English II Honors – Rm. 223
Ms. Chenelle – schenelle@njcu.edu
Huckleberry Finn Unit Final Essay
We’ve spent most of this cycle reading Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. While reading the novel,
we’ve examined materials that illustrate what was going on at the time in which Twain wrote the
book. The time has come to put Twain and the book on trial. Your task is to write a 4-5 page defense
or condemnation of the book that answers the following questions: Is the Huck Finn racist and
should it still be taught in schools? (Your answers to both questions DO NOT have to be the same,
i.e., you can say that the book is racist, but should still be taught in schools.)
Questions you might wrestle with as part of your essay: Is Twain’s portrayal of slavery so unrealistic
that it whitewashes (no pun intended) how brutal slavery was? Or, does his use of satire make it
more likely that more people will read the book, and his critique of slavery, than if it had been a more
direct attack on slavery (or racism, or lynching)? Is Twain’s use of satire cowardly? Should he have
been more brave and direct in challenging the racial violence of his time? Is Twain’s portrayal of Jim
ultimately positive or negative? Does the racism that Huck still expresses outweigh the respect and
affection he shows for Jim? Does Huck really respect Jim in the end? Can the novel illustrate racism,
even have it expressed by its main character, and still be considered anti-racist?
We will spend a lot of time between now and spring break working on parts of this essay in class.
Tomorrow, we will review how to write a good thesis, and begin working on drafting a thesis for your
essay. A draft of your introduction will be due on Monday, 3/22. Don’t panic about the length of the
essay: You should be able to draw a lot of your ideas and evidence from your online discussion posts,
Type 2 responses, character journals and other writing assignments (e.g., Huck-Jim dialogue).
DUE DATES (you will get individual grades for meeting each of these deadlines)

Monday, 3/22: Draft of introduction

Thursday, 3/25: A Type 3 draft including revised introduction and at least 2 full paragraphs
(6-8 sentences each) – we will peer edit these in class, so be sure to have them (you’ll miss
out on the benefit of feedback and receive a zero for that part of the assignment otherwise).
This draft may be handwritten (with skipped lines), but having it typed makes editing easier.

Monday, 3/29: A full 4-5 page TYPED draft – these will be returned to you on Wednesday,
3/31 (our last class before spring break) and then we’ll do your Works Cited page in class,
using www.easybib.com. NOTE: If you are leaving early for spring break, you must still get this
to me by Monday via email.

Monday, 4/12: Final, revised, TYPED 4-5 page essay with citations both in the body of your
essay and in a correctly formatted Works Cited list at the end
Be sure to check the rubric on the back of this handout for details on how you will be graded for this
essay!
English II Honors – Rm. 223
Ms. Chenelle – schenelle@njcu.edu
Huckleberry Finn Essay Rubric
CATEGORY
Outstanding
(10)
Thesis / Main
Argument
Thesis/main
argument is clearly
stated in
introduction, which
effectively sets up
thesis and peaks
reader interest.
Topic sentences
present clear,
provable arguments
that are relevant to
and help develop
and maintain focus
on the thesis/main
argument.
Evidence in each
paragraph is
relevant to topic
sentence, accurate
and convincing.
References to Huck
Finn and other
sources are fully
explained and clear.
Essay is 4-5 typed
pages in a Word doc,
double-spaced, with
a 1.25” margin,
using the correct
font and a proper
heading. Spelling
and grammatical
errors are very few.
Essay has clear
paragraph breaks for
each new topic.
Quotes and
paraphrased
references are
correctly cited.
No errors in listed
Focus Correction
Areas.
Topic Sentences
and Paragraphs
Evidence
Formatting,
Spelling, Grammar
and Citation
Focus Correction
Areas (list three
below):
Very Good (8-9)
Satisfactory (6-7)
Unsatisfactory (5 and
below)
Thesis/main
argument is clearly
stated in the
introduction.
Thesis/main
argument is stated
in the introduction,
but not necessarily
very clearly.
Thesis/main
argument is not
stated in the
introduction.
Topic sentences
present clear
arguments that are
relevant to and help
develop and
maintain focus on
the thesis/main
argument.
Evidence in each
paragraph is
relevant to topic
sentence, and
accurate and fairly
convincing.
References to Huck
Finn and other
sources are clear.
Essay is 4-5 typed
pages in a Word
doc, double-spaced,
with a 1.25” margin,
using the correct
font and a proper
heading. Spelling
and grammatical
errors are few. Essay
has clear paragraph
breaks for each new
topic. Quotes and
paraphrased
references are
correctly cited.
Topic sentences
present arguments
relevant to the
thesis/main
argument.
Topic sentences
don’t present
arguments relevant
to the thesis/main
argument.
Evidence in most
paragraphs is
relevant to topic
sentence, but not
necessarily accurate
and/or convincing.
References to Huck
Finn & other sources
may be unclear.
Essay is 4-5 typed
pages in a Word
doc, double-spaced,
with a 1.25” margin,
using correct font
and proper heading.
Spelling and
grammatical errors
are frequent, but do
not inhibit meaning.
Essay has clear
paragraph breaks.
Quotes and
paraphrased
references are
correctly cited.
4-6 errors in listed
Focus Correction
Areas.
Evidence provided is
not relevant to the
topic sentence (or
the thesis).
References to Huck
Finn and research (if
applicable) are not
clear.
1-3 errors in listed
Focus Correction
Areas.
Essay is not 4-5
typed pages in a
Word doc, doublespaced, with a 1.25”
margin, using
correct font or
proper heading.
Spelling and
grammatical errors
are frequent. Essay
doesn’t have clear
paragraph breaks.
Quotes and
paraphrased
references are not
correctly cited.
7 or more errors in
listed Focus
Correction Areas.
English II Honors – Rm. 223
Ms. Chenelle – schenelle@njcu.edu