Huck Finn: The Non-Racist Novel

Huck Finn, as we know it, is a very controversial novel. Is it racist or not? Should it be taught in schools? Those are the big questions that everyone faces with this novel. I say that the novel is not racist and it should be taught in school. If anything the book is not racist, but just ignorant. The time period Twain lived in was a very racist time period. Of course you're going to see words like "nigger" and racist comments said by characters in the book. People thought it was OK to say such things, blacks at the time were not seen as equals. So if the time period is racist, then why is the main character friends with a black man? Why is the black man an actual character that you care about and he has feelings. Just because other characters say racists remarks and "nigger" is found on almost every page, it doesn't mean the book is telling you that black people are inferior to white people. It's just the setting of the book and you have to look deeper at the meaning of the book, which is the adventure and the positive relationship made between Jim and Huck. Though many will argue that at end of the book, when Jim is locked in a shack by Tom, it destroys the whole build up of  Jim's character. That might be true, but the book is not telling you that black people should be locked up in shacks. It's just a twist in the novel. It may be terrible, but twists in novels aren't all good.

Huck himself is not racist, but totally oblivious to certain matters. Huck looks up to Tom and thinks Tom is so cool, but we all know Tom is a dumb ass. Huck doesn't say anything to Tom when Jim is locked in the shack because he thinks Tom knows what's right. Even though Huck really made himself an individual in the first 13 chapters, he's too young to know what Tom is doing is wrong. He likes Jim and we see that when he said he would go to hell to save Jim. He's a kid, not a saint.

Part 2 of the argument: Should it be taught in school? Hell, yes it should. It's a great piece of literature, Hemingway said it himself, and it gives of us a brief taste of American History. It's well written (the sloppy writing grows on you after you read it for a bit) and it's entertaining to read, unlike some other pieces of literature (*coughcough*Jane Eyre*coughcough*). Huck Finn should be taught in school, though it doesn't mean the teacher shouldn't warn students that it has offensive terms in the book. If the teacher just goes ahead, gives the student the book, and doesn't warn them of derogatory statements then it could cause an uproar. Huck Finn must be presented carefully and the teacher needs to tell students what to expect.

I'm going to make a ton references to the book (obviously), counter Jane Smiley's statements, and backup Peaches Henry's (along with others) claim.

So PLEASE give me some constructive feedback and I'm interested to see what your ideas will be in your posts.