Preview

What Is The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn Persuasive Essay

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
901 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Is The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn Persuasive Essay
A Vigorous Dispute The meaning of a word can greatly affect an individual's emotions. There are countless harmful words out there today used in people's everyday vocabulary, songs and more. In the book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, the N-word appears two hundred and nineteen times. There have been many people who wanted and did rewrite the novel using the word slave instead of nigger. There is a large and heated debate that argues if the word “nigger” should be left in or removed from The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn. Although there are many valid reasons as to why the N- word should be removed from the novel, it should remain in the book because it gets the reader's attention by showing the way people used to talk back …show more content…
Most people would concur with the idea that back then blacks were disliked and society had everything against them. Like stated in a video about the use of the word ¨nigger”, ¨Twain put that word in there to get our attention, and it does just that¨ (CBS). It is evident that Twain knew the word had a purpose, and that it would get the people to notice the bad and corrupt times the blacks had to go through. When Aunt Sally states, “Good gracious! anybody hurt? No’m. Killed a “nigger.” (Twain 167) you can clearly see that society did not so much care if a nigger was killed. People were so concerned about themselves and the other whites to even care for the blacks. Using the word nigger can put you in their shoes of how they felt each and every day and what they had to go through to survive. Twain evidently wanted you to see the culture and the vocabulary of the time period in which the novel was …show more content…
In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the word “nigger” is used a great amount of times. This word has a purpose and the argument over if it should be removed or not continues to occur. If the word was to be removed, Huck Finn would no longer be Huck Finn anymore. In a video discussing the n word, David Bradley states, “But to tamper with the author’s words because of the sensibilities of present-day readers is unacceptable. The minute you do this, the minute this stops being the book that Twain wrote” (Bradley). Evidently, taking out the word changes the entire context. Replacing the word with slave in the new additions of the book will have one thing missing and it will be that word itself. Twain gets the point across directly when using the word nigger. Like David Bradley states in the video, “There is a reality there that you can not avoid” (Bradley). This shows the reality of the word and that slave is a condition, but nigger has to do with shame. “Nigger made slavery possible” says David and many would agree with him. Slaves were niggers and without them slaves would not be a

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Time and time again art has been criticized for being too vulgar and expressive, Mark Twain was one of these individuals who participated in art, he was raised in the generation where slavery was common and racial slurs were frequently used. So to criticized and censor his work for writing what he grew up knowing would be like punishing Huck Finn for stealing things from others when he was told it was borrowing all his life by his pa “Pap always said it warn’t no harm to borrow things if you was meaning to pay them back some time; but the widow said it warn’t anything but a soft name for stealing, and no decent body would do it” (Chp. 12 Pg, 49). I strongly disagree with the fact that people want to ‘update and improve’ the classic “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” because it uses a term that is found offensive frequently in todays generation. My problem with this posse that wants to change the wording of the book is that, their biggest concern to why they want to change the word “nigger” to “slave” is that they’re doing for the children, trying to make it more comfortable for them to read and protecting the youth from frowned upon terms. If this is their concern then why are they singling out books and classics from decades ago, why not focus on the books being published now with the terms “whore” “slut” or “trailer trash” in it? To me those are equally offensive terms. John Foley once said that he thinks “To Kill a Mockingbird” Harper Lee’s classic about racial inequality in the Deep South, and John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men”(Source A) should be removed from the curriculum for similar reasons” all because they show the reader the time gap between the setting of the writing and the present of today even though in the beginning of all books they tell you what time frame the story is held in “SCENE: The Mississippi Valley; TIME: Forty to Fifty Years Ago” (Page 0).…

    • 524 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    First and foremost, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn elucidates the treatment of African Americans during the Southern antebellum. A succinct and ideal model of the treatment is when Tom’s aunt asked if anybody was hurt if a steamboat accident fabricated by Huck, who is pretending to be Tom, to explain why he was late, Huck states “‘No’m. Killed a nigger’” (Twain 328). The statement insinuates that African Americans at the time were not considered as human beings; rather, African Americans were considered as individuals that are subhuman. In the latter parts of the book, after Jim, a runaway slave, helps the doctor treat Tom, who was shot in the leg, “[The men] all agreed that Jim had acted very well, and was deserving to have some notice took of it, and reward. So every one of them promised, right out and hearty, that [the men] wouldn’t cuss him no more” (Twain 423). This so-called “reward”, is something most, if not all of the audience already has as a right, suggesting that Jim is considered a subhuman since he has to be rewarded with a right that many already have. Twain utilizes a plethora of actions to…

    • 603 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    From that quote, it can be seen that Webb strongly appreciates the fact that the story is…

    • 924 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This blog definitely won’t be the only one that states how the n-word is used in Huck Finn 219 times. That is 219 times the book hurts an African-American student that is reading this book. That is 219 times that feelings of pain and being targeted are brought up in a student’s homework assignment. The n-word is surround by a dark and depressing past that should not be forced upon any student to read over and over again. Towards the end of the novel, the Doctor states that he, “liked the nigger for that; I tell you, gentlemen, a nigger like that is worth a thousand dollars.” (Ch 42 Page 298). The casualty and and frequency with which the word is used is shocking to say the least. Everyone in the book uses the word like it’s nothing, but it isn’t nothing. Yes, the author is using the accurate vernacular of the time. While this may be true, just because the language is historically accurate, does not mean it is okay for the classroom setting. Racism is a topic that should be candidly discussed in class, but that’s all it should be, a discussion. Racism is not a homework assignment one can just read about and be graded…

