Huckleberry Finn Social Commentary Analysis

There are many subjects that throughout time have been considered, “taboo.” That was until Mark Twain wrote Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In this novel, twain writes about many of these subjects that would have never been included in literature before. He approaches the topics of slavery, child abuse, Southern hypocrisy, and racism, all while satirizing them. Twain is attempting to portray these ideals to his reader, but keep it comical by including the satire along with it. Many even say that Twain was a revolutionary for expressing his beliefs in such a fashion. In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain uses four main characters, or groups of characters, to show southern dialect, evolution of characters, and satirize the south and conflicts one might face during the 1840s.

Huckleberry Finn is portrayed to be an …show more content…
Mark Twain is an expert at manipulating his audience. The people that he is trying to reach are the rich, white men, mostly in the south. He does this in a way by telling a great story about a young boy on an adventure with a black man. He is trying to get the point across to them that race does not matter, but he does this in a way by making them connect with the characters. The reader is instantly forced to form a relationship with Huck Finn. As Huck and Jim continue their trip down the river, the reader develops a strong relationship with Jim as well, wishing for him to be free. The reader, while they might not realize it, begins to see the hardships and slavery and all of the conflicts that a slave would face. These rich, white men that Twain is attempting to reach out to, are being persuaded in a new direction by seeing the strong bond between Huck and Jim. Twain successfully uses dialect, characters, and conflicts to create one of the best pieces of social commentary ever, and is able to reach his audience with a clever, indirect