American Experience Research Paper

Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” is said to be one of the greatest American novels to ever be written and is what all other pieces of American literature are based off of. The novel has been debated for over an entire century and will continue to be debated for much longer. Never the less, Huckleberry Finn teaches young students and adults the important life lessons. ”The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain should remain required reading in American Literature classes because it enlightens students about the horrors of racism and slavery, familiarizes students with the South during time period, and properly portrays the powers of conformity.

Huckleberry Finn written by Mark Twain has been a troublesome, yet successful novel ever since it was originally published in 1885. However, in that same year the Concord Library Committee banned this book from the shelves due to its setting in the past where slave owning was still legal in the United States. Twenty years after the Civil War and the south is still unhappy with the federal government’s decision to illegalize slavery. Slave ownership was a touchy subject at the time Huckleberry Finn was published, but that is the reason why this book is so successful. This novel about a young boy escaping civilization with an escaped slave tackles the tough topic about the chemistry between Americans and African Americans after the Civil War. No other author dared to write about this do to many authors being romanticists, but Mark Twain who only writes with a realistic fashion did what no other man would. This publicity stunt is the reason Huckleberry Finn is still read to this day. The controversy with this novel during the 1880s traveled throughout the years and is still as strong and present. The only difference between the topic of discussion in the late 1800s and now is the content of the book. The first few years after Huckleberry Finn was published, Americans argued whether this book should still be sold due to the fact that it deals with slavery even after the United States attacked itself to end the slave business. Many teachers feel

Mark Twain’s classic novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn took place during a tense period in U.S. history. Heated debate over the morality of slavery had sparked and deep divisions were emerging between the northern and southern states. Born in Missouri, a slave state, the novel’s protagonist Huckleberry Finn was raised on values of racism and prejudice. He adhered to these principles as they were all he knew. However, over the course of his journey, Huck’s formerly provincial morality was challenged by his real-world experiences, and he was forced to derive a new set of morals for himself. At the start of the novel, a blind acceptance of slavery was present in Huck’s mind. This was revealed when Huck thought, in reference to Jim’s plan to free his children, “Here was this nigger, which I had as good as helped to run away, coming right out flat-footed and saying he would steal his children – children that belonged to a man I didn’t even know; a man that hadn’t ever done me no harm” (137). Although grateful for Jim’s companionship and reluctant to report him to the authorities, Huck still believed slavery to be a moral practice. As evidenced by this thought process, Huck held on to the values of the slave-owning states in the south, believing that Jim’s children, as slaves, were property. He even felt remorseful at the thought of a man’s slaves being stolen. Regardless of his budding friendship with Jim, Huck was still concretely in favor of slavery. This static view on

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a coming of age novel set in the 1840’s in St. Petersburg, MO. Although written 20 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, America, especially in the south, was struggling with racism. The novel contains many thought provoking themes such as racism, social class, morals, and conforming to society’s expectations. Perhaps, one of the most important themes of the book is Huck’s refusal to conform to society’s rules or to be “Sivilized” by Widow Douglas. Throughout the novel Huck proves to the reader that staying true to himself rather than conforming to society’s expectations will allow him to live a more satisfied life.

In the beginning, Huck is like all the town people and a follower that went with the norms of society he didn’t want to stand out. One example is when Huck’s morals seem to show no concern about Miss Watson’s ownership of Jim. Huck’s mentality thought it was perfectly normal to treat the slaves as a piece of property, play tricks for one’s personal amusement, and have the slaves do all the work. Huck uses his moral sense to expose hypocrisy in others and to try to correct such situations if possible. It’s very ironic that Miss Watson claiming to be Christian lets society norms influence her. Not only that, society was a hypocrite, love your neighbor and have an African-American as your slave. Huck let’s go of all the misguide concepts from the society. Huck could see how wrong his action towards Jim has been. Without the pivotal scene Huck wouldn’t have a stand up and truly analysis the norms of society. There is an evolution between the old Huck we meet in the beginning. Now, he slowly starts to change and matures “I know’d [Jim] was white inside,” indicates that Huck sees Jim as a human. Huck see’s Jim through the eyes of a human not as a white man. He is beginning to slowly escape the attachment of the white’s see. Twain want Huck to overcome all racists thinking and look at African-Americans as people with feelings, families, and friendships, even with

The Pre-Civil War novel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, is about a young boy named Huck. His mother is dead and his father is an alcoholic. Huck is now being raised by the Widow Douglass, a woman who is attempting to raise Huck to be a successful, educated member of society, despite his many protests. Because of the violence and forced conformity, Huck runs away and unites with a runaway slave named Jim. Instead of turning Jim in, Huck decides to help him break free from slavery. By doing this, he is going against the societal norm and refusing to follow certain rules just because that’s what everyone else is doing. As they run away together, Huck begins to notice and understand the common stereotypes within society. He

In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain develops the plot into Huck and Jim's adventures allowing him to weave in his criticism of society. The two main characters, Huck and Jim, both run from social injustice and both are distrustful of the civilization around them. Huck is considered an uneducated backward boy, constantly under pressure to conform to the "humanized" surroundings of society. Jim a slave is not even considered as a real person, but as property. As they run from civilization and are on the river, they ponder the social injustices forced upon them when they are on land.

