Is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain racist?

Question

I see a lot of differnt point of views and i was just wondering what did you think.

Answer 1

Absolutely not!!!
Jim, the slave, is the hero of the book. He is the only person who is completely true to Huck and cares for him like a father. We sympathize with Jim and his plight. When Huck has his revelation (chapter 31 I think) that he 'will go to hell then' for Jim's freedom, he is casting aside his society's norms and is adopting a set of values that are thought of as being aberrant although we today see Huck's new morals as the better of the two. The frequent use of the word '******' in the book is keeping in-line with Twain's desire to be a Realist author. A Realist (or Realism) strives to accurately portray the society as it WAS (descriptive) not as it WANTS to be (prescriptive). Twain did a lot to further the discussion of the antebellum south and the roles of the freed slaves in this new society.

Answer 2

I think it is one of the best novels written by an American author. Huck is a fascinating character, flawed yet heroic. he is, after all, prepared to go to hell rather than betray Jim, which is pretty noble of him. The book is funny, and full of memorable characters. Banning it would be an act of madness. The book only disappoints in the last few chapters, where it reverts to the style of 'Tom Sawyer'. I have nothing against 'tom Sawyer' which I think is a terrific book, but Huckleberry Finn is a different kind of book altogether, and I think Twain should have been able to think up a better ending. I am just a casual reader.

Answer 3

no I don't think it was racist. There have been many movements to add this book to the banned book list, because of the use of the "N" word. But anybody who has actually read this book and interpreted it correctly realizes how stupid this movement is.
That was the speech of that time period. Why would a person right a book and use the incorrect era for a setting?
Anybody who tries to ban any book is just a fool. Little Red Riding Hood was banned because it depicted her carrying a bottle of wine. Big Deal!
Mark Twain was not racist it shows in all of his writings. The slave named Jim that was referred to as the "N" word, was also referred to as a friend. Mark Twain have numerous stories, people should read them all before they make up their minds.

Answer 4

Of course it was, look at the subject matter and the setting. But there was a method. Mark Twain had a statement to make about such things and he did so as not to sound too outlandish to those who had gotten so use to the institutuion of slavery rather than basic civil rights. He was writing about a racist society where two unlikely people have more in common than most would consider back in those days.

Answer 5

It is a wonderful story and it is sad that so many children won't be allowed to read it because it is being taken out of schools. It isn't a racist story. It IS a story about race. Huck becomes friends with a black slave and they run away to freedome. He realizes that people are people, no matter what color they are or where they come from. The N word is used in this book and that is why it was pulled from schools. Some people are to dim witted to see past that one word to the value of the actual story.

Answer 6

Mark Twain said, "One of my theories is that the hearts of men are about alike, all over the world, whatever their skin-complexions may be."
In the novel, Jim risks life and freedom for his friend Huck, and is portrayed throughout as a heroic character. Through him, Huck learns the value of loyalty and friendship, which transcends race and colour.
To say that the novel is racist is to say that Thomas Keneally's 'Schindler's List' is anti-Semitic, because of the Nazi's use of the crude pejoratives of the culture to describe Jews.

Answer 7

Well I could be called racism by some because of its use of the n-word. But this book is supose to take plase in Missouri pre-cvil war. So it would be rather strange if Twain didn't use it at some point since he claims to have been trying to copy the dialect. Also you have to think about the characters like Jim. Jim the main black character is shown as very noble, brave, and caring and the point of this book is about a young white boy who befriends a slave and discards all of his upbringing to helpf free a black slave. And Twain was known to be an abolitionist.

Answer 8

If Jim is superstitious or whatever, Twain is just making fun of superstitious people, not any particular race. You'd be just as wrong in taking Tom's incredible medieval fantasies as typical of children his age. They are both brave boys, much better than the Beavises of today. And I'm sure that Tom wouldn't have continued to be as silly as he sometimes is in the book.

Answer 9

If you read Twain's non-fiction essays, it is hard to see him as a racist. It is important to remember that, above all else, he was a satirist.

He uses stereotypes and exaggerations to make a point. His audience wasn't half as intelligent or literate as he was.

Also, Twain was well educated, widely traveled in Europe, and lived most of his adult life in Connecticut, I believe. Not the southern redneck he is often seen as.

Answer 10

Yes. Despite the fact that Clemens was pointing out the evils of prejudice and highlighting the humanity of all men regardless of color, his books still bore the taint of stereotype.

That said, it is difficult for most people to imagine themselves out of the environment in which they live. For Clemens to even reach as far as he did is amazing, and to have reached much further would have been less moving from the perspective of a novel.

Most people, however, do not recognize the differences between stereotype and racism; nor do they "get" intelligent humor/satire/innuendo. Mark Twain is all about those things, and people often look at his books, see the word "slave", and jump to conclusions. That's a different story.