Dear Editor,

Your article about teaching Huckleberry Finn was fascinating and troubling. Fascinating to have a glimpse into the complexities of teaching difficult topics. But troubling to hear that some teachers are, in effect, polling their students to determine what to teach them.  Such action reflects a discomfort on the part of the teachers, who then attempt to resolve that discomfort by putting difficult choices to a vote of the students.  It may seem democratic, but is it teaching?

Even if we disagree with Hemingway’s assertion that truly American literature begins with Huckleberry Finn, it is a beautifully told tale which also wrestles with issues of class and race. Perhaps just as important, and especially in the context of the vernacular use of the n-word, it depicts an incredibly deep, moving and loving relationship, one that develops and grows, between a poor, abused, uneducated teenager and an abused, uneducated slave whose need and growing affection for each other is rarely written about with such beauty and within such exciting, adventurous circumstances.

BHS has great teachers. I hope they never shy away from challenge, controversy, and critical thinking.

Charles Morgan, parent