For example, the Autobiography of Frederick Douglas.

I'm sure there's many others that could be included in a thoughtful curriculum.

correct me if I'm wrong, doesn't Huck Finn end with Huck realizing that the slave Jim is a decent honorable human being, deserving of being treated with respect and friendship? That would be the teaching point. That we can each overcome the prejudices of our society to use our own minds and experiences to see the true character of other people, rather than the stereotypes imposed on them by prejudiced minds.

For his time Twain was a raging liberal. It seems the novel would be an excellent opening to teaching about the time. It is also one of the finest American novels. We.spent three weeks on it in Honors English. It has a depth and richness to it. I need to reread it. It has been nearly 40 years.

that Mark Twain said everything there was to say about American culture. Why are we so afraid to look objectively at literature, or anything else for that matter? There are more things and people in the world to experience with aversion than there are stars in the sky.

In defense of his friend, Huck goes against the moral code of his day, even though he still fears violating it will send him to Hell.

It's a powerful moment. I can't see how kids wouldn't benefit by reading it.

The teacher needs to make sure the novel is understood.


I mean we know kids ALWAYS read the ENTIRE BOOK they are assigned, right?

Huck writes a letter to ole Ms. Watson (was that her name)??, telling her where Jim is and how she can find him. Then he starts to remember all the times that Jim saved him, or protected him, and he realizes that he can't send that letter. Huck still thinks he will go to hell for it, but he makes up his mind, and says "All right then, I'll GO to hell," and tears the letter up.

As I recall, Twain includes a lot of description of Huck's thinking process.

If you dont like what’s on a channel, change it. Don’t tell me what I can or cannot watch.
The same goes for books. Let people read what they want to read, don’t force them to read something they don’t want to read.
I love my freedom to choose what I want.

We're discussing lessons for children. We don't stop teaching them math or history or civics, just because they don't like it.

And it should.

As someone else already pointed out, this novel doesn't glorify, or advocate for racism at all.

When I was in college, "Huckleberry Finn" was represented to be The Great American Novel. I'm confident it still is, or close to it. And the runaway slave Jim is without question one of the noblest characters ever to appear in American fiction.

I'm certainly no fan of the "n word." My parents taught me from an early age that it is reprehensible, and I in turn taught my children the same. I am a fan of deriving knowledge and understanding from worthy sources---like Mark Twain's "Huckleberry Finn."

can cause students to feel upset, marginalized or humiliated and can create an uncomfortable atmosphere in the classroom.

Has there been a parade of humiliated students?

We teach outr children not to use the N-word. But what do we teach them about hearing or reading the N-word? Do we teach them peace, patience and equanimity and not to react with anger?

Holy crap the ignorance.

For its negative portrayal of an ethnic Pole.

This NJ proposal is proof we don't have enough of it going on.

read a novel and have intellectual discussions about it's content and the words it uses. We need an understanding of our past. We need to be taught why thinking of "The other" as a non person is wrong. Why people of every color, sex, race, and religion contribute value. If we deny books because of their theme, we deny our education of that theme.

Intellectual discussions about controversial novels are had every day in American schools. I agree that we need to have those discussions and that banning books is not the answer.

The problem is that when you live in a society that still promotes negative views about you based on the color of your skin, it becomes difficult emotionally to cope with it. To see the word "nigger" used casually within a work deemed to be "one of the great American novels" can have a significant psychological effect on people who are routinely given similar messages by the current culture.

People are not being "babies" by admitting that those themes can be disturbing, especially to adolescents who are still forming their identity in relation to the families, communities, and society at large. School should not be a traumatizing place. It doesn't have to be, and a big part of reducing the potential trauma is to have an understanding that there are emotional reactions that have to be mitigated by understanding the source and cause, and having supportive discussion around them.

I can certainly understand why the book can be emotionally upsetting to Black Americans especially. I don't think that the Representatives that sponsored the measure are being unreasonable. I do however, disagree with the idea of stopping the teaching of the book.

I think, like others have said, that there a has to be a way of teaching the book to make clear the racial themes within the context of the time period and in the way that Twain intended, as a critique of the culture of the time. I think that it would be good to discuss the feelings it creates, especially among Black students because it is relevant to discuss advances made in race relations as well as the major work that still needs to be done.