HW for Mach 15: The Missouri Compromise and Huckleberry Finn
1. Considering that the Missouri Compromise in 1820 signaled the beginning of a controversy over the admission of new states as slaveowners or "free soil", can you connect this with the initial setting of Huckleberry Finn in Missouri, and with Huck and Jim's journey in the Mississippi, hoping to reach the junction where they would follow the St. Louis's river north, but regretfully missing it and venturing into the Deep South?
2. If you have not read Huckleberry Finn, comment on the arguments pro and against Missouri as a slave state in your anthology, pp. 142-144 (unfortunately your careless teacher has forgotten to include the continuation of Charles Pinckney's pro-slavery argument, but you can find it in p. 253 of his pdf online, http://palacecastle.weebly.com/uploads/5/6/7/6/56766545/chapter_12-_second_war_for_independence.pdf)
Mark Twain's "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" is deeply rooted in the historical and geographical context of the United States during the mid-19th century, particularly in relation to the issue of slavery and the division between free and slave states.
ReplyDeleteThe Missouri Compromise of 1820 was a pivotal event in American history, aiming to maintain a balance between slave and free states as new territories were admitted to the Union. Under this compromise, Missouri was admitted as a slave state while Maine entered as a free state, and a line was drawn at 36°30′ north latitude, with slavery prohibited north of this line in the Louisiana Territory. However, this compromise only temporarily eased tensions over the issue of slavery.
Twain's choice of setting the beginning of "Huckleberry Finn" in Missouri is significant. Missouri, as a border state, was emblematic of the sectional divide between the North and South, with its conflicted stance on slavery. By starting the narrative here, Twain immediately places the reader in a region where the tensions over slavery were palpable.
Huck and Jim's journey down the Mississippi River reflects the broader journey of the nation during this time period. As they travel southward, they encounter various manifestations of the institution of slavery, from the brutal treatment of Jim as a runaway slave to the moral dilemmas Huck faces regarding his own complicity in the system. Their voyage serves as a microcosm of the nation's struggle with slavery and the moral ambiguity surrounding it.
The pivotal moment when Huck and Jim miss the junction to the Ohio River, which would have taken them north to freedom, and instead continue deeper into the South, is symbolic of the nation's inability to escape the entanglements of slavery. Despite their intentions to seek freedom, they find themselves drawn further into the heart of the slave-holding South, where the institution of slavery is deeply entrenched and the challenges to escape become increasingly daunting.
In this way, Twain skillfully intertwines the personal journey of Huck and Jim with the broader historical context of the antebellum United States, using their experiences along the Mississippi River to explore themes of race, morality, and the legacy of slavery in American society.
John W. Taylor, a representative from New York, delivered a speech advocating for the Tallmadge Amendment during the Missouri Statehood Controversy. Taylor argued passionately against the expansion of slavery into Missouri, emphasizing the moral imperative to limit the behavior. In his speech, Taylor stated: “I never will consent, to declare the whole country west of the Mississippi a market overt for human flesh…”
ReplyDeleteOpposing to Taylor’s position was Charles Pickney’s support for slavery which was stood among economic reasons. His discourse and rhetorical questions made his stance clear “Have the Northern states any idea of the value of our slaves?”; “… in case of these losses being brought on us, and our being forced into a division of the Union, what becomes of your public dept? Who are to pay this and how will it be paid?”
In conclusion, the Tallmadge amendment was rejected, and the famous Missouri Compromise was finally hammered out in 1820. The delicate sectional balance subsisting between the eleven free states and eleven slave states was clearly preserved: Main was to com as a free state and Missouri as a slave state. But from there on the slavery was forbidden elsewhere in the Louisiana Purchase territory north of the line of 36º 30’ – southern border Missouri.
1. “The Missouri Compromise of 1820 was a law that tried to address growing sectional tensions over the issue of slavery.” (Hystory.com, 2023). “The Missouri question was settled, more or less, by accident. In 1820, Maine, which had been part of Massachusetts, petitioned to be admitted to the Union as a free state. Alabama had been admitted to the Union the summer before, as a slave state, making the number of free and slave states equal, at twelve each. Congress, eager to end the impasse over Missouri, devised a compromise that would retain the balance between slave and free states. Under the Missouri Compromise, a deal deftly brokered by Clay, ever after known as “the Great Compromiser,” Missouri was admitted as a slave state and Maine as a free state, and a line was set at 36˚30' latitude, the southern border of Missouri: any states formed out of territories above that line would enter the Union as free states, and any states below that line would enter as slave states.” (Lepore, 2018)
ReplyDeleteIt is essential to consider all this when reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885) written by Mark Twain. It was published after the Compromise was deemed unconstitutional in 1857 by the Supreme Court. However, the story is set in the 1840s. One cannot read this story without being aware that the northern states were free states and the southern states were slave states.
At its core, the book is about the “journey of Huck and his friend Jim, a runaway enslaved person, down the Mississippi River on a raft. Jim runs away because he is about to be sold and separated from his wife and children, and Huck goes with him to help him get to Ohio and freedom. Huck narrates the story in his distinctive voice, offering colorful descriptions of the people and places they encounter along the way. The most striking part of the book is its satirical look at racism, religion, and other social attitudes of the time. While Jim is strong, brave, generous, and wise, many of the white characters are portrayed as violent, stupid or simply selfish, and the naive Huck ends up questioning the hypocritical, unjust nature of society in general.” (Hystory.com, 2023).
Thus, it focuses on the institution of slavery and other aspects of life in the antebellum South. Jim is trying to run away to find freedom and they end venturing into the Deep South. This was a dangerous place for a runaway enslaved person to be, as we have discussed in class the southern states were slave-societies.
Source:
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/twain-publishes-the-adventures-of-huckleberry-finn
https://www.history.com/topics/slavery/missouri-compromise
Lepore, Jill (2018). These Truths. A History of the United States. W. W. Norton & Company.