The All-Time All-Timers (part 3 of 3) Huck Finn

The Adventures of Huckleberry  Finn

 Just a few short and sweet English-teacher-type things: 

1. The book is hilarious, and if I can help my students to see that, I’m halfway home.
2. The ending of the book, though, is problematic.  You can’t convince me otherwise.  Twain was flailing, trying to figure out how to end what had become a brave and serious novel.  He wasn't very successful. 
3. I've started to avoid reading aloud the parts of Huck Finn where one of the characters uses the “n word.”   I've just decided that I don’t want to be remembered saying that word.  We do discuss Twain’s use of the epithet, and it’s always a useful conversation for the kids.  I will say that this topic doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon, so I know you can find some in-depth analyses of the whys and wherefores of Twain’s use of the word, etc. etc.  That place is not here, however.  I will just point you in the direction of #4 and step aside quietly.
4. Most importantly!  These excerpts from Ralph Wiley’s screenplay (http://faculty.citadel.edu/leonard/wileyscenes.htm)  and the accompanying article by Shelley Fisher Fishkin (http://faculty.citadel.edu/leonard/od99wiley.htm) have changed the way I think about and teach this book.  If you teach English or just care about the book – and you want your understanding of the book to change – then click on the links.  I promise they’re not spam.

And that’s it for the canonical books!  I enjoyed writing about them, but it’s time to get back to writing about the new books I’m currently reading, not those I've read multiple times.