I enjoyed this! I’m from Hannibal, the real life town where this is set and where Mark Twain grew up, and I worked in city tourism in college, I know WAY too much about Twain. I liked your point about Twain’s “airing out of dirty laundry” of how white people talked and what they truly thought- and I want to make the point that many white people in Hannibal STILL talk like that. This novel is so timeless for me because it’s still so relevant here.
I have long loved The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Jim has always been my favorite character. And, I think he was probably Twain’s, too. His feelings are the most relatable and admirable in the book. I would like to add that we are supposed to find Huck’s speech, ignorance, and superstitions humorous as well as Jim’s. I am looking forward to reading James. From your praise, I expect to like it and that the 2 books will complement each other. Mark Twain created a lovely, important character in Jim.
This was wonderful. I am going to read Huck Finn again because I last read it in middle school. It will be interesting to read this as an adult in the world we live in today. Thank you Sara.
Thank you so much for this! Not sure if this question is one that is purely out of my lack of knowledge about HF or something that will be explained in Everett’s book but why is it called James if the character in HF is Jim? -
I know you didn't say that. Because the book is set in the same geographical and social environment in which Twain lived as a young man, some people MIGHT get the impression that he shared the views, but thoroughly researching his life shows it wasn't the case.
Critics of the novel regularly use the overuse of the "n" word as a means of censoring it. However, this criticism is done without any sort of knowledge about the historical context in which the word is used, and is therefore unfair to suggest Twain held racist beliefs similar to the white characters in the story, when historical evidence suggests clearly that he did not.
I don't think that criticism is always done out of context. You can understand the context and still balk at reading the word so many times, though I certainly agree that censoring it is not the correct approach. I agree that Twain did not hold the same views on race as the characters in his novels, and nowhere in this piece did I say that he did.
Great article Sara! This really helped me in my understanding of HF and TS. By the way, Tom Sawyer was my favorite as a child because of the relationship between Tom and Becky. I was a romance girly even as a young child. ☺️
I enjoyed this! I’m from Hannibal, the real life town where this is set and where Mark Twain grew up, and I worked in city tourism in college, I know WAY too much about Twain. I liked your point about Twain’s “airing out of dirty laundry” of how white people talked and what they truly thought- and I want to make the point that many white people in Hannibal STILL talk like that. This novel is so timeless for me because it’s still so relevant here.
Thank you for reading and sharing your expertise, Della!
I have long loved The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Jim has always been my favorite character. And, I think he was probably Twain’s, too. His feelings are the most relatable and admirable in the book. I would like to add that we are supposed to find Huck’s speech, ignorance, and superstitions humorous as well as Jim’s. I am looking forward to reading James. From your praise, I expect to like it and that the 2 books will complement each other. Mark Twain created a lovely, important character in Jim.
Yes! I think Twain would love to read James!!
This was wonderful. I am going to read Huck Finn again because I last read it in middle school. It will be interesting to read this as an adult in the world we live in today. Thank you Sara.
Thank you for putting this together! So helpful!
Oh I'm so glad!
This is so helpful Sara! It has made me feel okay about going into reading James without doing a full, thorough read of HF.
Thank you so much for this! Not sure if this question is one that is purely out of my lack of knowledge about HF or something that will be explained in Everett’s book but why is it called James if the character in HF is Jim? -
Everett will definitely answer that for you!
I know you didn't say that. Because the book is set in the same geographical and social environment in which Twain lived as a young man, some people MIGHT get the impression that he shared the views, but thoroughly researching his life shows it wasn't the case.
This was FASCINATING and so helpful. Thank you!!!
Thank you!
Thank you so much for this! Looking forward to reading James.
Thank you for putting this together!
This is excellent, Sara!! Thank you so much for sharing these insights!
Thanks, Erika!
Critics of the novel regularly use the overuse of the "n" word as a means of censoring it. However, this criticism is done without any sort of knowledge about the historical context in which the word is used, and is therefore unfair to suggest Twain held racist beliefs similar to the white characters in the story, when historical evidence suggests clearly that he did not.
I don't think that criticism is always done out of context. You can understand the context and still balk at reading the word so many times, though I certainly agree that censoring it is not the correct approach. I agree that Twain did not hold the same views on race as the characters in his novels, and nowhere in this piece did I say that he did.
Great article Sara! This really helped me in my understanding of HF and TS. By the way, Tom Sawyer was my favorite as a child because of the relationship between Tom and Becky. I was a romance girly even as a young child. ☺️
Heartfelt thanks for sharing your thoughts and notes!!! So very helpful!!! 🙏🫶🥰
Yes! James is such a fantastic book. You'll have to let me know if you read it!