Taylor Jones 10/25/12

Mrs. Dean Hon.English-11

Who You Calling A Nigga?

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a very controversial topic, and
whether or not it should be banned in schools can be argued all day. People have their
reasonings behind why the novel should not be taught, mainly because of the frequency of the
word nigger which is present in the book 219 times. But the book should not be banned,
because of the fact that the teaching of the book comes from and is centered around the word
nigger itself.
The novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been banned from many schools because of
its graphic content that puts many people in an uncomfortable position. The content that
people are referring to is the word nigger this stirs up arguments that teens should not be
reading this type of language because its degrading but I dont see how this word offends so
many people that arent black. This book should be taught in school, because it is a good book
and it has a good message once you get past the word nigger. Michiko Kakutani an author
from The New York Times makes a good point when she wrote Huckleberry Finn actually
stands as a powerful indictment of slavery, of using its contested language as an opportunity to
explore the painful complexities of race relations in this country. The word nigger is placed in
that novel so many times for a reason it is there to represent the main character Jim who is a
black runaway slave. Through the entire book they refer to Jim as Nigger Jim to let the readers
know that he is in fact an African American. The distinction of Jim is there to start controversy,
it is placed in the text to get the readers wondering why does Twain uses the word so many
times, and what does this word represent?
People tend to make a big deal about the word nigger in the novel itself, but if you think
about what year this book was written in, you would then realize that the characters in this book
were there to portray this time era. This novel was published in 1884; I dont see how the
audience is so shocked that they referred to the African American as a nigger because back
then thats what he was called to identify him. Jeff Nichols, the executive director of the Mark
Twain House and Museum says that The word is the for a reason, the world is terrible, its
hurtful, but its there for a reason, to convey the language and attitudes of Missouri in the 1840s,
in a book written in the 1880s when the Jim Crow laws were being passed in the South to
deprive blacks of their civil rights. And to this day many people whether they are White, Black,
Hispanic, or Asian use the term nigger to identify themselves or someone else. 17 year old
Kevin Johnson feels that Were still going to keep saying it, theres a million kids that use it.
Theyre not going to stop just because one person says so. And thats how he feels about the
word nigger this is a good reason why not to get rid of the book, if so many students are using
this word without knowing the true meaning why ban a book that actually shows you the
importance of the word, and why take something out that doesnt bother the majority of the
people who study the book.
Some may argue that reading Huckleberry Finn is a hard thing to do because any
secondary school will not teach material that makes students uncomfortable says Joan
Delfattore. But what is it that makes students so uncomfortable? Being uncomfortable is a good
thing when reading this type of book because it sparks up a conversation as to why certain
people are so uncomfortable with the book, you should be able to talk about, and speak upa bout
the things that make you so uncomfortable when reading this novel. This is why the book should
not be banned it uses its contested language as an opportunity to explore the painful
complexities of race relations in this country. Says Michiko Kakutani she feels that this book
helps lead the way into a whole new world of discussion, to get a deeper aspect of the novel
itself.
To say whether or not a book should be banned or not look at the reason why it should, and
shoulnt be banned, also take a look at the history behind the book. The Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn is a great novel even with the word nigger present in the book 219 times.
This should not change how good the book really is. The word nigger plays a huge role in this
novel, so why should it be replaced, or why should the book be banned completely? There are no
good reasons; this argument can go on forever. But until then people should have the decision on
what version they want to read. The original book being banned should not even be an option.