Huckleberry Finn

When my high school English teacher informed our class that we would be reading Huck Finn, I felt a sense of indifference. I did not know a great deal about the novel itself; however, I had a desire to learn more. Although my lack of knowledge regarding the novel was something that I was ashamed of, I still knew that Huck Finn was going to be a fantastic read considering the fact that it was written by Mark Twain, an acclaimed authors of his time. I had also expected the novel to be full of adventure and entertainment, but the thing I did not know was that it dealt with the arguable issue of slavery. Slavery becomes a big issue once people begin discussing the problem because numerous opinions and emotions come spurring out of people. People become impulsive and begin to say arbitrary statements that may be offensive to others.

On the other hand, slavery also deals with the pressing concern of racism. Racism is defined as “the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races" (Oxford Dictionaries). The theme of racism is seen throughout Twain’s novel, which is exactly why many people, including students and parents have a sense of enmity towards the novel. Granted that some people have inhospitable views against this novel, I can actively say that I do not. I think that the issue of racism needs to be discussed, so we can finally find some closure on this controversy. If we keep ignoring this pressing problem it will never be ameliorated. Although racism will probably never end, we can minimize some of the problems by increasing our education and knowledge on the topic. If we can limit the amount of ...

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...k Finn. He was able to take a bold risk and write a novel that influenced many. A great novel is not only just accepted but also questioned. Huck Finn has the ability to do just that.

Works Cited

Chadwick, Jocelyn. "Why Huck Finn Belongs in Classrooms."Harvard Education Letter. Harvard Education Letter, 31 Jan. 2006.

Morrison, Toni. "Huckleberry Finn: An Amazing, Troubling Book."Ethics, Literature, Theory. 2nd ed. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, 2005. Print.

Wallace, John H. "The Case Against Huck Finn." Ethics, Literature, Theory. 2nd ed. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, 2005. 265-72. Print.

Middleton, Phil, and David Pilgrim. "Nigger (the Word), a Brief History." Welcome To The Black Box, Personal Narratives in High Definition. Ferris State University, 2001. Web. 15 Dec. 2013. .