The word “Nigger,” used for a member of any dark-skinned race of people and is often known for being offensive, is used over two hundred times in Huckleberry Finn. The word fuels and contributes to black people’s feelings of low self-esteem and to white people’s disrespect for them. In the classroom, while reading Huckleberry Finn, students do not want their differences highlighted to their fellow classmates. Huckleberry Finn accentuates their one difference that is always apparent, which is the color of their skin. People against the use of Huckleberry Finn in the schools believe black children are offended by the use of the word “nigger’ anywhere, no matter what the teacher uses to justify it.
Book banning has a huge negative effect on how students live, at school as well as at home. Book censors can only give unreasonable and unjustifiable motives for banning novels to validate their cause. In the end, the actions of the people who ban books create numerous negative effects on minors. Book banning limits student access to great works of literature. Many people regard William Shakespeare as one of the greatest English writers of all time, yet almost all of his plays have been prohibited from most schools.
The book should not be read to high school students, one reason being that it has too many racial slurs. People today get offended easily; especially the American people, they will try to sew anybody for anything, and this book will definitely trigger those emotions. The storyline takes place in the 19th century, so there were no limitations on racism like we have now. There was discrimination of the black community like slavery, lynching, unfair imprisonment, and many other ways. There are many appearances of the ‘N’ word and when we were reading in groups, it felt really uncomfortable when the word came up and I didn’t want to offend my classmates.
Huck realizes that racism and slavery are very immoral and this encourages him to keep helping Jim to freedom. The racism in Huck’s society affect his perception of right and wrong because most of the people who had an influence on him thought that slavery was a good thing and were, in general, racist people. He couldn’t make his mind up between what was right or wrong because he had to choose either; what society thought was right, slavery, lynching or what his heart thought was right, helping his friend Jim. When Jim was sold from the Duke and the King Huck becomes scared and begins to write a letter to a previous caretaker, Miss Watson, then he had “to decide, forever, betwixt two things, and [he] knowed it. [He] studied a minute, sort of holding [his] breath, and then says to [himself]:"All right, then, I'll go to hell"- and tore it up.”(Twain 214) He
The most prominent viewpoints on the matter come from western traditionalists, afro-centric groups, and multiculturalists. Should black history be observed alongside western history in schools? Each group would give a different answer, and each of their viewpoints have affected school curriculums and textbooks throughout the years. W.E.B. DuBois was an African American college professor who felt he had been cheated out of a proper education because his school system did not teach black history.
The Montgomery Advertiser is also trying to mock how Atticus is toiling away to represent a defendant, Tom Robinson, who has little to no hope in being freed from the accusations of rape made on him. This is not only an extremely rude gesture, but it is also a sign of prejudice, because they are basing their inferences of the future of the case simply on the fact that Tom Robinson is a Negro, and Negroes are always “the bad guys.” Another case where unjustness is shown is when Lula is spiteful towards Calpurnia for bringing Scout and Jem along to the Negro church. Lula says, “‘I wants to know why you bringin’ white chillun to nigger church’” (Lee 119). Prejudice does not occur only when a white person looks down upon a black person; it happens vice versa as well. Black people may not be allowed to attend the same churches as white people, but that does not mean white people prohibited from black people’s churches simply cancels out the act of prejudice.
In today’s society there still seems to be a lot of Christian hypocrisy in America regardless of race and even now regardless of sexual preference. Of course religion has turned a blind eye to injustices in the past for instance slavery, but as far as actually flipping religious philosophy in the country. Walkers appeal was the start of self-inflicted riot among whites during that time, no white man wanted a black man to outsmart their master plan to control African-Americans (at that time Africans). Even in the society we reside in today the white still feel the need to be in charge and to control African-Americans all because of there will power to feel dominate. Even after Walker published his Appeal the southern states did not want it publishes nowhere that the blacks could get a hold of it, unwavering the fact that many of them could not read.
Religion is one of the key victims of Twain’s satire throughout the novel. During the time period in which The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was written, religion was as much a part of civilization, as was education. This satire is no more apparent then when Huck’s guardian, the Widow Douglas, preaches to him about Moses. Huck did not think very much of the lecture; “ Here she was a-bothering about Moses, which was no kin to her, and no use to anybody, being gone, you see…” Twain uses Huck to exhibit Huck’s objection to the blind faith that civilized society towards religion. Twain uses satire in the beginning of the story, for Tom Sawyer’s Gang.
By doing so, it created one of the many disagreements between the North and South, the institution of slavery. When the Fugitive Slave Act was placed in the Compromise of 1850, it created even more hostility between the two parties. But it was in no comparison to the outburst that was formed from Uncle Tom’s Cabin. This book created a face for the slaves, it gave everyone an understanding of how slaves were treated and the injustice they suffered in reaction to the Fugitive Slave Act. “It transformed abolitionism, bringing the movement, whose extreme rhetoric many Northerners had previously viewed with disapproval, to the edge of respectability” (Goldfield 378).
The intolerance of the African-American race is shown a great deal from beginning to end in these two novels. In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird and in Mark Twain’s novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Scout and Huck endure prejudice, but are able to overcome it through their desire not to side with society, and the positive influences in their lives. Scout and Huck both live in societies that are virtually intolerant of the African-American race. Their societies are driven by this segregation, making them become extremely out of control. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus defends Tom Robinson, a black man accused of raping a white woman, in a court trial.