Differences

I do think Jim is meant to characterize many black people during the setting of Huck Finn. Although Jim is not a white man posing as a black man, he probably has some attributes that Twain gave him because he thought they were exhibited by most blacks at that time. For example, Jim's firm beliefs in superstition and witchcraft attract many slaves to see him and touch the token that hangs around his neck, which the devil gave to him. Only slaves came to hear Jim's stories. And Jim's dialect is not shared by any white man in the story. I think that any distinctions between Jim and the white characters of the novel act to separate whites from blacks even more than slavery already does. Because Jim is so different than any other white character in the story, I do think his actions create a small stereotype of how any black man would act.

However, many of Jim's actions are admirable, and would make blacks look good if Twain was in fact characterizing blacks' behavior through Jim. For example, Jim shows remorse for beating his daughter when she did not deserve it while Huck's father never showed remorse for beating Huck for trivial reasons like going to school. While I think Twain does characterize the behavior of blacks through Jim, I do not think he does so to make fun of blacks as in a minstrel show. I think Twain does so to demonstrate a cultural difference between blacks and white which society creates.