Mis Portrayal of Jim
Huckleberry Finn has been banned in many schools due to many people believing that this book portrays African Americans in a very poor way. In the book Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, he portrays an African American slave Jim in not the brightest of ways. Throughout the book the are some instances that Twain aids to the Jim Crow stereotype that was going on through that time. The stereotype of African Americans being buffoons and not being educated. In these moments it raises a lot of questions about Mark Twain. Some opinions on the book are that Jim was made too foolish. In the contrary Twain makes Jim the father figure that Huck is missing in his life. With Huck’s Pap being abusive and absent to him, he really has no
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Throughout the whole story Huck does learn a lot from Jim, he is like a father figure to Huck. While that maybe true, Twain could have been able to do the same thing with Jim even if he was more intelligent. What Huck was learning from Jim, didn’t involve his intelligence. Huck was learning from Jim’s morality. This portrayal supports the stereotype of African Americans being less intelligent. During the time period in which the book Huckleberry Finn is placed, a few years earlier, the Black Face circus clowns had begun to circulate in America. They would have exaggerated features and would act goofy to entertain. Through this people began to think that all African Americans were this …show more content…
Jim is trying to get back to his family, which is the main reason he escaped from Mrs. Watson. He was going to be sold to New Orleans, but that would have meant he wouldn’t have seen his family again. So when Jim has so many options to go to freedom, he stays with Huck even though they are going deeper into slave country. “The novel plays with black reality from the moment Jim runs away and does not immediately seek his freedom. It defies logic that Jim did not know Illinois was a free state. Yet Twain wants us not only to believe he didn't, but to accept as credible that a runaway slave would drift south down the Mississippi River, the only route to freedom he knew being at Cairo, Illinois, where the Ohio River meets the Mississippi” (Lester, 3). To think that a slave wouldn’t just go to freedom when he has the chance or that he doesn’t know that he was directed to states that supported slavery. In the story Huck, makes the journey longer and at times complicates the journey of Jim going to freedom. Jim believes that Huck is the reason he is free, which has some truth to it. "Pooty soon I'll be a-shout'n' for joy, en I'll say, it's all on accounts o' Huck; I's a free man, en I couldn't ever ben free ef it hadn' ben for Huck; Huck done it. Jim won't ever forgit you, Huck; you's de bes' fren' Jim's ever had; en you's de ONLY fren' ole Jim's got now." (Twain,
Because of his rolling stone like upbringings, conformity is not a part of his forte. In some ways he takes after his father, the infamous town drunk who hasn’t attempted to contact Huck in years. But despite all of the complications and seeming misery, he is a decent boy who only gets himself into a bit of mischief. Therefore, with the difficult life he’s already had at such a young age, it’s a miracle he isn’t either depressed or a delinquent. Jim also hasn’t had it easy. Being a black man living in the south during pre-Civil War times means daily persecution. He lived a life that he could never fulfill because of the metaphorical chains he never got to take off. So he was left no other choice but to run until he found freedom. Although this would be deemed as “reckless” to society, he did it out of love for his family and fear of his life. Every decision Jim made was done with the hope that he would one day be reunited with them. His intentions were pure, and the positive light that’s cast upon him gives the readers a heartfelt sympathy for what he’s going through. Both Jim and Huck had to overcome great struggle until they found solace in the
	Huck’s attitude for Jim is racist which is seen when he decides to play a trick on Jim during their voyage. After Huck plays his trick his attitude toward Jim begins to change, "It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger; but I done it, and I warn't ever sorry for it afterward, neither" (Twain 72). The dialogue throughout the book between Huck and Jim illustrates that Jim is more than property and that he is a human being with feelings, and hopes for a better future.
Jim's character traits are easy to over look because of his seeming ignorance, but in reality Jim possessed some qualities that created a positive influence on Huck. He began by demonstrating to Huck how friends teach friends. His honest compassion also eventually causes Huck to resist the ideas society has placed upon him, and see Jim as an equal-- rather than property that can be owned. Huck knew he was going against society, and of the consequences that he could receive for freeing a slave. "It would get all around, that Huck Finn helped a nigger to get his freedom; and if I was to ever see anybody from that town again, I'd be ready to get down and lick his boots for shame", (269-270). Huck then claims, "All right, then, I'll go to hell…"(272) This shows that Huck was willing to put himself on the line for a slave, because he ceased to view Jim as property and recognized him as a friend. At the beginning of the story Huck would have never done this, but after the many adventures that occur, Jims unconditional love for Huck pierces the shell society placed ar...
In lieu of his escape, Jim emphasized his feelings of becoming a free man. Jim said it made him all over trembly and feverish to be so close to freedom (p. 238). Huck came to the realization that Jim was escaping for a far different reason than he, and began to see this “nigger’s” freedom as his own fault; he was an accomplice. Huck’s conscience became plagued by the fact that Jim was escaping the custody of his rightful owner, and he was doing nothing to stop this. In Huck’s eyes, Jim was essentially the property of poor old Ms. Watson, who didn’t do anything less than teach Jim his manners and his books. Altogether, Huck felt that he was doing wrong by concealing this, and felt miserable to say the least.
