Gillian Wright
4th hour
English 10
2/19/13
The Freedom to Teach
Dear Mark Twain,
A lot has happened since your death pertaining to the novel you wrote, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Your book has become quite the scandal. In fact it has been banned in several schools because of racial issues, especially one word, the N-word which, according to “Huck Finn: Controversy over Removing the ‘N-word’ from Mark Twain novel,” “appears 219 times” in the novel (but I bet you already knew that). This word is the main reason some today even claim that you are a racist writer (“Is Huck Finn a Racist Book?”). But I disagree. Huck Finn is not a racist book and you are not a racist writer, thus it should not be banned anywhere.
Huck Finn is not a racist book because the meaning of the N-word has changed. According to “Is Huck Finn a Racist Book?” because “the action of the book takes place in the south twenty years before the Civil War, it would be amazing if they didn’t use that word.” But I bet you already knew that as well. So, even though in your time the N-word was a title used to address slaves, in my time is used as an extremely racist and derogatory term towards African Americans. Because many people do not understand the history behind the word, and I mean the pre-Civil War history, they are offended by the N-word. This leads to banning of the book and even in the instance of Alan Gribben, altering your words by changing the N-word to “slave.”
Another reason Huck Finn is not a racist book is because of, you, or the writer’s intent. You did not mean for Huck Finn to be a racist book, you meant to satirize the idea of racism in the novel. One example of this is in Chapter Twenty Seven when the slave family is separated and the king and duke don’t care at all but the sisters, especially Mary Jane, is guilt-ridden. This is pretty intense symbolism on your part, Mr. Twain. The sisters represent the Abolitionist view of that at least some aspects of slavery are morally inept; the king and duke represent Southern society’s views that slaves were property without emotions or values. The king and duke also represent Southern society when Jim is sold back into slavery for forty dollars, they only care about getting money to get drunk with and don’t care at all about Jim and his predicament.
One can simply claim that Huck Finn is not a racist book because you are definitely not a racist writer or person. It is well known that you were indeed ahead of the times, as they say, in terms of racism. You understood that racism and slavery were and are wrong. This was quite a revolutionary idea back in the twenty years prior to the civil war, something I’m sure you were proud of.
Respect. One significant factor in proving that Huck Finn is not a racist book is respect. This is because you have made Jim, a black slave, the most respect-worthy character in the book. Whether it be for his religion, his parenting skills, or his loyalty, Jim deserves respect and you, Mr. Twain, have helped him demand what he deserves. This is shown in the novel when in Chapter Four when Huck shows respect for Jim’s religion by paying the magic hairball. He truly believes Jim can communicate with it in order to tell Huck’s future regarding his father. Another example of this is when Uncle Silas and aunt Sally take care of Jim when he is their “prisoner.” They respect him by praying with him and talking with him and feeding him well. Also, as a sign of respect to African Americans, there is little violence to the slaves from their masters in this novel. So, for many reasons, Huck Finn is not a racist book.
An important idea that needs to be addressed now that we have proved that your novel is not racist and neither are you is: the banning of Huck Finn. Because Huck Finn is not racist, there really isn’t a reason to ban it, but there are reasons why it should be pushed to be taught in schools, rented in libraries, and the like. According to Jocelyn Chadwick, a Professor of Education at Harvard, one reason that Huck Finn needs to be taught in schools is that “Twain brings into schools what all of us in this country desperately need, yet fear most: discussions -- frank discussions--about race... and ultimately, true and unadulterated racial equality.” This is very true, Huck Finn is a catalyst for discussing racial equality, allowing children to talk about race in a safe place where they won’t be judged for their opinions (the classroom). This novel also teaches about our cultural history, and what the N-word used to mean, something that we cannot forget as a society.
So Huck Finn is not a racist novel for many reasons including the changed meaning of the N-word, your intent, your beliefs, and the use of respect in the novel. Thus, because the only reason it was banned was for racial discontent and we have proven that their is no racism in Huck Finn, it should be taught in schools across the country. This can allow students to discuss their feelings on racial equality’s status in society then and now. Teaching Huck Finn gives teachers the freedom to teach about racial equality in a safe and supportive environment. I think we can agree that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should not be banned.
