Jim Intelligence In Huck Finn

Living in the 1800s was a very confusing time for a thirteen-year-old American white boy named Huckleberry Finn. African people were faced with inhuman acts of slavery, prejudice, and discrimination. Choosing between what was right and wrong was a challenge, especially for Huckleberry Finn. Huck’s peers tried to corrupt him into believing that slavery was the norm and black people were to be shunned. Mrs. Watson, for example, was Huck’s adoptive mother whom consistently told Huck to not associate with people of the African culture.

The Declaration of Independence says that all men are created equal. That is, unless you are a slave like Jim. Jim, the slave from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, is a very important character. He becomes not only a good friend to the main character, Huck, but also something of a father figure to him. Jim and Huck tend to get themselves into tricky situations, but they always find a way to work through the hard times together.

This book proves that not everyone who grew up around racism was cruel, as Huck began to love Jim for who he is, despite the society he grew up in. An example of Huck maturing could come from chapter forty, "I knowed he was white inside, and I reckoned he'd say what he did say - so it was all right, now, and I told Tom I was agoing for a doctor." (Twain 301). This quote clearly shows that Huck is maturing, and seeing past the color of Jim's skin. The book shows us how hard it was to grow up in a racist society and not be racist.

Jim is locked up, forced to hide his face in the daytime, and laughed at. Twain was forced to display Jim’s treatment this way to keep the book sincere, despite the fact that it may not be the way Twain personally felt. However, we see that Huck does not treat Jim as most whites do: Huck does not see Jim as a slave; disposable and nameless, but as a friend, with a unique personality. This leads to Huck’s inability to turn Jim in, and Huck’s rejection of societial norms that tell him that blacks are inferior. Huck’s utter rejection of societal norms is evident in the quote “all right, then I’ll go to hell,” (283).

“I never seen such a nigger.” (Twain, p.89). Huck dehumanizes Jim because of his misunderstanding of a story Huck has told. Huck has tricked Jim and humiliated him. Huck is insensitive; sometimes seeing Jim as a worthy human being, but not continuously.

As well, Twain shows that the upper class has superiority over the lower class regardless of the intellectual level or age. “I see it warn’t no use wasting words—you can’t learn a nigger to argue. So I quit” (Twain, 83). Huck is saying that Jim is uneducated and teasing him because of his intellectual level; however, Huck is not too intelligent himself, therefore correcting Jim shows verbal irony. Jim also has age and maturity over Jim, but because of his low social class, Huck still remains superior.

In this very moment, Jim (a “nigger”) becomes a better father figure for Huck than his real father, who was a white man. Jim is better than almost any other person within the story, and he is a black man. However, Twain did use racial stereotypes in the story quite a bit (Chadwick). For example when he and Huck are

Jim is a slave who had escaped with Huckleberry Finn. Huckleberry Finn introduces Jim by saying, “Miss Watson’s big n*****, named Jim, was setting in the kitchen door; we could see him pretty clear, because there was a light behind him.” (35). This quote is important because it is the first time where the n-word is mentioned in the book. It is exactly a representation of this time period because there were slaves at the time.

In the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn the racist attitudes of the Deep South in the late 1800's are shown. Mark Twain portrays a runaway slave, Jim, as a racist caricature who does whatever is asked of him and exhibits little intelligence. The reader can initially see this through the use of the word "nigger" that is all throughout the book. In the modern 21st century this term is taken offensively, but in the 19th century this term was commonly used and Twain took advantage of it.

Jim teaches Huck that others will judge solely based on skin color. Twain shows this by saying, "The ni***r run off the very night Huck Finn was killed. So there's a reward out for him - three hundred dollars" (Twain 67). This quotation is showing how the people are quick to assume that just because they both coincidentally went missing around the same time that Jim was the one to "kill" Huck. Throughout the novel, Twain includes the word “ni***r.”

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an American classic, it was the starting point for all great American Literature. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been awarded all of these honorable titles because of its abnormal and controversial plot line. During the time period when the book was written, it was unacceptable to view African- American’s as anything other than slaves. They were viewed as inferior to whites and were treated like property, they had no rights. The main character of the book, Huck, disagrees and disobeys these norms and pushes the boundaries of society when he becomes friends with a slave from his childhood; Jim.

The black man on the back porch is afraid of the rattle snake because it is bad luck, or the innocent little slave is quick to believe everything one tells them at the drop of the hat. These are just some of the many racist stereotypes of the 1840s. A character named Jim is the star African American whom Twain bestoys the mission of being the stereotypical black man to prove a point. He along with his much more pallor companion Huck go on exciting adventures that unfold the events which expose the racist conduct of the time. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain saturates his novel with potent images of acute racism severe enough as to create a satirical mien that exposes the absurdity of prejudice.

One can experience isolation or detachment from society solely based upon something that makes of a person such as gender, skin color, social status, or personal beliefs. When one is alienated from a population, it mainly reflects on that culture or society 's values itself. A runaway slave named Jim in the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, is simply isolated from society based upon his race during the Civil War and Reconstruction era. Jim’s detachment from others reflects upon the moral values of many whites such as the dehumanization of race, the insensitivity towards slaves, and taking advantage of one’s vulnerability. One can be seen more as a piece of property than an actual human being just based upon the color of their skin.

Those who feel the novel encourages racism say that because of the stereotypes used when featuring Jim, how Huck and Tom treated Jim, and how often the N-word is brought up Twain had hoped to encourage racism. However there is still strong evidence that proves why that might be a misunderstanding. If twain was intending to encourage racism then why would he make Him seem so much of a better person than the duke, king, and Huck's father. Also when Twain illustrates the black and white symbolism he portrayed Him as white man and Huck's father, who is a white man, as dark and scary. Then throughout the story as a reader you feel empathy for Jim he begins to become one of the favorite characters in the novel.

Early in their travels, Huck plays a trick on Jim when they become separated in a fog on the river; after realizing he upset Jim, Huck states “It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger,” (Twain 89). This quote reflects the white societal social beliefs held by Huck, for Huck struggles to “lower” himself to apologize to Jim because of the social norms of the time. Likewise, when arguing with Jim about King Solomon, Huck states, "I see it warn't no use wasting words--you can't learn a nigger to argue. So I quit,"(Twain 83).