The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
by Mark Twain
Classics, Fiction, Historical-Fiction, Literature, Young-Adult, Adventure, School
A nineteenth-century boy from a Mississippi River town recounts his adventures as he travels down the river with a runaway slave, encountering a family involved in a feud, two scoundrels pretending to be royalty, and Tom Sawyer’s aunt who mistakes him for Tom.
Recommendations from Common Sense Media
Age Recommendation: 12+
What Parents Need to Know:
Parents need to know that Mark Twain‘s classic, humorous novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, set in the pre-Civil War South in the mid-19th century, tells the story of a runaway White boy and a Black man who’s a fugitive from slavery, and the adventures they have on the run. Main character Huck Finn first appeared in Twain’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and Tom appears in this book, too. The story includes abuse of whiskey, as well as child beating and other real and threatened violence (though little of it is graphic). Originally published in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United States in February 1885, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn includes constant use of the “N” word, and it is frequently banned by libraries and school districts for its racist language and attitudes. However, Huck and Jim’s humanity, and Huck’s inner moral struggles as he questions what he’s been taught about slavery actually expose the irrationality of racism.
Educational Value: 4/5
Shows readers the attitudes toward Black Americans and slavery during the mid-19th century in the United States. Also shows harsh realities for a fugitive from slavery, and the racist language used in reference to Black people and Native Americans.
Positive Messages: 3/5
Freedom and friendship are worth breaking the rules.
Positive Role Models: 3/5
Huck and Jim are devoted friends, each willing to risk his own safety to protect the other.
Violence & Scariness: 3/5
Huck’s father holds him prisoner, beats him, and threatens to kill him with a knife. Several people are killed, though most of that happens “off-screen.” The most graphic violence in the book concerns a wild pig and faking a death.
Sex, Romance & Nudity: n/a
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Language: 3/5
No swear words, but characters’ constant use of the “N” word is offensive and jarring to readers. Also includes several mentions of “injuns” in connection with negative behavior (“raging like an injun,” “whooping and yelling like an injun”).
Products & Purchases: n/a
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Drinking, Drugs & Smoking: 3/5
Huckleberry Finn’s father is a vagrant who spends whatever money he can find on whiskey. More than a dozen mentions of whiskey and drunkenness. Whiskey is often connected with violence and hallucinations. In one scene, boys are given a bit of whiskey or apple brandy with sugar and water. Characters also take snuff and chew tobacco (“chaw”).
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