    • 865 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    While reading the book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the term “nigger” tends to constantly appear. The word first appears in chapter two when Huck says, “Miss Watson’s big nigger, named Jim, was setting in the kitchen door” (Twain 7). After that the term keeps reappearing all throughout the novel. As the novel unravels, it becomes apparent that Mark Twain is not using the term in an offensive manner. The term “nigger” has been around since at least 1619. The denotation of the term is a black person or a member of the dark-skinned race as in Webster’s Dictionary. Sometime during the 1800s the connotation of the term turned into something rather offensive.…

    • 1533 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Huckleberry Finn is a novel written in 1884 by Mark Twain at the end of the American reconstruction era. During this time there blacks were still treated unequally, and a large amount of ignorance between the races was present. As a child Mark Twain often witnessed the harsh cruelty slaves had to endure and as he grew older began to empathize with them, and through those emotions he created this novel. He created a book from the view point of a young boy who was considered white trash at the time and kept true to the accents and phrases the different races used at the time. This included the word nigger which although today is considered extremely inappropriate, in the past it was a common term used by whites to label blacks. Using satire to show how absurd racism and prejudice was. Over a hundred years later this novel is still considered a classic, however, a controversy has arisen over the harsh language often used in the novel.…

    • 519 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    I liked the nigger for that; I tell you, gentlemen, a nigger like that is worth a thousand dollars- and kind treatment, too... The boy was doing as well there as he would 'a' done at home- better, maybe” (Twain 285) Twain comes out and says that this black, was just as helpful as the houseful of whites could've been, possibly more so. The character development of Jim went from the racist assumption of blacks back in the 19th century, in that he was dumb, greedy and a liar, yet when the book comes to a close he is spoken about as though he is welcomed in the household.…

    • 857 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    A trashy and racist book wouldn't be allowed in classrooms. The novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, is receiving negative attention. The dominant problem that students, parents, teachers, and even professors, face , is the usage of the n-word. After reading this adventurous story, it is hard to find the problem that is upsetting many people. Therefore, this incredible novel should continue to be in the high school curriculum because it offers students a realistic historical background, it receives numerous positive reactions, and the meaning of the word nigger, (referred to as the n-word) is changing over time.…

    • 1945 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Huck Finn Synthesis

    • 483 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Books such as Adventures of Huckleberry Finn are part of history and Twain wrote the novel to convey the social changes that were occurring during that time. African Americans were moving away from the horrors of slavery and the Jim Crow laws, but there was still the belief in white supremacy and slavery. “Nigger” was a term of the times but Mark Twain was able to use the word “nigger” to show how wrong it was. Huck Finn was able to move past the word “nigger” and see Jim as a man, not his color. To remove “nigger” and replace it with “slave” would limit the lesson Huck Finn learned while with Jim, that all men are equal regardless of the color of their skin. By changing the word “isn’t merely adulterating Twain’s text. It is also adulterating social, economic, and linguistic history” (New York Times).…

    • 483 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    “He’s nothin’ but a nigger-lover!” is one of the many so called inappropriate texts from one of the best-loved stories of all time, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. The use of the ‘N’ word should remain in the book because it describes the setting of an important period of time, and shows mind set of racist characters. It is simply used for historical recognition and not as an insult.…

    • 632 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Twain's masterpiece was ruined when people thought the word nigger was too explicit to be said. People wanted to change the word or they didn't want their kids to read the book. “Huck’s note will now call Jim a “Runaway slave” (Leonard Pitts. Jr). Changing writer's words isn’t original for the writer. Twain is a famous original writer and it’s not your…

    • 650 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Huck Finn Racist

    • 916 Words
    • 4 Pages

    “Thoughtful examination of Twain’s use of the word “nigger” can help teach students the importance of understanding the context in which a word is used.” (Apstein). The word can help students learn about how African-Americans were treated and viewed back then. He wanted to show the importance of the word. He couldn’t have just switched out the word for slave, because anyone can be a slave. Also if Twain didn’t want to use that word, he wouldn’t have. Twain put that word in there for a reason, he wanted it to spark conversations and controversy. He wanted the readers to understand what type of language people used back then and how certain people were treated and…

    • 916 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “The edge of the hilltop we looked away down into the village and could see three or four lights twinkling, where there was sick folks, maybe: and the stars over us ever so fine: and won by the village was the river, a whole mile broad, and awful still and grand.”(6).…

    • 609 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    According to the “Boston Transcript”, Huckleberry Finn is “regarded as trash and is more suited to the slums than to intelligent, respectable people” (“Boston Transcript” 308).The language used by Mark Twain in Huckleberry Finn is offensive and depicts humor during this period of time. According to the “Harvard Gazette”, "The n-word is spoken there a number of times," said NAACP Pennsylvania state President Charles Stokes. "The concern we have is that to a black child it might be damaging. Also to a white child, or a Hispanic child, those words could be damaging" (Powell). Parents as well as high schools and colleges have demanded that Huckleberry Finn not be taught. The thinking behind Twains, writings is that it will only strike discord between the races. Huckleberry Finn is consider to be a stereotype of racists and language and instead of bringing light to this time in history and the building of a relationship it is poking fun. The belief of that if our country is to move on from racism and division writings like Huckleberry Finn should not be taught (Yee). Huckleberry Finn is outdated and portrays a society that stood at odds and more writings of unity should be taught to reflect changes of…

    • 959 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Most of the students reading this novel are at a very immature age and are in some cases very sensitive to the material in the books. The students feel awkward and are often shocked while reading a book with repetitive use of the N- word and the discriminating words used towards the black slaves. None of them are ready for the hatred and ridicule centered on one race in this novel, this is especially true for the African American students in a predominately white school. “What do dead white male authors know about your particular situation in this particular class?”(Toni Morris). Twain was aware of the African race, but he had no perspective of how they would feel towards his novel years after its release, it is demeaning and offensive to all black students who…

    • 943 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays