The Day They Came To Arrest The Book Review

Eventually, some African-Americans came to accept this word. They became so used to hearing it, they heeded it no attention. Atticus Finch, Scout's father, however, had a different way of thinking. Although Atticus was Caucasian, he realized that the "N-word" (as commonly referred to in the recent trial of Orenthal James Simpson) was wrong to say. He instructed his children not to use that word either.

... middle of paper ... ... and eventually change the system in place right now. From all of this we can see that there is still hope in people such as Atticus and Jem because they are different then the community and have unlearned the racist ways of the community and are working towards helping the community unlearn it as well. In conclusion, To Kill a Mockingbird explains how racism should be learned to be unlearned through various characters in the book. Maycomb is a racist community and people are racist towards the African-Americans. The book suggests that people should stand up against racism even if they are the only one just like Atticus.

Thus, the racist views he included in the book mirrored the attitudes of most southerners ... ... middle of paper ... ...acist attitudes prevalent in South at this time. For all those school administrators who say that the language and ideology of Twain’s writing is offensive, well, maybe Twain wanted to offend people with this novel. Maybe he wanted to offend them so much that they would come to the realization that individuals should not conform to society’s standards, one of these standards being slavery. Until someone is offended, status quo doesn’t change. Maybe it’s about time that we remove the blindfold from our nation’s youth and stop trying to be politically correct.

Throughout the entire novel, they displayed care for another and stuck by each other's sides. Every time that Huck had the chance to turn Jim in, he could never do it. He was a boy that had been raised in the South to dislike black people, yet he cared enough for Jim to betray his upbringing and be a loyal friend. Huck knows that he is breaking the law by helping Jim escape, but in the end he decides that even if it means his damnation, he will not betray his friend. This point is proven when Huck quotes:

He is a myth due to the lack of historical evidence known about him. Although Styron’s The Confessions of Nat Turner shaped the views of the American population, many different views about Nat Turner are perceived. The views on Nat Turner varied from a hero of oppressed people, murderer of innocent women and children, and a powerful religious leader. William Styron was not a racist, he portrayed the thoughts, actions, and dialect of an African American male during that period in American History. Styron is heavily critiqued over the fact that he is a white male, but he lived in Virginia and he saw and heard about the horrors that went on there when slavery was going on in the south.

However, many believe that Huck Finn should be taught in schools on the grounds that the novel’s racist theme accurately depicted what life was like for a slave in pre- Civil War times. Opponents of Huck Finn contend that literary censorship is acceptable. But is not censorship a violation of the first amendment? In places such as Philadelphia and New York City, they have adapted a new version which not only tones down the violence and dialects, but cuts all passages demeaning to African Americans. In today’s hypersensitive society, wouldn’t that be the entire book?

Next, many parents in Maycomb did not teach their kids moral values. This is evident because there were so many kids calling black people the ‘N’ word. Atticus strongly believed in teaching his kids moral values. Every time Scout or Jem had a problem, he sat them down and advised them what was the right thing to do. When he told Jem to help Mrs. Dubbose out and read to her, he refused.

...Twain 155). Jim might be an example of the negative affects of slavery on the African American race, but his character is definitely important to the overall message of the book. The novel Huck Finn should be taught in schools across the nation at a high school level for a variety of reasons. Although some of its content is controversial, a good teacher can help readers see the true meaning of the novel. A big part of the novel’s hidden meaning is Jim’s character, who is often mistaken as being a disrespected and demeaned slave.

For example, during reconstruction time, there were many racist magazines and movies that depicted blacks as savages and injudicious. In the 1800s, a lot of whites did not care how many of the stereotypes against African Americans were false, due to how they grew up and how they were close minded. Racist views were also taught in schools by teachers, and parents also taught their children their negative views on African Americans. Many people, like historians and educators, divide reconstruction into two phases, presidential and congressional reconstruction (Reconstruction 2). Presidential reconstruction was giving African Americans civil rights, but they were denied to vote and President Andrew Johnson, the president after Lincoln, established black codes.

Richard Wright describes in his autobiography 'The Ethics of Living Jim Crow: An Autobiographical Sketch' the atmosphere at his first job, where his fellow workers would not teach him anything, just because he was black: "This is a white man's work around here, and you better watch yourself" (291). From that moment on, he never really felt at ease going to work. This kind of feeling of unease is also found in Countee Cullen's 'Incident.' It shows clearly how children are not really aware of the differences adults believe to exist between different races until being told that there is a difference. The poem seems to be a product of personal experiences as a child, when another child pokes out his tongue and calls the speaker of the poem "nigger" during a stay in Baltimore, and it pictures the human tendency to look no further than the colour of the skin.