The N Word (i.e., Nuance)

By Bruce Nofsinger, Co-founder & Partner

This month marks the 125th anniversary of the publication of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It just happens to be my favorite work of fiction. I think I've read it four times -- twice with a small group of 11 and 12 year-olds, as we floated down the French Broad River on wooden rafts!

Yes, for a week we imitated Huck, camping and interacting with communities along the river in East Tennessee. In the '80s and early '90s I worked at an incredible summer camp in the mountains of NC. Eagle's Nest Camp emphasized experiential education, and the Huck Finn Adventure was a clear example of how active learning can be a lot of fun. In fact, with only 8 slots for campers, the Huck Finn Adventure filled up within the first two weeks that families could send in their applications for the following summer!

There are at least 3 topics of discussion that can emerge from this set up:

• value of active learning/experiential education
• value of summer camp
• value of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

The 125th anniversary prompts me to tackle the last bullet point -- specifically the controversy that has followed the novel for most of those 125 years. I'm talking about its frequent use of the "N word" and the resulting pushes to have the work scrubbed from reading lists and pushes to have the word scrubbed from the text.

The end result of either of those pushes is (and would be) a travesty. I'll avoid a treatise on the reasons that the novel uses the "N word" as well as my general opinion against sanitizing and censoring artistic works. Instead, I want to focus on the idea of giving people a little credit to understand and appreciate nuance.

When we read the book before and during our trip down the river, we took turns reading it aloud. Knowing the reactions that the word evokes, particularly when spoken, the other counselor and I addressed its use head on. Now, these were 11 and 12 year-olds -- they couldn't fully understand and appreciate the history of the use of the word and the many ways in which social mores have changed since the time the novel is set. They could understand, though, that our social mores have changed, and they could appreciate that most people no longer speak that way.

More important, despite having limited life experiences as pre-teens, they recognized enough within the story seen through Huck's eyes for them to care about it -- to see it as more than a bunch of words on a page, some of which are offensive by today's standards. Still, they needed our guidance, our prompting, and our help with making connections between the 19th century and today and between Huck's life and their own lives. And I have to point out that that guidance didn't come from my standing on one side of the raft and telling them/lecturing them about those connections. Instead, the guidance was more about helping them explore and discover ideas and then process them -- to help them find connections in unexpected and sometimes subtle ways. You know, it was a lot like being a guide on a river trek when you weren't exactly sure what was around the next bend in the river!

As guides for the trip, I think we found a balance between mitigating risks and seizing adventure and opportunity. As guides for The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, I think we found a similar combination that gave the campers credit for understanding/appreciating nuances as well as guidance along the way.

Sadly, I think that combination is too rare in matters that extend far beyond Huck.