"Huckleberry Finn"

Book Review # 99434

African-American Studies > Racism
English > Analysis
English > Argument

"Huckleberry Finn"

Examines the debate over whether Mark Twain's "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" is a racist text.

1,381 words () | 5 sources | MLA | 2007 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper argues that, while Mark Twain's "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" raises a number of racial issues, it is not a racist text. In particular, the paper notes the commonality of racial epithets during Twain's day and suggests that this explains the "excessive" use of derogatory terms towards African-Americans. It then briefly outlines the position of those who consider the text to be a racist one, offers the counter-argument of those opposed to such a characterization and then concludes by outlining why this writer supports the widespread distribution of Twain's master work.

From the Paper:

"Briefly stated, this writer cleaves to the view that Huckleberry Finn is not a racist text. It is not racist because it is meant to be a sharp denunciation of the slave-holding society which dehumanized African-Americans and it is also a text which shocks people into considering how racism works so insidiously to graft itself onto the fabric of a culture that even ugly racial epithets become distressingly common. Ultimately, this writer agrees with Leider and Wilson that American students - at a suitable age - need to be shocked into seeing the ugly side of American history before revisionists "white-wash" it and marginalize the role of slavery in the development of the nation. In the end, even if Twain was subconsciously racist himself, the grotesque nature of many of the whites in the book clearly reveals that his sympathies lie with destroying any fatuous belief that the "Old South" was chivalrous and somehow humane."

Sample of Sources Used:

Als, Hilton. "More Harm than Good." New Yorker, 77.47 (11 Feb. 2002: 82-88.
Kaye, Frances W. "Race and Reading: The Burden of Huckleberry Finn." Canadian Review of American Studies, 29.1 (1999): 13-48.
Leider, Paula. "Does Huck Finn belong in My Classroom? Reflections of Curricular Choice, Multicultural Education, and Diversity." Multicultural Education, 13.4 (2006): 49-50.
Twain, Mark. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Electronic Text Center, University of Virginia Library. 2006. University of Virginia. 20 Sept. 2006 <http://etext.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/Twa2Huc.html>
Wilson, Brian. "The Value of Censorship." Points of View: Banning Books 2004: 1-3. TOPICsearch. EBSCOhost. University of Calgary Lib., Calgary, AB. 20 Sept. 2006 <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tth&AN=12421493&site=ehost-live>