Huckleberry Finn to Be Republished, Minus the "N Word"

In an attempt to meet modern standards of social language, New South Books, with the help of professor Alan Gribben, plans to release a new version of the Mark Twain classic Huckleberry Finn... without one word.

The "n word" has created controversy in schools where the novel Huckleberry Finn is taught, and it appears in the novel over 200 times. Some teachers believe the crude language inhibits classroom discussion, and makes student's of color feel awkward. Gribben plans to replace the "n word" with slave, and also wishes to remove the word "Injun."

For those unfamiliar with the plot of the novel, Huckleberry Finn chronicles the story of a southern boy by the name of Huckleberry Finn, who befriends a runaway slave named Jim. The novel is set during the 1840s, when racism and slavery were very real issues in America.

Gribben feels removing the harsh language will renew the use of Twain's work in the classroom. "This is not an effort to render Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn colorblind. Race matters in these books," he says. "I'm hoping that people will welcome this new option, but... already, one professor told me that he is very disappointed that I was involved in this."

Not all are so supportive of the measure, however.One prominent critic is University of California at Los Angeles professor Thomas Wortham. Wortham believes censoring the book prevents critical thinking and discussion necessary in a classroom. "A book like Professor Gribben has imagined doesn't challenge children to ask, 'Why would a child like Huck use such reprehensible language?'" Other say that watering down the language misrepresents history, and distorts Twain's criticism of racism.

The revised edition of the book is due to be released sometime in February.