Ideology and the Problem of Race in Huckleberry Finn

Author: Yu-jiuan Shao(Department of English, National Taiwan Normal University)

Abstract：

Twain's Huckleberry Finn, in its appearance of humor and light-heartedness, dis-plays the serious problem of ideology/false consciousness and racism. Through the pi-caresque hero Huck is exposed a society permeated in a strong prejudice and misled by its sense of superiority.
The first section of this paper aims to explore the circumstances of a racist society, as revealed in Twain's characterizing the majority of the white, and the contradiction between the superior white and its hard-striving ideals of humanity and equality. And the second part will mainly focus on Huck as an alienated character and his potentiality to set social conventions at defiance as a subversive hero. Huck's ostensible "subversion" unravels the problematic ideology of the racist white and gives an insight on the absur-dity of an over-reaching pride and prejudice.

Keywords：race, ideology, consciousness, Huckleberry Finn

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