Sincerely,
Gillian Wright
4th hour
English 10
2/19/13
The Freedom to Teach
Dear Mark Twain,
A lot has happened since your death pertaining to the novel you wrote, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Your book has become quite the scandal. In fact it has been banned in several schools because of racial issues, especially one word, the N-word which, according to “Huck Finn: Controversy over Removing the ‘N-word’ from Mark Twain novel,” “appears 219 times” in the novel (but I bet you already knew that). This word is the main reason some today even claim that you are a racist writer (“Is Huck Finn a Racist Book?”). But I disagree. Huck Finn is not a racist book and you are not a racist writer, thus it should not be banned anywhere.
Huck Finn is not a racist book because the meaning of the N-word has changed. According to “Is Huck Finn a Racist Book?” because “the action of the book takes place in the south twenty years before the Civil War, it would be amazing if they didn’t use that word.” But I bet you already knew that as well. So, even though in your time the N-word was a title used to address slaves, in my time is used as an extremely racist and derogatory term towards African Americans. Because many people do not understand the history behind the word, and I mean the pre-Civil War history, they are offended by the N-word. This leads to banning of the book and even in the instance of Alan Gribben, altering your words by changing the N-word to “slave.”
Another reason Huck Finn is not a racist book is because of, you, or the writer’s intent. You did not mean for Huck Finn to be a racist book, you meant to satirize the idea of racism in the novel. One example of this is in Chapter Twenty Seven when the slave family is separated and the king and duke don’t care at all but the sisters, especially Mary Jane, is guilt-ridden. This is pretty intense symbolism on your part, Mr. Twain. The sisters represent the Abolitionist view of that at least some aspects of slavery are morally inept; the king and duke represent Southern society’s views that slaves were property without emotions or values. The king and duke also represent Southern society when Jim is sold back into slavery for forty dollars, they only care about getting money to get drunk with and don’t care at all about Jim and his predicament.
One can simply claim that Huck Finn is not a racist book because you are definitely not a racist writer or person. It is well known that you were indeed ahead of the times, as they say, in terms of racism. You understood that racism and slavery were and are wrong. This was quite a revolutionary idea back in the twenty years prior to the civil war, something I’m sure you were proud of.
Respect. One significant factor in proving that Huck Finn is not a racist book is respect. This is because you have made Jim, a black slave, the most respect-worthy character in the book. Whether it be for his religion, his parenting skills, or his loyalty, Jim deserves respect and you, Mr. Twain, have helped him demand what he deserves. This is shown in the novel when in Chapter Four when Huck shows respect for Jim’s religion by paying the magic hairball. He truly believes Jim can communicate with it in order to tell Huck’s future regarding his father. Another example of this is when Uncle Silas and aunt Sally take care of Jim when he is their “prisoner.” They respect him by praying with him and talking with him and feeding him well. Also, as a sign of respect to African Americans, there is little violence to the slaves from their masters in this novel. So, for many reasons, Huck Finn is not a racist book.
An important idea that needs to be addressed now that we have proved that your novel is not racist and neither are you is: the banning of Huck Finn. Because Huck Finn is not racist, there really isn’t a reason to ban it, but there are reasons why it should be pushed to be taught in schools, rented in libraries, and the like. According to Jocelyn Chadwick, a Professor of Education at Harvard, one reason that Huck Finn needs to be taught in schools is that “Twain brings into schools what all of us in this country desperately need, yet fear most: discussions -- frank discussions--about race... and ultimately, true and unadulterated racial equality.” This is very true, Huck Finn is a catalyst for discussing racial equality, allowing children to talk about race in a safe place where they won’t be judged for their opinions (the classroom). This novel also teaches about our cultural history, and what the N-word used to mean, something that we cannot forget as a society.
So Huck Finn is not a racist novel for many reasons including the changed meaning of the N-word, your intent, your beliefs, and the use of respect in the novel. Thus, because the only reason it was banned was for racial discontent and we have proven that their is no racism in Huck Finn, it should be taught in schools across the country. This can allow students to discuss their feelings on racial equality’s status in society then and now. Teaching Huck Finn gives teachers the freedom to teach about racial equality in a safe and supportive environment. I think we can agree that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should not be banned.
Sincerely,
Gillian Wright