White Superiority In Mark Twain's Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn

Many students, scholars, and teachers agree that Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, is a racist book pushing racist ideologies. Are these individuals correct in their beliefs, or are they completely missing the point of Huckleberry Finn. Many of these persons say that Mark Twain was racist, and they say that his book, Huckleberry Finn, is just a tool that he used to spread his racist feelings. While many people may feel that this is the case, they have some key issues to their argument.

In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain uses Huck’s personal hyperboles, irony and an appeal to pathos as he subtly attempts to alter his Reconstruction's audience view on the African Americans role in society. Towards the end of the novel

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a coming of age novel set in the 1840’s in St. Petersburg, MO. Although written 20 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, America, especially in the south, was struggling with racism. The novel contains many thought provoking themes such as racism, social class, morals, and conforming to society’s expectations. Perhaps, one of the most important themes of the book is Huck’s refusal to conform to society’s rules or to be “Sivilized” by Widow Douglas. Throughout the novel Huck proves to the reader that staying true to himself rather than conforming to society’s expectations will allow him to live a more satisfied life.

Despite all the criticism, of racism and other questionable material for young readers, Mark Twain’s The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn is a superbly written novel, which in the opinion of this reviewer should not be remove the literary cannon. Twain’s novel is a coming of age story that teaches young people many valuable lessons and to some extend makes students reexamine their own lives and morals. The most common argument for its removal from the literary canon is that the novel is too racist; it offends black readers, perpetuates cheap slave-era stereotypes, and deserves no place on today’s bookshelves.  However one must ask if Twain is encouraging

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"

In Mark Twain’s novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the young protagonist Huckleberry Finn runs away from his abusive father with Jim, a black slave. Throughout the novel, Huck encounters people that fail to understand the injustice of slavery and violence, despite their education. Although Huck lacks any substantial education, his moral values and judgment are highly developed. In the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain uses uneducated, colloquial diction and deliberate syntax to provide ironic contrast between Huck’s rudimentary level of education and profound use of moral judgment.

portraying a very realistic slave raised in the South during this time period, and to

Twain uses the relationship between Huck Finn and Jim to portray a change in Huck’s view of society. Huck lives in a world where slavery is accepted, abused, and viewed as the “norm.” Growing up in this society, where the dominant race demonstrates racial superiority to the inferior, Huck also part takes in the activities that the society allows . Huck’s father, Paps, is a great example of the lenses of a white man in this vulgar society, “But when they told me there was a state in this country where they’d let that nigger vote, I drawed out... I says to the people, why ain't this nigger put up at auction and sold?”

After endless trials to test Huck’s philosophy, in the final moments of Huckleberry Finn, Huck has a revelation that all this time, his black traveling companion, Jim “was white on the inside.” But say Huck did understand that blacks were not naturally inferior to whites, that he understood the ideals of our founding fathers, that “all men were created equal.” Then, Mark Twain’s story would lead to the birth of a fresh new character, one who differs completely from the initial Huck Finn, a Huck Finn that sees pass a white-proclaimed social ladder. But instead, Mark Twain’s endless on end build up to what seemed like it should have been a powerful positive message about humanity ended up being the opposite. We naturally allow the worse to

Throughout The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain satirizes the idea of civilization, thus illustrating the racism, hypocrisy, and depravity prevalent within the aristocracy. His novel serves the purpose of elucidating the flaws existing in the elite society during the era of slavery, as he uses drastic scenarios to draw the reader’s attention to the cruelty ubiquitous in human nature. As Huck witnesses the hypocrisy and malice present in wealthy families, he begins to detest the upper class society and resolves to extricate himself from a “civilized” lifestyle. By showcasing the mistreatment of other humans in the upper class, Twain shocks and infuriates readers but attempts to bring awareness to the inhumanity of society.

An issue of central importance to Huckleberry Finn is the issue of race. The story takes place in a time of slavery, when blacks were considered inferior to whites, sometimes to the point of being considered less than fully human. But Huckleberry Finn challenges the traditional notions of the time, through its narrator and main character, Huckleberry Finn. While in the beginning, Huck is as unaware of the incorrectness of society’s attitudes as the rest of society is, he undergoes many experiences which help him to form his own perspective of racial issues. Through the adventures and misadventures of Huck Finn and the slave Jim, Twain challenges the traditional societal views of race and

Known as one of the most racially controversial, yet socially intriguing novels in respect to its time period, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn amazingly shows the contentious journey of two young men while, at the same time, pointing out societal and racial flaws and misconceptions. One character who developed through the novel, Jim, can be seen as developed from the perspective of Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer, and the reader. Notably from the perspective of Finn, the development of Jim drastically changed from that of a sambo with a goofy mindset, to that of a person who desired the same societal rights as others, therefore providing the reader with a more pristine understanding of racial conflicts in the past and in today's society. Mark Twain illustrates a time in American history where racial tensions were escalating, and incorporates the theme of race from the perspective of Huck, a white

A person’s looks can not determine how they feel about a certain race of people. Some of the nicest looking peoples harbor deep feelings of hatred towards races other than their own. Characters like Aunt sally, Uncle Earl, and Miss Watson all seem like very nice people, but they all accept and participate in, whether they realize it or not, racism. Almost all of the characters in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain seem to have pre-conceived ideas towards blacks, and the author does not seem to have any trouble writing the words of their pre-conceived thoughts or ideas. Mark Twain has an accepting attitude towards racism in his book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Twain, throughout the first part of this book, constructs a complex relationship between Huck Finn and Jim. In the beginning, Huck sees Jim as just a servant, a slave just there at the Widow Douglas’s house that acts a little too big for his breeches. After telling how Jim fancies himself highly, “Jim was the most ruined servant, because he got stuck up on account of seeing the devil and being rode by witches” (6). Huck looks down on Jim; Huck was brought up to believe whites are superior to blacks,(especially slaves). But, a turning point was when Huck saved Jim’s life on Jackson’s Island, “I was ever so glad to see Jim. I warn’t lonesome now” (37). Huck

In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, the idea of slavery and racism is integrated throughout the novel. The novel was written in 1884 after slavery was abolished but takes place before the Civil War when slavery was still legal. Even during Twain’s time, slavery and racism was still a big issue and not completely abolished. Around the early 1880s, the United States was in the process of trying to help the freed slaves live like normal people, but this plan, which was thought to be going on a positive path, is not doing so well.