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Should Huck Finn Be Allowed In Schools

1666 Words7 Pages

Why Would a Good Novel be Kicked out of the Classroom?
A trashy and racist book wouldn 't be allowed in classrooms. The novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, is getting a lot of negative talk about. The dominant problem that students, parents, teachers, and even professors, face , is the usage of the n-word. After reading this adventurous story, it is hard to find the problem that is upsetting many people. Therefore, this incredible novel should continue to be in the high school curriculum because it offers students a realistic historical background, it receives numerous positive reactions, and the meaning of the word nigger, (referred to as the n-word) is changing over time. 5 sentences
The Adventures of Huckleberry …show more content…

From complaints such as; this book is racist, and it is discrimination against “Black” people, the novel was removed from the Concord, Massachusetts, Public Library. (Apstein) In another case, the novel was marked as number five on the American Library Association’s “100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-1999.” (“Fight”) It isn’t shocking that the novel ended up on the list with all the misunderstandings that happened. All the complaints against the book were for being racist, and it is not a racist novel if you have the right understanding of the time period. People argued among one another about whether the novel should be kept in classrooms or not, and people just do not understand. Some people are not as extreme with their ideas about the novel but some do believe it has no right to be taught it in classroom. For example, “University of Pittsburgh English Professor Jonathan Arac, author of “Huckleberry Finn as Idol and Target: The Function of Criticism in out Time,” agrees that the book should be removed from required reading lists. Unlike the NAACP, Arac doesn’t think it should be removed from the curriculum entirely.” Now in this case, it isn’t as bad as wanting the book to be out of the school, out of the town, out of the state, or wanting the book to be banned overall. It shows that he sees something wrong with the novel and doesn’t want students being required to read it. However the issue that people are finding with the novel is exclusively from not understanding the fantastic novel. 12

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