Gerald Graff Disliking Books Summary

When Gerald Gaff was young, he did not feel that books related to his life and that they, therefore, were not worth reading. “Disliking Books” is written to

In “A Connecticut Yankee at King Arthur's Court”, Hank Morgan often compares the issues of slavery in Camelot to the issues of slavery in the American South. However, since Hank Morgan is a “Connecticut Yankee”, the images of Southern slavery, are directed from Mark Twain’s own personal viewpoint. A deeper analysis of slavery in, “A Connecticut Yankee at King Arthur’s Court”, gives us insight into Mark Twain’s personal stance in favor of anti-slavery, which helps clarify his purpose as a writer.

She looses the reader in her criticism, and it seems now the reader is learning more about Uncle Tom’s Cabin than the racist background of Huckleberry Finn. Smiley’s criticism was so strong and caught so many others’ attention because it had its own controversy against her own. This controversy was written by Justin Kaplan and is a good indication that Smiley got her point across in her own

Twain’s mockery of religious hypocrisy, mob mentality, and racism reflect the ways that he was disappointed in the human race. Huck battles constantly with the disconnect between societal ideals and what he innately believes, the latter eventually triumphing. Twain conveys that an individual has to choose for themselves what to believe and how to act, rather than parrot concepts of right and wrong from religion or surrender one’s beliefs to a crowd. Ultimately, the novel questions the established hierarchy of race in civilization and encourages the readers to do the

Many people disregard the idea of young people being able to learn aspects of intellectualism through worldly experiences. When it comes to the modern idea of being intellectual, most people believe that subjects such as history or science, have more value than fashion or sports. Few people are able to realize the connection between academic intellectualism and street smarts. Students who have a hard time learning general concepts in classrooms tend to have an easier time recognizing, and learning those same concepts in the real world often without even realizing it. For example, take a child who has a difficult time focusing on history lessons in the classroom, but enjoys learning about the background of football teams and their players;

By continuously using biting diction, Twain develops a mocking tone towards Fenimore Cooper’s incapability to create even the simplest of storylines. In the title of the work a sarcastic tone is evident; the word choice is utilized to reinforce the argument stating how Coopers work is an offense to the world of literature. This device is the strongest component in this essay because Twain has clearly expressed to the readers his side when analyzing the work. Without the sarcasm the essay would just be a list of everything Twain believes is wrong, but the author was able to make his argument enjoyable and engaging to the reader.

Authors of classic American literature often utilize a character’s development to establish a worldview or opinion. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Great Gatsby, Mark Twain and F. Scott Fitzgerald use their narrators, Huck Finn and Nick Carraway, to suggest an argument about American society. Seeking adventure, both characters embark on a journey, but their encounters with society leave them appalled. While they each have personal motives for abandoning their past, both end up interacting with different cultures that lead them to a similar decision about society and their futures. Ultimately, they stray from the dominant culture in order to escape the influence of society. Therefore, Twain and Fitzgerald claim that American society

“Hidden Intellectualism,” by Gerald Graff starts off with an older argument between being book smart and street smart. Throughout the reading, Graff uses his own life experiences to critique the education system today. Points made focus on the idea of overlooking the intellectual potential of those who come across as being, “street smart”. Different authors cited in the reading to show how to accept another’s different intellectual. However, we realize that people who come across as being intellectual weren’t always labeled as that.

College, a new math assignment and paper assigned to you seemingly every night, but you’re a history major and have no need for learning the Pythagorean theory. This makes it easy to lose interest and fall behind in class. In his article, Graff cites works from many authors that correlate to his convincing idea of hidden intellectualism and looks deeply into the idea of finding and accepting someone’s “intellectualism”. While it is not a well-recognized idea, there is a lot of promise in the idea of hidden intellectualism, however, our society only focuses on the textbook and curriculum. Considering that some minds we consider genius today were not always seen as “intellectuals” maybe

Should one word define the future of an American classic? Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is one of the most controversial novels in America. This narrative regards a boy named Huckleberry Finn in the 1840’s United States, who runs away from home and travels down the Mississippi. Huck meets runaway slave, Jim who journeys with him on their many adventures. Many believe this meaningful piece of literature should be banned from the high school curriculum. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should stay in the high school curriculum because it is unprejudiced, historical, and important to literature.

Every person encompasses their own unique opinion. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck Finn possesses a conscience that makes him one of the most important and recognizable figures in American literature. However, Claudia Durst Johnson, a critic, believes that because of Huck’s actions the novel “is one of the most radical and darkly bitter books in the American canon. It represents the breaking of federal law as moral. It recommends disobedience and defiance on the part of young people.” This statement is disagreeable because although Huck does break the federal law as a moral, he does it for the right reasons. Therefore, making the great American classic not such a radical and darkly bitter book after all.

When Gerald Graff says “Until I entered college, I hated books and cared only for sports.” I can relate to him in many ways, not specifically speaking, but in relation to what he had to say as an author. I understand that people aren’t enticed by books until they learn about the power of knowledge. I for one, was such person who didn’t care to read much when I was younger until I reached my senior year of high school when I finally understood the meaning of being educated in all aspects. Education, to me is one of the most important things that a person can have; without an education you’re stuck at the lowest levels of society’s hierarchy.

Gerald Graff’s disliking books starts off as him declaring that his early fear of reading made him a better teacher to his students. It seems he had a lot of pressure put on him to read from his father who would push him to read, but Graff never became interested in reading likely because it felt forced if he was to enjoy reading it would have to come naturally. And though he speaks of his childhood in a sort of rough manner being a culturally mixed neighborhood and that the rougher working class children might beat him up if he was too peculiar or different or intellectual.

This book proves that not everyone who grew up around racism was cruel, as Huck began to love Jim for who he is, despite the society he grew up in. An example of Huck maturing could come from chapter forty, "I knowed he was white inside, and I reckoned he'd say what he did say - so it was all right, now, and I told Tom I was agoing for a doctor." (Twain 301). This quote clearly shows that Huck is maturing, and seeing past the color of Jim's skin. The book shows us how hard it was to grow up in a racist society and not be racist. Twain's writing cuts deep into the heart of racism, and shows us that it does not matter what we look like on the outside, it only matters what we have on the

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was wrote by Mark Twain in February, 1885, 20 years after the Civil War. However, the setting of the book takes place before the civil war in various locations as Huckleberry Finn, a boy about 10 years old, tries to race up the Mississippi river to escort Jim, a runaway slave, to freedom. Over the course of Huck and Jim’s adventures, they both become reliant on each other, as Huck develops what he feels is a moral obligation to see Jim to freedom, and Jim comes to respect and nearly worship Jim because of his efforts to free Jim. Throughout the book, the cultural attitudes and imposition of cultural norms at the time are very evident, and when reading it is plain to see that The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn’s