I plan to take a slightly different approach for my essay.... Huckleberry Finn is one of the most controversial books in history. It seems there will always be an attack against it whether it's the supposed racism or even the alleged remarks that there are homosexual occurences between Jim and Huck. Besides these points I still feel Huckleberry Finn should be a part of high school and college curriculum.
My main argument will be how I see Huckleberry Finn as mirroring America' s problems and obstacles (both past and present). This covers a large spectrum of the books controversy...
In terms of racism, I view the book as sort of having both, similarly our nation has both. The character in the novel are very diverse but somehow Huck manages to find a way to accept them all the way they are. Everyone from Tom (represents sort of a close minded, by the book aspect of society) to the King and the Duke (represent outcasts who have issues fitting in and resort to crime) I may do more character analysis or less..... Through this I can ultimately see that diversity can lead to tolerance....on occasion this is apparent in America as well. As well as the fact that though the ending is messy America is similarly confusing and disorganized at times.
*for this section i want to use quotes from the novel examplifying these points....
Another section will probably use quotes from critics to both agree and disagree with my main points .....Trilling maybe.....who else?
Its super rough....and i'll probably have to narrow down my argument but i am definitely open to suggestions :)
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Celine,
ReplyDeleteThis seems like a potentially fruitful approach. I like your idea that--precisely because Huck "mirrors" many of the problems America has faced and continues to face (not just racism, but the whole 'melting pot' thing that comes with life in a pluralistic society)--the novel provides a wonderful model for students, a text that can be used in any number of ways to examine our national character. Don't worry so much about not having sufficient critical resources. Rather, use the critics we've already read to establish the scope of the controversy (reference each of them as you map out the lay of the land with regards to the current debate), and then present your argument as just the sort of compromise that, in a pluralistic democracy, is necessary for us to continue to establish and embrace.
I look forward to seeing your essay evolve!