Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Mark Twain and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn




We begin the quarter with the work of Mark Twain, otherwise known as Samuel Clemens, one of America's foremost authors. Hemingway contended that "all modern American literature comes from Huck Finn," and there is much in Twain's 1885 novel that will orient our conversation in "American Writers" for the rest of the quarter.

Twain's work was seen to herald a uniquely American form of literature in large part because of his adoption of the vernacular throughout much of Huck Finn. While European literature was often characterized by its impeccable use of language, Twain endeavored to make his characters sound more like everyday people in Mississippi during the time he was writing. Often, Twain's use of the vernacular can be uncomfortable--especially as it pertains to his representation of Jim, the slave who lives with Huck Finn's adopted "mother" as the book begins.

As we will discuss in depth in the coming weeks, the topic of race (the debates over slavery that divided America, the rising tide of post-Reconstruction Jim Crow laws that were affecting African Americans in the years after slavery was abolished, and the racism that is so deeply embedded in American culture) hangs over much if Huck Finn--a fact that prefigures the role of race in much subsequent American literature. Mark Twain's work has been read to increasing controversy in the United States as its representation of the racial inequalities of its time prove distasteful and offensive to contemporary audiences.

Along with exploring some of the broader issues of the time period, we'll spend the next week or so looking more closely at this complex and influential novel.

1 comment:

  1. I wanted to comment on the article we are reading for 1-9-09 that is on the interent. First, I understand that the n-word in very offensive. But I dont agree with Mrs. Clark and Miss Phair's arguement. Many controversial book are taught in schools. I believe the reasons they are taught is to explain why they are controversial and give the students an outlook on the history of why these books are "classics". I liked the end of the article where it stated other controversial books because I have read almost every single on of them and learned something from each of them. I dont see "Huck Finn" as a threat or bad example to our youth but rather something that forces them to look at history and literature all rolled into one.

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