In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain talks about his experiences before the Civil War through the eyes of a young boy named Huckleberry Finn. Throughout the story, he points out the hypocrisy of society, morality and the controversial issue of racism and slavery. In today’s world we have different cultures and societies. There are certain views that these societies or communities have held for many years.

He only helps Jim due to “his personal devotion to a friend,” and Twain did this to prove that the ideals of society are ingrained in children’s heads whether they are morally right or wrong (Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Bloom's Notes 33-35). As the story moves along Huck’s fondness of Jim causes him to ignore his “moral code” to help Jim as he escapes Huck is running away from society, but it turns out his values are greatly intertwined with the society he dislikes. Huck feels that even if he helps Jim or he does not that he will be sinning either way, so Huck choosing to help Jim is not because he had learned anything different about slavery. Huck finds nothing wrong with the ideals of slavery. When there is an explosion on a steamboat and someone asks he responds with “no’m killed a nigger,” and is not moved in any way when they reply with “well, it’s lucky because sometimes people do get hurt” (Twain 224). Huck still does not see slaves as people or at least as superior as the white American civilization further revealing how society’s norms and ways are ingrained into children’s minds and shape how they view what is right and wrong (Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Bloom's Notes

During the time of slavery, there wasn’t much interaction between whites and blacks. Most African Americans in the southern states were under slavery, and had certain limits they couldn’t break. The relationship between Huckleberry Finn and the former slave Jim, was very unique and complex at times. During their trip down the Mississippi, Huck’s conscience was catching up to him. Knowing and embracing the consequences of helping a slave run away, Huck and Jim always stuck together throughout the novel. Throughout Huck’s life, he was raised on racism from his father and the town around him. The Widow he had lived with, had a lot of slaves on their property. One of them, which was Jim. This was always hard on Huck, because he felt like the Widow did a lot for him in his life, and he betrayed her by keeping Jim safe. Also, Huck never had that one meaningful person in his life he could look up too. Jim was filling that position throughout the novel, because Huck had feelings that he thought he would never have for a slave. I believe this element of the story is connected to the idea of being “American” because during this time, slaves often tried to escape. The way Jim had escaped, mimics the stories of the famous Underground Railroad. So, Mark Twain throws in some historical examples that mirrors this trip.

White and black families were based off the same values yet black families were treated as property rather than people. Because of this, Huck carried this through his life before learning about Jim’s saddening past. Huck and Jim were able to grow through the knowledge and guidance that they lended to each other along their

The story is deceptively coy. It depicts a time and characters in an age far removed from our own, and Twain presents his narrative in terms of a young boy who proceeds on a great adventure. That much certainly is true. But what young Huck experiences along the way to adventure is how he learns to deal with his world and its ways as his shucks off his youthful innocence for a too-early adulthood filled with adult dealings. Huck’s relationship with Jim gives Huck ample reason to question his upbringing about “niggers.” He’s exposed to the hypocrisy of slave owners, witnessed crimes unpunished, cruelty, malicious lies and the duplicity of white people.

Mark Twain’s story, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, revolves around Huck, who hungers for the taste of freedom and the restraints of civilization. Going to school, having faith, and being a perfect example of a person was the norm set by society, Huck did not conform to this. In fact, he detested school and did not get why people are spending their lives learning how to live through a book. Huck never had a clear thought of what people thought or never really understood it. He felt suffocated in society because he never agreed with other people’s opinions or views. Throughout the story, Huck and his companion Jim travel on the Mississippi River away from civilization. The river symbolizes the purity and freedom that Huck and Jim craved for; Jim wanted to be free from slavery while Huck wanted to be free from the restrictive nature of being civilized. Huck’s reason for not wanting to be “sivilized” is because he was never civilized to begin with.

A major theme in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is slavery and our evolvement towards the institution. “In fact, Twain’s novel is often taught as the text that epitomizes this tradition, with Huck held up as its exemplar: a boy courageous enough to stand against the moral conventions of his society. . .” (Bollinger, 32 – Say It Jim) In the beginning of Huckleberry Finn’s relationship with Jim, he has little respect for him and as their journey progresses he

There treated similarly to material possessions, items that can just be easily replaced. Also with this statement Twain is able to show the stupidity and ignorance white southerners have. The racist culture the South have are also very evident in the protagonist himself, Huck Finn, and his relations to Jim, a runaway slave. Huck Finn is just another creation of his environment and the values he was raised with. Even though he reflects the inhumanity and injustice of the white Southerners towards blacks, he is oblivious to the fact that this is the wrong mindset to have, so in the beginning he is unable to deal with Jim. In the beginning of their relationship he shows the attitudes that reflect his