미국 소설에서 인종 문제 다루기와 그 쟁점

Discussing the Issues of Race in American Novel Class

This article aims to examine how the teachers of American novel can help students discuss and understand the issues of race in American Novel class. For this purpose, it presents the case study, based on my teaching experiences dealing with two novels, James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans, and Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I also investigate the films along with the literary texts and try to show how effective they are in understanding and discussing the issues of the texts. In case of The Last of the Mohicans, exploring the meaning of the title of the novel is a good start, Students can find whether Cooper agreed on the white's Federal Indian Removal Policy or not by looking into his attitude to the extermination of the Indians in the work, Another crucial issue is the representation of the Indians, which shows Cooper's contemporary Indian discourse and his attitude toward it, namely, how Cooper is contained in the discourse and how he overcomes it, In relation to this issue, the problem of white's supremacy can be discussed. Cora and Alice's fates are exemplary of the problem. Another crucial issue is that of American identity, which is illustrated by Hawk-eye and the Indians. Michael Mann's film can enhance students' interest and understanding the issues of race and American identity, even though it transforms the representations of characters and the plot of the novel. Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a useful text in exploring the problem of the black in America. In this text, the problem of representation of the black is a primary issue. The relationship of Huck and Jim is crucial in understanding the white's interaction with Twain's contemporary black discourse. The so-called Evasion Section should also be discussed, which shows how Twain is contained in his contemporary black discourse and how he subverts it. Discussing several differences between the film and the novel can give students a good understanding of Twain's contemporary black discourse and the present one, although the film has some limitations in presenting the racial problem.