The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain - 930 Words

Mark Twain, in his novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, describes the adventure of Huck Finn as he helps an escaped slave find his freedom. Throughout the novel, Twain uses various examples of satire to criticize the racist views that were evident in white society. He condemns the common racist mindset many whites have and to make the public realize the unfairness that blacks face solely because of the color of their skin. Twain first describes his purpose by satirizing a moment when Jim uses a hairball to supposedly tell Huck’s future. He told Huck there was â€Å"a spirit inside of it, and it knowed everything.† (p.17). At first glance it seems like Jim is very stupid to believe that a hairball really had magic powers that†¦show more content†¦Ironically, Jim tells Huck to â€Å"keep ‘way fum de water as much as you kin†(p.18) because it would be where Huck would die, yet in most of the book, Huck travels by water and survives his dangerous experiences. This also further proves the hairball fortune to be a scam, as the fortune is proven wrong by the later events of the book. Twain uses Jim’s scam in order to satirize the idea that blacks are stupid and ridicule one of the many racists beliefs by whites. With this satirization, Twain hopes that his audience will see that the common stereotypes that are given to blacks may not be true and that they should not be treated unfairly as a result of this racist thinking. Another way Twain satirizes the racism in white society is when Huck is debating with himself on whether or not he should save Jim. When Huck makes up his mind to save Jim, he states â€Å"All right then, I’ll go to hell† (p.214). Huck exaggerates the punishment he believes he will receive from God. This hyperbole demonstrates that Huck believes helping a slave is something that should be unthinkable. Huck has been told by the racist white society to never help a black guy escape as it is something that is against God and that doing something like this is a sin. His belief helps Twain demonstrate the racist nature of white society of the south. Huck is an innocent child that wants to help Jim, yet thinks that helping him would be a sin against God. Twain wants to show the racist beliefs by many