The book Huckleberry finn, by Mark Twain, is very controversial because the word “nigger” is in it 213 times, experts about this book fight all over the US to decide whether to put the word or teach it, because very offensive. But this paper isn’t about the racial controversy, it’s about the other literal aspect of the book. And it’s satires, they are all over the novel, some stuff doesn’t make sense but some have hidden meanings like foreshadowing, which turns out to be ironies and mob mentality. In this novel, by Mark Twain, a vast array of satires were used to criticize and display the common representation of a southerner in this provincial setting. The depiction of a white man or kid who lives in an era of slavery, is targeted as characters who are engaged in many ironic situations, mocking them for their oblivious nature and carelessness. For example, After three nights of traveling, Jim and Huck are more or less near Cairo. And they were “[willing] to sell the raft and go on a steamboat way up the Ohio amongst the free states, and then be out of trouble”. This showed significance because Huck envisions that once they go up Ohio, everything will be fine and dandy. But in actual fact, their lives will start going downhill after they set foot near that river. Another example is when Huck saw Tom arose from his bed, he felt a sense of discomfort because Tom was blabbering about how he and Huck helped the runaway slave free, but he didn’t know that Jim was captured yet again. But he soon found out and suddenly, became enraged shouting “old Miss Watson died two months ago, and she was ashamed she ever was going to sell him down the river, and said so! and she set him free in her will.” This is important because Huck had to go al... ... middle of paper ... ...portant because Tom’s Aunt thought that Huck was having some sort of sickness or problem, because he was dripping yellow butter. This is also just an exaggeration because she was saying that something was oozing. In conclusion this is important because it shows how a couple of scenes were over exaggerated and were shown that the white southerners used hyperboles frequently. In conclusion Mark Twain used satire as a means to denigrate the white man, who had hurt those innocent black men, who had taken them away from their families. However, he only felt that it’s necessary to poke fun to his fellow white man if he is going to mess and exaggerate a black mans habits, the witch pie. But in all seriousness this book is full of good literature, where you could learn excellent satire and also teach you about how Twain cleverly wrote this piece of magnificent literature.
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a novel about a boy named Huck who fakes his death and travels down the Mississippi River with a runaway slave named Jim. Throughout the novel they encounter many different characters, most of whom Twain uses to satirize the South. The definition of satire is “a technique employed by writers to expose and criticize foolishness and corruption of an individual or a society by using humor, irony, exaggeration or ridicule. It intends to improve humanity by criticizing its follies and foibles.” Twain satirizes the values, and intelligence of the South through the characters of the Shepherdsons and Grangerfords, Colonel Sherburn and Boggs, and the people scammed by the King and Duke.
While staying with a farming family, Huck’s partner, known as “The King,” sold off some slaves that he swindled away from the family. While the slaves were crying and saying goodbye to each other, Huck thinks that “I couldn’t a stood it all but would a had to bust...if I hadn’t knowed the sale warn’t no account and the niggers would be back home in a week or two”(Clemens, 234-235). While traveling with Jim down the Mississippi, Huck’s transformation on his outlook on slaves is drastic. He no longer sees Jim as “Miss Watson’s big nigger,”(Clemens, 22) but as a
Although some may argue that Twain’s use of vulgar language and racist ideology may be inappropriate for high school students, young readers should have the opportunity to explore the book in their own time. As for the classroom, books should only be required reading if their literary merit is indisputable and can instill important values and exceptional writing techniques. Twain’s novel does just that, videlicet characterization and a genuine setting, earning it an acclaim of one of the greatest American novels.
Mark Twains The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is one of the greatest American novels ever written. The story is about Huck, a young boy who is coming of age and is escaping from his drunken father. Along the way he stumbles across Miss Watson's slave, Jim, who has run away because he overhead that he would be sold. Throughout the story, Huck is faced with the moral dilemma of whether or not to turn Jim in. Mark Twain has purposely placed these two polar opposites together in order to make a satire of the society's institution of slavery. Along the journey, Twain implies his values through Huck on slavery, the two-facedness of society, and represents ideas with the Mississippi River.
