Huckleberry Finn Argumentative Analysis

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Throughout previous years, America and society was not the way it is now; there were conflicts and different values that now seem as mistakes and regrets including the issue of slavery. America now regrets what was done before, but there is no way that it can be forgotten since it shapes how the world is today and the way of viewing society. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, the story takes place in the 1840s and it is about a white boy by the name of Huck, who runs away from his abusive father with a runaway slave named Jim along the Mississippi River. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has become a controversy in classrooms due to the constant use of the n-word which appeared 219 times in the book, school districts are …show more content…

The creator of the censored book is Randall Williams, the book is exactly the same as Mark Twain wrote it, but the n-word is replaced each time with the word “slave”. William claims that the book is meant for schools that have banned the original Huckleberry Finn story in classrooms so that students will still be able to read the book. William also claims that the changed word in the book is meant for people that are uncomfortable with the original book, the censored book is an “alternative” that still contains a “powerful” effect (Schneider). Although the alternative version sounds like a great idea, it is not because the n-word was put in the book for a reason and the effect that it has on the students would be changed. If the n-word was to be removed, then the message about how cruel slavery was and how people acted towards slaves, the word is known as offensive, which gives a powerful effect towards the book and to the students reading the book. As stated by David Bradley, “n****r has to do with shame...it is what made slavery possible,” the n-word is powerful because due to the word, people found it easier to address the slaves with that word and make them feel shameful for their work, it is a mistake that occurred in the past …show more content…

The n-word is constantly mentioned in songs by rap artists and between people, the word is a problem in classrooms because students begin to realize how serious and controversial the word is towards racism instead of it being used casually in conversations and songs. The book was starting to gain controversy in schools as early as in 1985, local schools in a city of Illinois had the book taken off of the required reading list due to African American parents Waukegan led by educator John H. Wallace due to perceived racism that came with the book (Baughman). One of the reasons for the book getting banned in local schools was because Wallace claimed that, “[it] serves to legitimate the word ‘n****r’ and humiliate students who are forced to read it aloud,” when students read the n-word aloud they may feel uncomfortable and embarrassed (Baughman). As it can be seen, controversies began at an early time because the n-word was found offensive and racist to be taught at school, but what parents do not realize is that the story is helping their child learn about the past and the decisions made. Without the story or the n-word mentioned, students will not know about America’s controversial past and everything that has happened since to change the way people think about African Americans and their views as well as values in society. If The Adventures of Huckleberry

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