Tom said he slipped Jim’s Hat off his head and hung it on a limb right over him, and Jim stirred a little, but he didn’t wake. Afterwards Jim said the witches bewitched him and put him in a trance, and rode him all over the State, and then set him under the trees again and hung his hat on a limb to show who done it. And next time Jim told it he said they rode him down to New Orleans: and after that, every time he told it he spread it more and more, till by- and-by he said they rode him all over the world, and tired him most to death, and his back was all over saddle-boils. Jim was monstrous proud about it, and he got so he wouldn’t hardly notice the other n******. N****** would come miles to hear Jim tell about it, and he was more looked up to than any n***** in that country. Strange n****** would stand with their mouths open and look him all over, same as if he was a wonder, N****** is always talking about witches in the dark by the kitchen fire; but whenever one was talking and letting on to know all about such things, Jim would happen in and say, “Hm! What do you know ‘bout witches?” and that n***** was corked up and had to take a back seat. Jim always kept that five-centerpiece around his neck with string and said it was a charm the devil give to him with his own hands and told him he could cure anybody with it and fetch witches whenever he wanted to, just by saying something to it; but he never told what it was he said to it. N****** would come from all around there and give Jim anything they had, just for a sight of that five center piece; but they wouldn’t touch it, because the devil has had his hands on it. JIm was most ruined, for a servant, because he got so struck up on account of having seen the devil and been rode by witches.(p.7)
In this text piece, Huck tells the story of Jim, the widow’s servant, who had a prank pulled on by Tom, which later caused him to believe it had to do with the supernatural. Jim then created a false story to go with what supposedly happened to him, telling the rest of the servants all over were convinced that the tale happened. This depiction of Jim, as a gullible and superstitious slave, makes him seem like a racist caricature of African Americans. Due to Twain’s satirical writing style, Jim is representative of a negative black stereotype that American society created during the time period.
Western society values education above all else -- education that largely was not available to African-Americans in this time period. By having this aspect, one is reasonable and concludes to logical inferences. The author depicts Jim and the rest of the African Americans as merely the opposite of having rationality and being gullible and superstitious people. Making a sense of inferiority, Twain shows Jim’s dimwitted when Tom “slipped [his] Hat off his head and hung it on a limb right over him.” This rendition points out the view of that Jim naive to be taken advantage of a child. However, rather than go with the most obvious explanation, Jim instead decides that he was “bewitched” and “put… in a trance” demonstrating his illusory beliefs.
This explicit stereotype implified on Jim isn’t only given to him, but a generalization to the rest of the African-Americans. There’s more that are classified as too trusting for, “N****** would come miles to hear Jim tell about it [with their].. mouth open” in awe. People from all over were convinced enough that the story is legitimate. Based on the introduction given to us, Twain shows us the depiction of not only how one African-American is, but of all.
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