Racism Contradicts Themes of Pudd’nhead Wilson
Rachel McNeely
English 205
March 10, 2015
Dr. Fowler
Racism Contradicts Themes of Pudd’nhead Wilson
Tension is evident between the concepts of nature and nurture as they pertain to race in Mark Twain’s Pudd’nhead Wilson. Natural predetermination was widely accepted in the early nineteenth century; most white people considered African Americans naturally inferior. As an increasing amount of the American population challenged the institution of slavery, the idea that character was determined by situational conditioning and upbringing, not race, grew in popularity. For example, proponents of nurture could argue that African Americans were not unintelligent, they grew up uneducated and thus emitted the sense of ignorance. Mark Twain wrote Pudd’nhead Wilson in the early nineteenth century when the discussion between nature and nurture was debated. Many writers of this time pursued a progressive stance in pointing out the moral evils of slavery. Although Mark Twain tries to assume a progressive stance on nature versus nurture, the novel suggests that African Americans are naturally inferior to whites, which seems to contradict Twain’s goal. The narrator, a supposedly reliable voice, makes several racist comments about Tom to hint that African Americans are naturally inferior to whites. For example, the narrator refers to (fake) Tom as “usurping little slave” (17) rather than words that both whites and African Americans could be described as (such as an imposter or fraud). Twain also uses the derogatory term “nigger” consistently throughout the novel. Though this may have been the social norm in the nineteenth century, the use of the term undermines his attempt to discredit the one-drop rule. The one drop rule categorizes a person as black if they have even one drop of “black blood.” Furthermore, after (fake) Tom found out that he was Roxy’s son the narrator blames the reason for Tom’s behavior on his black ancestry. The narrator states, “It was the ‘nigger’ in him
English 205
March 10, 2015
Dr. Fowler
Racism Contradicts Themes of Pudd’nhead Wilson
Tension is evident between the concepts of nature and nurture as they pertain to race in Mark Twain’s Pudd’nhead Wilson. Natural predetermination was widely accepted in the early nineteenth century; most white people considered African Americans naturally inferior. As an increasing amount of the American population challenged the institution of slavery, the idea that character was determined by situational conditioning and upbringing, not race, grew in popularity. For example, proponents of nurture could argue that African Americans were not unintelligent, they grew up uneducated and thus emitted the sense of ignorance. Mark Twain wrote Pudd’nhead Wilson in the early nineteenth century when the discussion between nature and nurture was debated. Many writers of this time pursued a progressive stance in pointing out the moral evils of slavery. Although Mark Twain tries to assume a progressive stance on nature versus nurture, the novel suggests that African Americans are naturally inferior to whites, which seems to contradict Twain’s goal. The narrator, a supposedly reliable voice, makes several racist comments about Tom to hint that African Americans are naturally inferior to whites. For example, the narrator refers to (fake) Tom as “usurping little slave” (17) rather than words that both whites and African Americans could be described as (such as an imposter or fraud). Twain also uses the derogatory term “nigger” consistently throughout the novel. Though this may have been the social norm in the nineteenth century, the use of the term undermines his attempt to discredit the one-drop rule. The one drop rule categorizes a person as black if they have even one drop of “black blood.” Furthermore, after (fake) Tom found out that he was Roxy’s son the narrator blames the reason for Tom’s behavior on his black ancestry. The narrator states, “It was the ‘nigger’ in him