asks Aunt Sally.“ No’m. Killed a nigger.” “ Well it’s lucky; because sometimes people do get hurt.”This passage highlights Twain’s use of satire. On the surface, it could easily be interpreted as dehumanizing and bigoted, but Twain only uses it to reveal the cold truths of white attitudes in the 1800’s. It also presents the fact that Aunt Polly, one of the simplest and gentlest characters in the book, does not think twice about the violent death of a black person. While disguised as racism, Twain cleverly breaks down white-black relations to the inanities of prejudice. Less subtle are Huck’s observations of Jim as their relationship progresses. Jim at first is nothing but a source of amusement for Huck, but Huck slowly discovers the real person inside. In Chapter 23, Huck states, “…I do believe that he cared just as much for his people as white folks does for ther’n.” Later, Huck goes even further to say, “I knowed Jim was really white inside.” From Huck, this nave statement was the highest compliment he could have given Jim, and reiterates the idea that a black man can have true emotions and real feelings, something that was not commonly believed at the time.All of this leads to the main point Twain was attempting to make by writing Huck Finn. This book illustrates the possibility of a real friendship across even the strictest social boundaries of race and class. Huck Finn is not only a classic piece of American literature, but also a heartfelt statement against slavery, and a clever ridicule of the duplicity of White America. ...
