Is Huckleberry Finn a Masterpiece or a Racist Book?《哈克贝利·费恩历险记》是杰作还是种族主义作品？

阎雨初

Is Huckleberry Finn one of the greatest American novel？ The answer is “Yes.” The greatness of Huckleberry Finn is reflected not only in its language and theme but also its enormous influences on the readers. Although in the book Mark Twain uses the “n-word” more than 200 times， it is not a racist book; it is actually a great literary work making everyone rethink and reflect.

Twain’s discussion of slavery and humanity in American society in Huckleberry Finn was unprecedented and extremely profound. With humorous and ironic language he wrapped up a dark reality that people subconsciously choose to ignore or refuse to admit. The one example in the book is in chapter 32 when Huck was telling a story to aunt Sally about the steamboat accident. Aunt Sally asked， “is there anyone got hurt，” and Huck replied “No’m. Killed a nigger.” Then aunt Sally said： “Well， it’s lucky; because sometimes people do get hurt.” They just blurted it out， as if black people did not count， and their lives were worthless. This shows both Huck and aunt Sally do not think black people are real people from their subconscious. In the novel， Twain not only depicts the different lives of different social classes but also many local dialects and customs.  For example， in chapter 4， Jim said： “One uv ’em ‘slight en t’other one is dark. One is rich en t’other is po’.” Jim’s dialect was the unique slave accent in the middle part of the country during that period of time. This is also a reflection of the lives of slaves.

The reason why Twain uses the “n-word” so many times in the book is not that he looks down on them， but to inspire the people， and also spread the thought of equality. During Huck and Jim’s adventures along Mississippi River， the white child Huck went from discriminating against Jim at first to being touched by Jim’s kindness and finally chose to do the right things according to his conscience rather than social and religious rules. At the end of chapter 15， Huck felt extremely guilty after he fooled old Jim by telling him everything that had happened was just Jim’s dream. However， after seeing Jim’s reaction to his prank， Huck found out that Jim really cared about him， and he was his only friend. So Huck says： “I didn’t do him no more mean tricks， and I wouldn’t done that one if I’d’ a’ knowed it would make him feel that way.” This quote shows Huck was already changing during the time he was with Jim. Twain also depicts many white people who called themselves “civilized” but exhibit all kinds of barbarian behaviors， in distinct contrast to the kindness， loyalty， and honesty of Jim. This is Twain’s attack on slavery， and also a fightback against those who believed that black people shouldn’t have equality. “Don’t be any rougher with him than you have to， because he’s not a bad nigger. When I got to the boy， I saw that I couldn’t cut the bullet out without some help， and the boy wasn’t in any condition for me to just leave him to get help.” This quote indicates that there are some people in the book who believe that slaves are just as same as normal people， even better than some of the haughty white people， such as the King and the Duke.

In Huckleberry Finn， not only Huck’s change of attitude towards Jim symbolizes the changes of white people’s attitude towards black in American society， but Huck’s past experiences and future symbolizes the past and future of the United States. At the end of the story， when the reader comes to believe that Huck has really got rid of the bondage of the “white is superior” thought， and seen Jim as a completely equal human， he makes some racist statements again. “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 a-going for a doctor.” It seems there are many customs forbidding the development of American society， and discrimination is hard to eliminate. When Huck gave up the chance to “settle down” and choose to go for the adventure at the end， he said： “But I reckon I got to light out for the territory ahead of the rest， because Aunt Sally she’s going to adapt me and civilize me， and I can’t stand it. I been there before.” In this way Twain expresses his hope for the future of the United States. All people in the country should be like Huck. They should have the courage to break through stereotypical thinking and build a better， more civilized future.