The novel is set in the antebellum south, and throughout the course of Huck Finn we see Twain poke fun at the injustices of race relations by exploiting the importance and power of friendship. Twain develops a friendship between a White boy by the name of Huck, and a “runaway” Black slave named Jim. “Dah you goes, de ole true Huck: de on’y white genlman dat ever kep’ his promise to ole Jim.” (Twain Pg. 90) This quote satirizes the views of many White people in the Antebellum South. During this time period when many Blacks were enslaved, and those not enslaved were treated as slaves, it was extremely unusual for a Black person and a White person to be friends at all. It would be unheard of to see the two conspiring, and further - unthinkable that they may have a strong and lasting friendship built on trust and loyalty. Twain contrasts this racial standard by establishing and demonstrating the power and importance of friendship, no matter the color or social status of the persons involved. Huck and Jim defy civil law by becoming the best of friends, thereby letting morality nullify law to illustrate the fundamental moral injustices of race relations in the Antebellum South
Back then, they would only think of African Americans as property and not humans. “No! That old fool sold him,” “Sold him?” I says, and begun to cry,” as they proceed talking Huck gets him to tell him to whom Jim has been sold… “A farmer by the name of Silas Ph— and then he stopped,” the man now knew that he had messed up. As Huck now knows, he goes along with what the man is saying , the man has changed and said that who really bought Jim was a Feller by the name of Abram G Foster, but Huck already knew that Silas had him. As Huck has now encountered the Phelps plantation, he had first seen a nigger woman and behind her little girl then two boys. After them comes the white woman with her children, “Children, its your cousin Tom!” Huck is now acting as if he is Tom Sawyer, as he proceeds on talking with his Aunt Sally about what has took so long and him not knowing the direction of the river, he proceeds to say “It warn’t the grounding—that didn’t keep us back but a little. We blowed outs a cylinder-head.” Aunt Sally says,” Good gracious! Anybody hurt?” “No’m. Killed a nigger.” Huck says, “Well, it’s lucky; because sometimes people do get hurt.” Aunt Sally has referred to Jim as in “it” instead of the human he was, she would have considered the white folks as the people that do get hurt. This showed that Aunty Sally did not care about African American people, while
The subject this book revolves around slavery, and how white folks’ mindset on black people was popular at that time. Their mindset involved treating black people as inferior to them, and how to them, they were not even considered human but property. Twain also shows how sometimes a fourteen year old boy (Huck) was more morally correct towards treatment of black people than many adults of his time. Twain presents this in a humorous way with its serious points. The issue is obvious throughout the story and makes the reader wonder how even “good” characters treate...
In conclusion, Mark twain shares his beliefs about human nature, religion, and racism that surrounded the nation in his period. He uses satire in order to criticize and mock the hypocrisy of the 19th-century society. He also humanizes Jim as the story develops making the readers witness the suffering he had to go through because of racial segregation. Mark Twain did a good job displaying how Huck confronted many evils and how his victories will help in taking the first step in changing
Lester, Julius. “Morality and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” Satire or Evasion?: Black Perspectives on Huckleberry Finn. Ed. James S. Leonard, Thomas A. Tenney, and Thadious M. Davis. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 1992. 199-207. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Thomas J. Schoenberg and Lawrence J. Trudeau. Vol. 161. Detroit: Gale, 2005. Literature Resource Center. Web. 18 Feb. 2014.
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...
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is very important to the American culture. When Mark Twain was around, the use of the word “nigger” was quite common. That was how they referred to African Americans in that time. In the book, Twain makes Pap look like the worst possible white trash where as Huck and Jim, the slave, get closer throughout the book. The book shows how people felt towards African Americans back in the day and how it was wrong. They considered them as “inhuman.” In The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn, Aunt Sally seems to be a nice person, but when the little black boy was killed she does not care since “no human was hurt.” This shows how far along we have come since this time period. Huck plays three jokes on Jim, but in the end begs for his forgiveness because he felt he had done something indeed quite wrong. This shows that not all Southerners in the day were “racist.” Mark Twain makes fun of how many people in the South were wrong to think badly towards the African Americans. This book is a very good book to get an understanding of how things were wrong back then and how far we have come since then.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is so much more than just a teen’s novel. Through Twain’s harsh language reflective of the times and location and the use of characters Twain showed how much the thinking of the majority of people in the Deep South fought progression. Mark Twain use of Miss Watson, pap, the duke and the king and others to show just how many thoughts and traditions where opposed to seeing “blacks” as equals. Through Jim, Twain showed that “blacks” are people / equals. And, in Huck, Twain showed how a logical person could progress, despite the views and morals of the Deep South, to see “blacks” equals. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn succeeded in exposing the Deep South for what it really was; highly prejudice and extremely reluctant to change.
“Persons attempting to find a moral in [this narrative] will be banished” (Twain 3). Just as his first lines in the novel, Mark Twain fills The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn with his signature style of humor and irony, which makes it one of the most influential works of American literature. This controversial novel relates the story of Huck, a rebellious white boy, and Jim, a black slave. Together they run away in the pursuit of freedom down the Mississippi River. When published, the novel received a lot of criticism for Twain’s implicit moral message; the novel is Twain’s indictment against racism.
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.
cause you jail time or even death in Huck’s years. Mark Twain would introduce satire in the novel to exaggerate the people’s attitudes and social customs with their community. He brought out racism against blacks and how slaves were defined as. Twain spreads through out the book on Huck’s hero’s journey and how it helped him find out truths about society including Jim and himself in conceiving his true destiny in life.