HF Critical Lens Responding and Reflecting - Marxist Lens

In history, I wondering why the South was so devastated after the civil war.  The South had lost in the war of ideology. The ideology in question was institution of slavery. This lost caused such a violent shift in way of life in South. Why was this shift so drastic? One way we can answer that question is to look back in time. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is a great representation of an earlier time period before the civil war. It was a time where slavery was rampant and integral part of southern way of life. One aspect that I found interesting was how slavery was not only a part of antebellum life but it was a representation of the amount of capital a person had in the south. It seemed that the more slaves a person owned the richer they were. If the amount of slaves determined capital, then was this one of the reasons that the south had such a violent reaction after the civil war? Huckleberry Finn may show how the south didn’t just lose an ideology but a class structure.

One way that Mark Twain showed to difference in class structure was with the main character of Huckleberry Finn. Huckleberry came from a poor upbringing and hunted to live. When he is taken in by the Widow Douglas, he shown to different life style. This lifestyle was a more rich refined style with learning and manners. The new lifestyle that Huck was subjected to him was a shock as his entire life he was not used to it. I believe Mark Twain did this to show the difference of the classes in south society. This made me realize that the south was not all plantation owners but people like Huckleberry who were poor and slaveless. Huckleberry is shown to this lifestyle but it was only supported by the use of slaves. Mark Twain must of wanted to show this by having the contrast poor character of Huckleberry versus the rich antebellum society which relied on slaves. This made me realize that when the south lost the civil war, they did not only lose the ideology but also the upper class. The slavery that the upper class depended on was gone after the war which brought the end of the antebellum high society. Which is the reason why the South was so devastated after the war.

Huckleberry Finn has a very interesting look at how slavery was part the class structure of the south. Through reading Huckleberry Finn I found learning the difference in classes in south. When I learned this it made me realize why the south wanted to protect slavery. The institution of slavery was not only used for the massive agriculture industry but it allowed the class divide between the rich and the poor in the south. I don’t believe the institution of slavery was right in any respect but The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn made me realize how much did slaves matter in the south.