Stereotypes In Huck Finn

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The appropriateness of Huck Finn being used in a High School curriculum has been a widely debated topic since the time that it was published. Many believe that the book promotes racism and stereotypes and provides no value to students in the classroom. Being a High School student that has read this book, I strongly disagree with these negative views. Some might say that Huck Finn celebrates racist stereotypes because of the way that many of the characters in the book talk about and treat black people. For example, minstrel episodes, which served the purpose of making the audience laugh at minorities’ expense, and the frequent use of the ‘N’ word, are very offensive to many people today. This story is supposed to take place in the 1830s and 1840s. During this time, slavery was legal. Even though slavery was abolished by the time this book was published, this type of language and views toward …show more content…

I think it makes sense to read this book at the same time that we are reading about slavery and other events during this time period in our textbooks. Freshman year, Newport Harbor students do not take a history class. Junior year, we cover American History but did not cover this time period for very long or in much depth. I believe Sophomore year would be the best time to read Huck Finn. As mentioned before, it provides additional context that goes along well with the facts that are given in textbooks. I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my ideas regarding Huck Finn. Before reading this book, I thought it would be boring. I was surprised to find that I not only enjoyed the book, but also learned more about what was going on during this time period. I strongly urge you to continue allowing high school students to read and analyze this book during the sophomore year to align with the textbooks and

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