The Adventures of Huckelbery Finn
Mark Twain wrote "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" in the 1800's. During this time slavery was socially acceptable. Even in the church it was taught that there was nothing wrong with slavery. Black people were often referred to as "niggers". Huck, even though he was a friend of Jim, didn't even think twice about calling a black person a nigger. Huck would say things like "Give a nigger an inch and he'll take an ell."(86) He didn't see anything wrong with using language like this. He didn't see anything wrong with it because he was taught to call black people niggers just like his dad did and everyone else around him did also. During this period in history in the south, that is how people talked. I think the meaning of the word nigger was different then than it is now. The word nigger was used in this book because in the 1800's it was common language. It did not have the same impact on a person back then as it does today. Jim even uses the word nigger freely
Huck's love and dedication to Jim helps us over look the frequent use of the word nigger. Huck does not pay attention to the fact that Jim is black, and a nigger, and he befriends him. He ignores what his society says at that time period in the 1800's about blacks. The only reason for the use of the nigger in this book is because of the vernacular in this area. Huck does not know that this word is bad because nobody ever told him it wrong to say it. He grew up hearing it used excessively and therefore he used the word nigger in his speech without even thinking twice about it. I do not think Huck really knew what the true meaning of the word nigger was. I think he just thought it was another name for a person that was black. If there is anyone in this novel that has an anti-racism attitude, it is Huck. He is the one who helped Jim escape to freedom when nobody else would have cared. Huck was Jim's only friend and I think Jim knew it. When Huck found Jim on Jackson Island, Jim trusted Huck en
Some common words found in the essay are:
Huckleberry Finn, Miss Watson, Jim Huck's, African Americans, Jim's Jim, Island Jim, word nigger, Miss Watson's, Jim Huck, miss watson, meaning word, nigger huck, Huck Jim's, Mark Twain, meaning word nigger, taught wrong slavery, wrong slavery, person nigger, taught wrong, jim huck, black people, word nigger huck, nigger book,
Approximate Word count = 678
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
