Theme Of Ignorance In Huckleberry Finn

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is considered one of the ‘Great American Novels’ and is taught in American high schools all over the globe, but is nonetheless a difficult book to read and comprehend. This difficulty arises from two main problems. Firstly, Socratic irony is evident throughout the novel and it is important for the reader to grasp and make sense of that, which throughout the novel becomes gradually more difficult. And secondly that in order to be able to comprehend the novel, the reader must be prepared to place the novel in a larger context literary and historically. However, these obstacles can be dealt with and surpassed.

Black. Nigger. Slave. All were common words in conversation before the end of slavery, and even until the Civil Rights movement 100 years later. Mark Twain’s “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” provides clear examples of racism present in the mid- to late-1800’s, but with a central focus on showing how attitudes can change.

Aside from the scientific aspect of social influences, we can observe this habit in fiction as well, like Huckleberry Finn. In the novel, the whole society follows a collective reasoning and collective values, specifically around slavery. Blind conformity was not a rare2 theme in this novel, as well as going off of what was learned and taught. This is represented through Huck when he chooses to listen to others on slavery until he has a personal experience with Jim, a slave, and begins to change his mind. The transition between blind conformity and independent thinking shows that Huck begins to think for himself and follow his conscience instead of following what he was told instead.

But according to Michael Meyers, “It is in the classroom, exactly, where the word ‘nigger’ belongs. It does not belong in the street, in casual conversation among whites or between blacks.” (67). John Wallace feels that because the word “nigger” appears over 200 times throughout the story, it “has caused him to be traumatized as a high-school student when it was required reading.” (“View of Slavery Still a Hot Topic”). Wallace went so far as to change the book, replacing any words that he felt were offensive to black people with other non-offensive words like slave or black man. When Wallace changed this book to what he felt was less offensive, the novel lost its irony, and its values (“View of Slavery Still a Hot Topic”). Other people argue that the text is harmful for young African-American students to read, but they must realize that Twain was writing for the time of the story. He wrote these words as a reminder that the way people acted in the past was unacceptable, and should not be tolerated, nor repeated. He knew that the way he had the characters treat Jim and the other slaves was wrong, but he was writing a period piece. These actions fit the way people acted in American society in the 1830's and 1840's (Cryer 60). Twain goes on to show that even though Huck has been brought up to think of blacks as only slaves, and that he knows that freeing a slave, is not only

Ethical Observation from Huckleberry Finn In Mark Twain's "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," there are numerous instances where ethical and moral dilemmas are presented, resonating deeply with readers. One such instance occurs in Chapter 12 when Huck grapples with the decision of whether to help Jim, a runaway slave, escape to freedom or return him to his owner, Miss Watson. The ethical dilemma Huck faces in this situation can be analyzed through the lens of Kantian Ethics, particularly focusing on the concept of the Categorical Imperative.

“Huck Finn” story can be a debatable when it comes to history, and what the story is about. Some argue that Mark Twain’s abuse of using the “N” word triggers racism especially that this book was written when slavery became illegal. As one student said, "It is estimated that the word nigger is used 392 times which reinforces a negative stereotype of African Americans represented by the use of this derogatory word" (Jackson). Some can still argue that this book can be a bad influence to the youth as they might be using the “N” word as a racist rant. For some, it is very disturbing, upsetting, and bringing back the past.

Throughout the novel, Huck uses repetition in one of his phrases with the N-word. He uses the N-word to describe African Americans and how they are basically useless. That shows how inequality was demonstrated back in the day and it still is used today in different occassions. Inequality has changed in many different matters. Mark Twain demonstrates the use of inequality and racism throughout his novel that might be quite offensive to many individuals.

Huck Finn, a narcissistic and unreliable young boy, slowly morphs into a courteous figure of respect and selflessness. After Pap abducts the young and civilized Huck, Huck descends into his old habits of lies and half-truths. However, upon helping a runaway slave escape, Huck regains morality and a sense of purpose. Throughout The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck lies to characters, casting the authenticity of the story into doubt but illustrating Huck’s gradual rejection of lying for himself and a shift towards lying for others.

Mark Twain went against endless amounts of criticism about his racist’s comments in his novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The character of Jim is demeaning to African-Americans as he is portrayed as a foolish, uneducated, black slave. The “n” word is also used in the book describing him and many other African-American characters in the story. However, some see this book as anti-racist and believe that the use of racist’s comments is not racist at all. Those who think that are mistaken because Huck Finn in clearly a racist novel.

Ever since its publication over a hundred years ago, controversy has swarmed around one of Mark Twain’s most popular novels, Huck Finn. Even then, many educators supported its dismissal from school libraries. For post Civil-War Americans, the argument stemmed from Twain’s use of spelling errors, poor grammar, and curse words. In the politically correct 1990’s however, the point of argument has now shifted to one of the major themes of the book: Racism. John Wallace once said of the book, “It’s the most grotesque version of racist trash” ever written. Were Twain’s archetypal characters and use of vernacular language an assertion of his own racist views, or a critique of the injustice of

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a novel full of racism and hypocrisy of the society that we know. Huck continually faces the many challenges of what to do in tough situations dealing with racism and what the society wants him to do. With the novel being written in the first person point of view gives us insightful information into the challenges the Huck is facing and gives us a look into Huck’s head. Huck uses many different techniques to deal with his problems and he gets through them with the end result always being what Huck believes is right. Through Huck’s perspective we see how he deals with all of the racism and hypocrisy of society to form him into the character that he is and to serve the themes of the

Set in the Antebellum South, Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn documents a landscape that differs greatly from the poised and picturesque scene associated with the contemporary South. Today’s South is synonymous with with ice cold pitchers of tea, ceaseless etiquette exuded on wraparound porches, and seemingly romantic drawls. However, the South that Huck resides in, tells a different story. Specifically, his South is a place where suitable behavior is associated with the acceptance of slavery, and racist slurs pepper every sentence. As a result, any deviation from these behaviors leaves an individual ironically branded with a connotation of being uncivilized. Due to this distorted view of ethics, any character with even a shred

Mark Twain being raised in a town where slavery existed and slaves were called “niggers” this was normal for him and wasn’t considered offensive to Blacks. This racial term is repeatedly used in the book and today that word is very offensive to most people, but during the era Twain set the book in it was not like that. Black people were just called this without any thought to the name. Throughout the novel, Huck struggles with dealing with how different Jim is, and learns of Jim’s heart and humanity. A word that is commonly used today that we might not find offensive could be in forty years to other people; because they see a meaning behind the word that actually had no meaning when it was originally used. Twain was clearly not writing to offend anyone or make it so people felt uncomfortable teaching it, like he said in the beginning before the novel " Persons attempting to find a

The following paper will briefly show arguments, and conclusions within the writings of Mark Twain’s story Huckleberry Finn. I will discuss the various themes that Mark Twain is bringing to light within his story. This paper will show how Mark Twain uses those themes within the story, and how they are specifically used. I will also briefly discuss the life of Samuel Clemons, the author known as Mark Twain, and give the reasoning behind choosing the name of Mark Twain when writing his novels. Themes of escapism will be discussed.

Many novels have used symbolism to express certain feelings and emotions in discreet ways. What is symbolism? "The practice of representing things by means of symbols or of attributing symbolic meanings or significance to objects, events, or relationships" (Dictionary.com). Numerous authors use the same denotations to illustrate different thoughts or ideas. Mark Twain uses various symbols, such as the river and the land to expose freedom and trouble in his novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.