Mark Twain's writing appears racist in the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The use of a certain word to describe African Americans does serve a purpose beyond simple racial discrimination. Twain uses these harsh words to show how horribly African Americans were treated. The whole novel is actually against slavery. At times, it seems that Twain has something against African Americans, when in reality, he was an abolitionist. The novel was written many years after the Emancipation Proclamation which freed all slaves in the South. Even though he wrote the novel during a time when slavery had not yet been abolished, and was still a normal, legal practice in both the North and the South, relations between Blacks and Whites were at a low. When the two boys attempt to trick Jim, Twain is not saying that Jim is stupid or unintelligent. Jim is simply ignorant because of his superstitious beliefs. Jim does not know any better as no one has ever taught him differently. In the video that the class watched, people believed that the book was too controversial to be read in some schools, despite its good message. The largest antislavery statement that the novel makes is Huck and Jim's friendship that lasts for the duration of the novel. When Huck must decide weather or not to give up this confession, he considers and then, even though he believes he will be condemned to hell for it, he rips up the paper and moves on. Jim's devotion to Huck throughout the novel shows that Twain was against slavery. Also, the fact that Jim is so afraid that he has lost Huck once they are separated in the fog shows that he does truly feel attached to him. .