Huck does not consciously think about Jim's impending freedom until Jim himself starts to get excited about the idea. The reader sees Huck's first objection to Jim gaining his freedom on page 66, when Huck says, "Well, I can tell you it made me all over trembly and feverish, too, to hear him, because I begun to get it through my head that he was most free-and who was to blame for it? Why, me. I could get that out of my conscience, no how nor no way." Huck is hearing the voice of society at this point, not his own. He does not see a moral dilemma with Jim being free; he is opposed to the fact that he is the one helping him. This shows Huck misunderstanding of slavery. Huck does not treat Jim like a slave when they travel together, this shows the reader that Huck views Jim as an equal in most ways. Huck sees having a slave only as owning the person, not actually being a slave to someone. Therefore, when he helps Jim runaway it would be like stealing. This conscience is telling him that Miss Watson, Jim?s master, never di...
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, is considered a classic novel from the realism period of American Literature that accurately depicts social conventions from pre-civil war times. Despite this reputation as a historical lens of life on the Mississippi River, elements of blatant racism overshadow the regionalist and realist depictions. Huck Finn does not promote racism because all derogatory or racist remarks are presented as a window to life during the 1850s, in a satirical context, or to show Mark Twain's moral views on racism. Huckleberry Finn accurately presents the mistreatment, abuse, and hatred that African Americans faced in pre-civil war times. Huck Finn portrays racism as a part of life and as a social normality accepted by most people.
Mark Twain wrote The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to expose the hypocrisy of racism and religion in society. He clearly displayed how blacks were stereotyped, devalued, and considered to be inferior to whites. He showed how people associated themselves with certain religious beliefs, but only practiced those beliefs at their own convenience. Unfortunately, the issues Twain wrote about still exist in today’s world. Society has made some progress; however, overall, not much has changed since Twain wrote The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
...e end of the novel, Huck and the reader have come to understand that Jim is not someone’s property or an inferior man, but an equal. To say that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a racist novel is absurd, but there are always some hot-heads claiming that the novel is racist. These claims are not simply attempts to damage the image of a great novel, they come from people who are hurt by racism and don’t like seeing it in any context. However, they must realize that this novel and its author are not racist, and the purpose of the story is to prove black equality. It is vital for the reader to recognize these ideas as society’s and to recognize that Twain throughout the novel does encourage racist ideas, he disputes them. For this reason, and its profound moral implication, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should not be removed from the literary canon. [1056]
Racism, a major issue in society for hundreds of years, even after the abolition of slavery, still affects millions of people. African Americans today still sensitivities towards racism, and the reading of Huckleberry Finn demonstrates the pertinence of racism today similarly to two hundred years ago. When reading novels containing nineteenth century racism, African American readers are exposed to the torments their ancestors were put through, and the novel can have a positive or negative effect in that the reader may enjoy the learning of their history but may also feel humiliated in relation to their classmates of other races. In the literary novel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, the apparent racism in the book affects
Jim gives Huck a gateway into his private life when he tells Huck this story. Huck listens quietly and respectfully to this story, which shows him warming up to Jim. The story shows Jim’s homesickness, and how he greatly misses his family. It also shows a much less forgiving and more emotional side of Jim’s character. Jim forgave Huck for all of the pranks he pulled on Jim, though Jim would not forgive himself for a mistake years ago. If both characters had not run away together, they would not have the type of relationship they share now. It would be heavily frowned upon if Huck and Jim had this type of relationship while still at their homes because of the racism of people in the south. Huck is still open to new ideas, which is why he becomes friends with Jim.
In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Twain’s main characters depicted the societal issues of racism in the South. Huck Finn, a poor white boy, and Jim, an African American slave, both encounter situations that cause these characters inter turmoil because of the societal standards of the time. According to Mark Twain in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,
In the beginning, Huck understand what is expected of a white man in his actions towards Blacks. When Jim and Huck are leaving to head to free country Huck says, “People will call me a low down Abolitionist and despise me for keeping mum—but that don’t make no difference. I ain’t agoing to tell, and I ain’t agoing back there anyways” (Twain 43). This demonstrates how people will judge Huck if he gets caught with an African American. This represents Huck’s views on slavery at first. He, as well as others, were born into the belief that the white race was superior to the African race.
As they travel together, Huck learns more about Jim and realizes that the common stereotype of black people is wrong. He sees that there is no difference between Jim and any white man he knows except for skin color. Despite risking his life and overcoming many difficulties, Huck succeeds in freeing Jim. Focusing on racism, alcoholism, and mob mentality, Mark Twain uses his enthusiastic writing style to satirize these three traits throughout the novel. Although the book contains many words full of vivid disgust towards black slaves, it also shows that there is more to people than looks and race, emphasizing the importance of beliefs and character.
Why would a man who fought against slavery, injustice, and discrimination write a racist book ? For some time, many students, educators, and scholars debated whether The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain deserves its place in our literary canon. Certain readers find the relationship between Huck and Jim especially problematic due to abundant use of the N word and Twain’s stereotypical depiction of Jim. On one hand, Jim is viewed as an uneducated slave who is always in peril due to Huck’s playfulness and immaturity. Yet, on the other hand, Jim is a complex secondary character crucial for Huck’s development from naiveté into maturity. Despite, the glaring overuse of racial epithets, Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn should remain in the literary canon and continue to be taught as it allows readers to address racial misconceptions, such as racial
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.