This book is not only a reflection of the society during slave time but also inspires the readers to pay more attention to the issue of racial equality. Many critics say that the “n-word” is offensive. However， since the the story is set in a special time period， it would have been unreal if Twain did not use the “n-word.” Twain was a fighter who fights for the equality of black people. After reading Huckleberry Finn， one of the greatest novels in American history， isn’t it about time to put “Twain is a racist” thought to rest？

《哈克贝利·费恩历险记》是美国最伟大的小说之一吗？答案是肯定的。《哈克贝利·费恩历险记》的伟大之处不仅体现在它的语言和主题上，还有其对读者产生的巨大影响。尽管马克·吐温在书中用了200多次有歧视倾向的“黑鬼”一词，但这本书并不是种族主义的;它实际上是一部伟大的文学作品，一部让每个人都进行了深刻反思的文学作品。

马克·吐温在《哈克贝利·费恩历险记》中对美国社会奴隶制和人性的论述极其深刻、史无前例。他用幽默和讽刺的语言总结了人们下意识选择忽视或拒绝承认的黑暗现实。书中的一个例子在第32章，当时哈克正在向萨莉姨妈讲述一个汽船事故。萨莉姨妈问“有没有人受伤”，哈克回答说：“没有，死了一个黑鬼。”之后萨莉姨妈说：“啊，运气真好。有时候会真有人受伤。”他们就这样脱口而出，仿佛黑人不算人，他们的生命也一文不值。这表明哈克和萨莉姨妈的潜意识里都认为黑人不是真正的人。马克·吐温不仅描写了不同社会阶层的不同生活，而且在小说中融入了许多地方方言和风俗。例如，在第4章，吉姆说：“One uv ’em ‘slight en t’other one is dark. One is rich en t’other is po’.”（一个白，一个黑。一个富，一个穷。）在那个时期，吉姆的方言是美国中部独特的奴隶口音。这种方言的融入也是对当时奴隶生活的深刻反思。

马克·吐温之所以在书中多次使用“黑鬼”一词，不是因为他看不起黑人，而是为了启发他人，同时传播平等思想。在哈克和吉姆沿着密西西比河冒险的过程中，白人孩子哈克从最初歧视吉姆变成被吉姆的善良感动，最终遵从自己的良心而不是社会和宗教规则去做正确的事情。在第15章结尾，哈克告诉老吉姆发生的一切只是吉姆的梦，从而愚弄了老吉姆，他感到非常內疚。然而，哈克看到吉姆对他恶作剧的反应后，发现吉姆真的很关心他，他是吉姆唯一的朋友。所以哈克说：“从此以后，我再也没有卑劣地捉弄过他。我要是早知道他会那么难过，我也绝不会干那样的事。”这句话表明哈克和吉姆在一起的时候对黑人的看法已经改变了。马克·吐温在书中刻画了不少白人，他们自称“文明人”，却做着各种野蛮的行为，与吉姆的善良、忠诚和诚实形成了鲜明对比。这是马克·吐温对奴隶制度的攻击，也是对那些认为黑人不应享受平等的人的反击。“对待他嘛，别太过分了，因为他可不是一个坏黑鬼。我一到那个孩子所在的地方，发现非得有个帮手不可，不然，我就无法把子弹取出来。按当时的情况，我无法离开，到别处找人帮忙。”这句话表明，书中有些人认为奴隶和普通人一样，甚至比某些如国王和公爵这样的白人伪君子更好。

《哈克贝利·费恩历险记》不仅用哈克对吉姆态度的改变象征美国社会白人对黑人态度的改变，而且用哈克的经验和未来象征美国的过去和未来。在故事的结尾，当读者相信哈克真的摆脱了“白人至上”思想，认为吉姆是一个完全平等的人时，他又发表了一些种族主义言论。“我知道他有颗白人的心。我也料到了他会说刚刚那些话——所以现在事情就好办了。我就对汤姆说，我要去找个医生。”这就好像有许多旧观念影响了美国社会的发展，导致歧视很难消除。当哈克放弃“安顿下来”的机会，最后选择去冒险时，他说：“不过嘛，依我看，我得比其他人先走一步，先到‘领地’去。因为萨莉姨妈要认领我做儿子，要教我学文化，这我可受不了。我先前经受过一回啦。”由此，马克·吐温表明了他对美国未来的期望。他希望所有美国人都应该像哈克一样，有勇气突破固有的思维，建设一个更加美好的、文明的未来。

这本书不仅反映了奴隶时代的社会现象，而且唤起了读者对种族平等的更多关注。许多批评人士说“黑鬼”一词具有冒犯性。然而，由于故事发生在特殊时期，如果马克·吐温不使用“黑鬼”一词，那将是不现实的。马克·吐温是一个为黑人平等而战的斗士。读完这本美国历史上最伟大的小说之一后，是不是该把“马克·吐温是种族主义者”这个观念抛弃了呢？