Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a novel second to none when it comes to American literature because it is an inspiring story about how blacks and whites can work together to find freedom. However, it caused controversy with issues of race, religion, and challenging authority. Some people felt it mislead students, and Twain’s repeated use of the word “nigger” was socially offensive. In 1885, it was banned in libraries across Concord, Massachusetts after one month of publication, because it was “Not suitable for trash” (Ruta). His heavy use of the word has prompted a banning of the book in public schools across America.
As a result of this, there have been revisions to Twain’s masterpiece, changing the N-word to slave. This provoked American Literature professors to speak out on the censoring of history. Though some are in support of shielding high schoolers rather than to expose them to the truth; the appalling reality of the antebellum South. I believe it is more important to have historical accuracy rather than revisionist’s changes that reflect other views that are not Twain’s.
Twain’s book portrays one of the most important parts of history through a young white boy’s perspective. The book is a classic and holds historical value that all students should know about. It teaches us about slavery, the great American sin. The friendship between Huck and Jim develops throughout the book. I believe that Twain is trying to show that slavery is immoral and Huck and Jim are equals. As the book progresses it shows the intertwining of the characters and them being equals. Twain uses Huck to embody America at the time, and is reflective of the decision that they both come arrive at. The decision that they both encounter is deciding whether to be socially right, or morally right.
Huck found himself in a predicament when Jim is caught. He was left with two options consisting of saving Jim, or writing a letter to Mrs. Watson telling her what has happened to Jim, and where to find him. Huck had an internal conflict throughout the whole story up until now, thinking that it was wrong to help a runaway slave that was owned by Mrs. Watson. When Huck is deciding what do, he says to himself that he knows that helping Jim is wrong, and he knows if he does help him he will go to hell, because what he is doing is wrong. This demonstrates the thinking back then about helping slaves. That it was such a sin, that it was punishable by hell, this concept was put into people’s heads back then to alter their perspective and decision making. Hucks’ internal conflict over what is right socially and what is right morally mirrors the conflict many people had about the civil war. When Huck was wrestling with whether he should send the letter to Mrs. Watson or save Jim from being sold down river, and ultimately deciding to save Jim, it was Huck freeing himself from that internal conflict; somewhat like the Emancipation Proclamation freeing the slaves and resolving the country’s moral dilemma.
Twain’s novel is about America overcoming slavery, and though it may come off as racist and unnecessary to use the N-word so many times, it’s also an anti-slavery book. Before the book even starts, Twain leaves a Notice for his readers. It states “Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot.” With this notice, he is telling the people who have a problem with his book, that they didn’t fully read it, or fully understand his message. This is like the people who have a problem with the N-word being in the book. They don’t fully see what Twain is getting at. At first, Jim was seen as nothing but a slave. But as time goes on we see that there is much more to Jim than just being a slave.
When Huck goes to Jim for answers on what to do about his dad, Jim shows his intelligence and swindles Huck into giving him money for his answers. Also, when Huck finds out that there are men going to search the island for them, when Huck gets back to the island to pack up and get out of there, Jim asks no questions. This shows how Jim is not oblivious to his current situation, and knows what to do, unlike the stigma of slaves being nothing more than brainless tools. Twain uses Jim to break these stereotypes of slaves, showing that they are people just as much as whites are. Later on in the book it is revealed that Jim has a wife and a daughter and were separated, and Jim’s journey is all about reuniting with his family and becoming free. Twain’s objective was to humanize Jim, and destroy the brutal racism of slavery.
Twain also shows us a scene where this family is split. The slave traders split a mom and her children. It is a really heart breaking scene for the reader to see this mother and her kids separated. It gives us a taste of how bad it really was for these families. The fact of knowing that this will be the last time you see your children further shows the inhumane ways of slavery. It is important to know Twain’s stance before attacking the book for its use of the N-word, yet he used it for a reason. In order for a book to be viewed as a masterpiece, it needs to create conversation, and taking the N-word out of the novel would prevent it from creating a conversation. This is a conversation that needs to be held in order for us to get a grasp of what truly went on back then.
Some people are not in support of the book being taught in public schools because the use of the N-word can discomfort some students with the history the word has. It’s too big of a distraction for some students to fully understand the meaning of the book, and comes off as a racist book rather than a anti-racist book. The N-word is just too large of a hurdle for some to overcome, and their feelings need to be accounted for.
This is not a significant enough reason for the book to not be taught. The word “nigger” should not be able to take away the insight presented by Huckleberry Finn. It is a necessary for students to learn about how we developed as a nation, rather than hiding it because it makes us feel uncomfortable. The word only has the value we give it. For example, if I placed a 100 dollar bill on the table, and a piece of printer paper on the table and I tell you to pick one, you will always pick the 100 dollar bill, yet they are both just paper. We put the value on money even though it’s just paper. Same thing applies with the word “nigger”. We are the one who put “value” on the word, and censoring the word only gives it more power and more taboo.
Also, the way Twain wrote his book was using antebellum Southern dialect during the time period, he didn’t use the word to hurt anyone but to convey his point, but it is reflective of how society in that era thought and spoke, and provides insight into that racially charged period in southern America. Banning the word doesn’t solve the underlying problem, and the history just doesn’t disappear. With today’s political correctness, it dilutes the intended impact and shock value Twain wanted to impress upon the reader. The reason this novel is second to none is because it opens a window through which we see the small town life in the late 1800s. It shows some of the challenges faced by various types of people, for example Jim represented the challenges faced being a slave while Huck grew as a person having a selfish perspective to learning to care and work with other people.
Huckleberry Finn has always been challenged, and I don’t expect that to change. However, there becomes a problem when it is taken out of the school curriculum. The option should be presented to the students rather than decided for them, for the kids who are uncomfortable, perhaps further explaining Twain’s meaning to try to get the student to understand the message, but if the student still is uncomfortable we can offer the option that has the word replaced. But in no way shape or form should this book be banned anywhere in America with the meaning that it holds. Revising literature is like revising history because we don’t happen to care for it, doesn’t change what actually happened nor the intended message from the author.
