How Does Huckleberry Finn Affect Society

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Mark Twain’s social life growing up affected how his characters act, the environment around them, and it described the way things were growing up. Mark Twain was raised in a slave environment and the Civil War. This not only affected his writing, but also his life. One thing that the characters do is the liberal use of the word “nigger” throughout the book. Now taken as a derogatory term by modern-day Americans, Twain’s use of the word “nigger” is simply a reflection of the times the kids heard it from their parents so that is what they were called. Huckleberry Finn was written when cruel and unjust treatment of blacks were commonplace, therefore the use of such a word didn’t get so much as a second thought. Here is a quote from Huckleberry…show more content…
Twain shows that racism is deeper than just in the hearts of slave-owners, but actually in the depths of society-ordinary citizens, citizens with good morals, and even the blacks themselves. Everyone around them is racist, that is the way it was, part of their lifestyles. Although many characters in the book are racist and have no respect for blacks, Huck Finn, when taken as a whole preaches and shows that slavery is wrong. The friendship between the two proves to be more important to Huck than his moral system. “All right then, I’ll go to hell.” (207) Huck decides that he would defy his religion and prefer to suffer the severe consequences rather than desert his friend. Although Huck has no problem with slavery, he considers Jim his equal and a friend. Twain is trying to convey those ideas of equality through Huck’s actions and thoughts.Two opposing forces, the force of society and the force of his personal conscience confront him. He was able to think for himself, he couldn’t see why he wasn’t equal to him. Jim remains at the mercy of every other character in this novel, including even the poor, thirteen-year-old Huck. Like Huck, Jim is realistic about his situation and must find ways of accomplishing his goals without getting turned in. He is unable to act boldly or speak his mind. Despite threats, Jim consistently acts as a noble human being and a loyal friend. Jim is…show more content…
As we all are affected by everything when we grow up. Clemens is human, just like the rest of us, including the blacks. Bibliography Kühne, Veit. “Mark Twain - Life and Racism.” Veit Kuehne. N.p., November 1996. Web. 6 Jan 2014. <http://marktwain.veitkuehne.de/>. Lancto, Craig. "Banned Books." World and I. N.p., 2003. Web. 6 Jan 2014. <http://www.worldandi.com/newhome/public/2003/september/mt2pub.asp> Twain, Mark. “Autobiography of Mark Twain: Volume 1, Reader's Edition (Mark Twain Papers).” University of California Press, 2012. Print. Twain, Mark. “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” New York: Penguin, 1986. Print. Biography. n.d. 21 March 2014. <http://www.cmgww.com/historic/twain/about/bio.htm >. Group, The Gale. Samuel Langhorne Clemens. n.d. 21 March 2014. <http://people.brandeis.edu/~teuber/twainbio.html>. Mark Twain Biography. n.d. 21 March 2014. <http://www.marktwainhannibal.com/twain/biography/ >. Mark Twain: Childhood. n.d. 21 March 2014. <http://www.shmoop.com/mark-twain/childhood.html >. The Famous People. n.d. 21 March 2014.
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