Mark Twain’s novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, caused controversy throughout the nation due to its constant use of the n word. Many thought it was too inappropriate for high school students, and degrading to African Americans. However, Mark Twain was a satirical writer and most likely his purpose of the derogatory term was not degrade African Americans but to recreate the same dialect used in that time period set which was after the Civil war and the South. The use of the word was to demonstrate how racist America was before and to show the evolution of American now. Although some people want to ban the book from high school because the n word was used numerous amount of times, we should not ban the book because it's used as a historical …show more content…
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not the only book people think that should get banned but also other books including Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird and John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men that cover racial inequity (Source B). Although if all three of these classic books be removed of the school curriculum students would not be able to relate to other pieces of text to demonstrate racism in our country. These books are highly popular and famous, taking them out for students to not learn in school would also be absurd because the people who wanted removal of those books were attacked of the racial remarks, more so in Huck Finn, to offend them in a way the other did not intend to. Some people say putting this book on hold for college or even graduate school would be better because it is not the right appropriate introduction to such controversial issues (Source D), yet even in the world today there are bigger issues facing racism than one offensive remark used constantly which makes it unjustified. According to Source H, Rawls, is a shame to keep the racial remark as a barrier to not learn and enjoy the book. The people who think that high school students should put books like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn most likely tend to be ignorant and sensitive to let that offend …show more content…
The people say that the use of the n word in the book insults the black community. Nevertheless, the black community is treated poorly various times in the United states, Mark Twain’s novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not one of them. Twain writings is comprised of satirical work, his diction of describing a black man is not to degrade African Americans but to help readers understand and explore racism and slavery (Source H). Besides that, the book should be banned from high school students until taught in college. On the contrary, if high school students did learn this before college it may benefit them educationally for more difficult concepts taught in college and generally in the world. This won't just benefit them for the future but it also helps them become less ignorant, oblivious and be more knowledgeable about those
The book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was first published in December of 1884. It was first banned in Concord, Massachusetts from the Concord Public Library in March of 1885. Since it was first published, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been opposed and banned. The book is powerful and provides an amazing window into what this country was like in the time period it takes place in, banning this book is not an ethical thing to do because readers learn and grow from it and people should know how the United States was in that time period so that we do not regress and move backwards as a society.
The act of banning something is an aggressive measure. However, this being said whether to ban Mark Twains The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has long been debated. While some say that the book is offensive and disrespectful, others claim it to be a valuable learning lesson. Because of its beneficial lessons, its way of shocking the reader, its reputation as being one of the best novels in american history along with other controversial books being allowed in high schools, The Adventure’s of Huckleberry Finn should be read by every High School across the country.
How many years have passed since public discrimination against blacks ended? How many times have you personally heard someone make fun of someone because they are black within the past five years? How many times have you heard the “N” word being used as not an insult, but as a nickname for a friend? The truth is: In 2016, the “petrifying” “N” word has become less of an insult, and more of a simple nickname that many teens and young adults use for each other. The simple connotation of the word has been modified throughout the years from being something that was used as hurtful slander of the black population, to a petty pet name. For this simple reason alone, all of the arguments about Huckleberry Finn being “Racist Trash” and not about anti-racism are erroneous. I believe that Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn eloquently conveys an anti-racism message to it’s readers by simple means of satire, hyperbole,
Mark Twain’s novel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, has sparked much controversy since its publication in 1884 due to countless racial slurs and stereotypes; in fact it is the most commonly banned book in American history (source). While many argue that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be banned, the literary merit, namely the realistic setting and characterization, outweighs the vulgarity and crude language. Twain’s satirical social commentary
“Who gets to decide what I get to read in schools?” This question was brought up by Dr. Paul Olsen in a recent lecture. This question inspires many other questions revolving around the controversy of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It makes one wonder if books like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be included in high school curriculum even with all the controversy about them or are they better left alone. Should The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn be taken off of school reading lists because of a single word when it has so much more to offer students? The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be included in high school English curriculums because it is relevant to current issues, it starts important conversations about race
First off, I would like to ask you if you think Huckleberry Finn should be banned from society? With that question in mind I would like to tell you why it should not. The Novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, according to an offended citizen, that the novel "should be removed from schools curriculum and expunged from public library shelves." This novel is already banned from all black schools and Christian schools for the profusely use of the "N" word and the insults of religion by Mark Twain. The "N" was used over 200 times throughout the course of the novel. Also, the actions of Huck and other negative characters in the novel does not help plead my case on why I disagree with this citizen. I disagree with this citizen and I think it should be allowed in schools curriculum and in libraries because it is a classic American novel and it shows how America has evolved as a nation. Huck Finn lies profusely in the novel, depicts African Americans negatively or using the "N" word, and his attitude is a negative influence on children today.
