Discrimination Exposed In Mark Twain's The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn

The Troubles Literature Arises I never realized how prevalent racial discrimination is until I moved to Texas. I had never understood how much African Americans deal with everyday until a day at lunch. It was a normal Wednesday until everyone started jumping up from their seats and pulling out their phones to record a fight going on. I later found out that it was between an Black and White male. The white male had proceeded to call the Black male by the derogatory term used in the 1800s that is still used today. I had never been more disgusted in my life that a kid would choose to talk down to someone that had no idea of what the other child has gone through or the history of the word. Huckleberry Finn gives background on racial discrimination …show more content…
In the classroom, teachers censor almost everything they say. When explaining Huckleberry Finn the negative term used to justify an African American is repeated multiple times. If Huckleberry Finn is not explained, it can cause tension in the classroom and some students may lose the desire to learn. Being a satirical novel, students must understand what Mark Twain was satirizing. Mark Twain satirized many topics in Huckleberry Finn including, the cruelty of one man to another, superstition, the society, and more. In a study by Katherine Schulten, “11-th graders who had previously been A students- suddenly began failing tests and quizzes in their English class”. The teacher is at fault for failing to mention the background of Huckleberry Finn and how it has been very controversial, leading it to become the seventh most challenged book in America (Document A). Students have to understand the fact of why the derogatory and demeaning word was used over 200 times. The portrayal of Jim is a conflict in its entirety. It is necessary to explain why Mark Twain chose to give the typical stereotype of an African American man to Jim’s character and not the men he was surrounded by, including Fredrick …show more content…
Writers are meant to give rise to trouble and ask questions that most people ignore the answers to and mainly are too scared to ask (Document I). Huckleberry Finn has caused the readers to question Mark Twain's purpose in writing this book. This book has given the reader a chance to develop their own ideas and opinions. Huck Finn is a true depiction of the livelihood during the slave times. Reading is a very informative way to understand the history of the life during slavery especially from a children’s perspective. Personally, as a high school student having read this book told by a fourteen year old boys view; I was clearly able to relate but also question a lot of Huck’s actions. Many readers become emotionally invested and create relationships with the characters. The right to read a book that is argued to have started American Literature and created inner dialogue should not be revoked from any