Jessi Johnson Miss Ward English 11 29 February 2024 Should The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn be Banned The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn may be a banned book, but that did not stop it from becoming a best selling book. This book does in fact depict hints towards the racist thoughts of many people at the time, but these actions and certain vocabulary used were very common for the time in which this book takes place, and as you read it you learn about how Huck struggles with the issues of racism himself and how he grows from it; therefore, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should not be on the list of banned books. The racism in this book should not be overlooked and just brushed under the rug, but it should also not be something that stops …show more content…
This being said, the hurtful words in this book do not have to be said when reading it aloud. It takes a very little amount of effort to just replace saying the n- word with a word such as “slave”. For example, when the book says, “...everybody naturally despises an ungrateful n-...,” (212) the reader can instead say, “...everybody despises an ungrateful slave...,” or when the book says, “...whilst the others were helping the n- clean up the things.” (171) the reader can say, “...whilst the others were helping the slaves clean up the things.” This can be considered a simple fix to a problem that might scare some people away from reading this book or wanting the book banned. Even though this book has very strong opinions about racism, that does not change the fact that there is a lesson to be learned from it. Even the main character of the book, Huck, learns these lessons himself. Throughout the book, there are multiple instances where Huck tells the reader about his ongoing moral struggle with
Over the 129 years for which the book has been in print, Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been regarded with much controversy, for many different reasons. As it has progressed, the subject of this controversy has been almost constantly changing. This essay will explore some of the claims and explanations of the controversy, as well as a discussion on whether the book is even that controversial. While everyone is entitled to their own opinion about this novel, The main complaints seem to revolve around three core topics: Twain’s portrayal of Jim and other blacks, The extensive use of the racial slurs and racism, and the final chapters of the book itself.
Abby Gross Mr. Bruneel AP Lang- Period 7 10 April 2014 Exploring Censorship of Twain’s Great American Novel: A Literary Critique To delve into a topic as serious as book censorship, one must first determine the purpose of reading, of literature in general. Blahblahblah (what Ms Buckingham said).
“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
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 Huckelberry Finn has been called one of the greatest pieces of American literature, deemed a classic. The book has been used by teachers across the country for years. Now, Huck Finn, along with other remarkable novels such as Catcher in the Rye and To Kill a Mockingbird, are being pulled off the shelves of libraries and banned from classrooms. All the glory this majestic piece by Mark Twain has acquired is slowly being deteriorated. This is
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, is a novel that is read by many students in high school classes all across America every year. However, when you have a book that popular among schools, you will start to gain some controversy over it. There has been a recurring debate over the topic of banning this novel from being read in schools due to its 'offensive racial epithets' and other reasons, like poking fun at religion and challenging authority. I disagree with those who say the novel should be banned, and believe that schools should continue to read it and disregard those who say otherwise.
Mark Twain published what scholars still consider one of the greatest American literary works in 1885, and in that same year it suffered its first banning (Zwick). “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is essential to the understanding of the American soul,” Victor Doyno states on the jacket of Random House’s comprehensive edition of the novel. If Huckleberry Finn is so indispensable, then its having been opposed from the beginning of its life seems more than a little surprising. At first, the strife was caused by many objecting to the friendship between Huckleberry Finn, the white protagonist, and Jim, an escaped African American slave, in addition to the grammar upon which many critics of the time frowned. As our society experiences changes in priorities, taboos, and social trends, the points of concern shift, and no longer do critics grimace at an interracial friendship; instead, they attack the racism supposedly present (Chadwick).
Mark Twain’s book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, educates high school students on how the Southern society operated at that time. When analyzing the novel, one can see that Twain’s writing clearly does not endorse slavery or the use of derogatory language toward African-Americans. In a petition to remove this book from a high school required reading list, a school board in New Jersey concluded, "the literary value of the book outweighed the negative aspect of the language employed.” (2) Huckleberry Finn is a satirical novel that was written to show the flaws of 19th century American society. It shows how people thought and acted back then, and points out what was wrong with the white supremacy mindset of many Southerners during these years. “The book itself is a great testament that...
In fact, true appreciation of the novel requires the reader to “read between the lines” and pick up on the hidden subtext and more importantly, the story of Huck Finn’s moral development. In his arguments on the New York Times’ Room for Debate article, Do Word Changes Alter ‘Huckleberry Finn’?, Dave Matthews states, “Great books — or any work of art — require that the reader meet the author half-way.” In this quote, he is saying that for the reader to fully comprehend Huckleberry Finn, he/she must put forth a great deal of thought in addition to simply reading the text. By removing the N-word from the novel, the story becomes nullified and the task of stomaching the word, which is purposely included to upset the reader, is bypassed. One of the reasons why our curriculum waits until tenth grade to teach the book is because it is meant to be challenging; the reader is supposed to struggle with the reading. If the word is replaced, the book truly becomes a children's book; subtext-wise, it will still require good comprehensive skill to understand Huck’s development, but story-wise, the book becomes an easy-to-read story of a child running away from home and embarking on an action-packed adventure with a slave who he befriends along the
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.
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...
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 traditional southern racism or is Twain disputing these idea.
Since its first publication in 1884, Mark Twain’s masterpiece The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has proven to be one of history’s most controversial novels; especially recently, the novel has often been banned by schools and censored by libraries. Characters in the book are constantly using disparaging language toward slaves, and the repeated use of the word “nigger” makes many sensitive and offended. Critics denounce the novel and Mark Twain as racist for this word being insulting and politically incorrect and for its depiction of black people and how they are treated. However, Twain was not attempting to perpetuate racism; on the contrary, he used satire to expose the ignorance and paradoxical views held by many in America at that time. Despite objections to the novel for offensive and insensitive portrayal of African Americans due to Twain’s negative and stereotypical “minstrel-like” characterization of Jim and the extensive use of the term “nigger,” throughout the novel, Twain exposes Jim’s unfeigned humanity behind a “minstrel-like” pretense by illustrating his capacity to possess profound human emotions and his triggering Huck’s moral transformation from a conscienceless, uncivilized juvenile into a an adolescent able to make the ethical choice.
The novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an extremely important work of literature that addresses many world problems such as: poverty, race relations, and our role in society. Although some of these issues are not as prevalent today as they were in the 1880s, the novel still sends an important satirical message to anyone who is willing hear this story. This essay will analyze Huckleberry Finn and its relation to society today; the main issues that are addressed include: Huckleberry’s growth as a moral and upstanding person, race relations between African-Americans and Caucasian-Americans including Huck’s relation to Jim and the issue of slavery, the role of society and an analysis of Huck’s role in society and society’s role in Huckleberry’s personality.