the author was well aware of this. School districts that choose to teach the book with the NewSouth alternation- or not teach it at all- argue that the book will teach students that using the word is acceptable and the blatant racism shown will be justified. They also argue that the word is not necessarily crucial to the plot and, therefore, can be removed without changing the classic American novel. David Bradley argues completely opposite of that, saying that even changing the N-word to “slave” completely changes Huckleberry Finn and diminishes Twain’s message. Bradley explains that replacing the
The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn is a book that about the adventure of a young boy named Huck and a slave named Jim. A huge number of students, teachers and parents think that The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn should not be allowed to be taught in any level of the education. However, The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn is one of the most prominent works in American literature, so high school students and higher education students should be taught this book. Stealing things, founded a gang for “killing people”, in The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn Twain used a lot of words to describe things above: teachers and parents are afraid of that if students read things like founded a gang or fight with people, and then students will imitate it. In this novel, Twain used lots of words that discriminate black people, if young students read those words, they will makes a bad influence because they can not handle it.
Lessons can always be learned. High school students really learn through two primary ways. The first way is through first-hand experiences. The second way, and arguably the most effective way, is through books and in class lectures. Mark Twain, arguably one of the greatest American authors, wrote Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a controversial book. Originally banned, this book brings readers to a pre civil war period, a time where racism is adherently present. This touchy subject creates a sense of uneasiness within the teaching community because they feel uncomfortable teaching such a horrible time in America’s history. This leads to teachers avoiding Huckleberry Finn. However, teachers who lecture and explore Huckleberry Finn concepts
In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain he writes about a controversial time. He writes about what things were like for African Americans and he tells it how they truly were, he does not sugarcoat our past. There have been disputes since his novel came out in 1884 whether or not it should be continued to be taught in schools. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a valuable novel and should continue to be included in high school curriculum because it teaches students about Twain’s realism style of writing, the dialect used in this time period, and the treatment from society towards African Americans.