High Schools in the United States should not ban The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This book is one of the most important components of American literature in our libraries today, it throws the reader into a time when slavery was lawful and accepted, and gives the reader a new perspective on slavery in general. Until civil rights groups can come up with a better argument than the word “nigger” creating a “hostile work environment”(Zwick) it should not be taken off the required reading list of any High School in the country.
The decision to ban the novel Huckleberry Finn from classrooms and libraries has been an ongoing controversy. The presence of the 'n word' and the treatment towards Jim, and other blacks in general, has made many readers uncomfortable. Despite this fact, Huckleberry Finn has been and remains a classic read. I do not believe the novel should be banned or sanitized because it is a part of American history whether it is good or bad, also we have no right to change someone's writing simply because we do not like how it is written, Mark Twain's writing should not be penalized because of the ideals of today.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was written by Mark Twain, published in 1884, and according to Alison Flood in the article US school stops teaching Huckleberry Finn because of 'use of the N-word', “one of the most-challenged [novels] of all time.” The story depicts the relationship between a young white boy who is running away from home and a grown slave who is running away to escape slavery. The novel focuses on Huck Finn growing up pre-civil war in deep and very racist south. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should stop being taught to high schoolers because it is too open to interpretation, and doesn't
This fictional, satirical follow-up to to Mark Twain’s 1876 novel is just as popular, although for most it’s for different reasons. The amount of times that the “n-word” is used is between 160 and 213 [2]. Since the 1950s, black parents and some white sympathizers have called this book out as being racist. As for my opinion on this, I never got why this was bad. Sure, it may seem racist to us, but in the context of it’s time, there’s really nothing wrong. That was the controversy of it, as for the story itself, it’s a classic in it’s own right.
The classic American novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain has been a source of controversy since it was published. The controversy is centered around Twain’s use of the N word. It is a very heinous, powerful word that is almost always offensive. Mark Twain is well known as a satirist, in laymen's terms he makes light of social issues through his use of language. The story takes place in pre-civil war America so in order to effectively show the racism of the decade he had to use their vernacular. He did not intend to offend. He actually meant to make you feel uncomfortable with the racism. Huck Finn should not be censored because literary decisions should be left to the authors to make (5 Kathleen Parker), we need examples of ignorance to provide contrast to how far we have come, and because The powerful language Twain uses is necessary for the story and the story would be worse off for it.
As for some, the novel of Mark Twain, known as Huckleberry Finn, is subjecting high school students to a literature they are not mature enough to handle. These individuals who share in this idea encourage the novel to be introduced to students after their college enrolment. This is simply because they are not comfortable exposing the word, “nigger” in such a manner that it can be viewed as harmful to African Americans. My stance on this subject is very in favor of exposing the novel to high school students for many reasons. I find that many people look at the word “nigger” in only one viewing, and need to broaden their views of this word. The maturity of high school students is almost the same as those in college. However, many college students
Stephen Chbosky once said, “Banning books give us silence when we need speech”. Many critics and schools agree that Huck Finn should be banned because of its coarse and racist language, resulting in the ban of this novel by thousands of schools around the U.S. Huck Finn is a young boy who lies about his own death to help a runaway slave named Jim. Despite the racism and use of derogatory language throughout the novel, Huck Finn is an informational text that depicts history throughout its time and educates others on the real background of slavery.
Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was thought to be very controversial, which has led to many schools banning the book for numerous reasons. One reason being the dialogue between the characters, and how the characters treated on another. In the novel, the main protagonist was Huckleberry Finn. He was a young, white southern boy who lived in a town near the Mississippi River in the nineteenth century. He was a troublemaker who would do what felt right. In the novel, Huck runs away, where he runs into Jim(a runaway slave). Both Huck and Jim run away to gain freedom, and end up running away together. Through their journey, they come across many problems, one being racism. Throughout the book, we see that dialogue and dialect was
This book has been banned from school libraries all over the country because of the main character's teenage angst, which many feel is too graphic for teenagers, and its profanity. Profanity, whether it be frequent or a rare occurrence, is a characteristic of many literary classics, as is the use of racial epithets.In the book Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (ranking number 2 on the list), an epithet is use many times over to describe the people of color in the book. Now since the book was published in 1885 and such language was common at the time, I do not belie...