...consists mainly of the storm of thoughts that is forever blowing through one’s head” states Mark Twain in his autobiography (Twain, Wit 78). Twain certainly had a “storm of thoughts,” but he was able to eloquently and succinctly put those thoughts onto paper. Because he wrote a combination of fiction and nonfiction, it is difficult to categorize Mark Twain as an author. According to Neil Schmitz, Mark Twain was, “a southern humorist gone over, not just a deserter, a dissenter, but a literary scalawag, a southern writer in unionist discourse and narrative” (91). Most people recognize Twain’s brief, witty, straightforward proverbs that are often quoted today. He also wrote many novels, a few nonfiction books, a plethora of short stories, and essays. Mark Twain uses a variety of rhetorical devices including carefully chosen, colorful language, satirical tone, and unique symbolism to entertain and to enlighten his readers about the moral dilemmas and the beauty of the America he knew. According to Ernest Hemingway, all of American literature comes from one great book, Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Twain, Huck Finn vii). Although this statement may seem hyperbolic, it does indicate the important place Mark Twain holds in American literature. Early Nineteenth century American writers tended to try to write like English writers with flowery, ostentatious language (Schmitz 100). Twain’s writing style was innovative when it was written and is still absolutely unique. He writes...
Words: 3124 - Pages: 13
...Mark Twain’s life. On Nov. 30, 1835, Samuel Langhorne Clemens, who is also known by Mark Twain, was born in the small town in Florida. He is the sixth child in his family. His parents are John Marshall and Jane Lampton Clemens. A few years after his birth, in 1839, he and his family moved 35 miles east to the town of Hannibal. Twain’s father was a judge, and he built a two-story frame house at 206 Hill Street in 1844. As a youngster, Twain was kept indoors because of his poor health. By age nine, he seemed to recover from his ailments and joined the rest of the town's children outside. He then attended a private school in Hannibal. When twain was 12, his father died of pneumonia, and at age 13, He needed to find a way to provide for his family. Twain left school to become a printer's apprentice. After a couple years, he joined his brother Orion's newspaper as a printer and editorial assistant. It was here that Twain found he enjoyed writing. At age 17, he left Hannibal behind for a printer's job in St. Louis. While in St. Louis, Then he became a river pilot's apprentice. He became a licensed river pilot in 1858. Mark Twain, comes from his days as a river pilot. It is a river term which means two fathoms or 12-feet when the depth of water for a boat is being sounded. "Mark twain" means that is safe to navigate. Because the river trade was brought to a standstill by the Civil War in 1861, Twain began working as a newspaper reporter for several newspapers...
Words: 453 - Pages: 2
...Can you say that you changed the way American literature was written? Mark Twain, also known as Samuel Langhorne Clemens, can. Mark Twain was a very successful author who wrote in the Romanticism Movement time period. Twain changed the way all American literature was written by writing with a very relaxed style that wasn’t very popular in the Realism Movement (1800’s to the 1900’s). The Innocents Abroad (1869), Roughing It (1872), a Life on the Mississippi (1883), Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885), were all works of Twain that made him very popular back in the days and still make him a very well-known American author. Twain was born on November 30th as Samuel Clemens to parents John Marshall and Jane...
Words: 845 - Pages: 4
...the social norm would be such as Nelson Mandela and Mark Twain. Nelson was the first black president of South Africa and a civil rights activist. In his early years, Nelson started a crusade of resistance against the South African government and its policies. He tried to overthrow the government, but his action caused him to be incarcerated for 27 years. He was a symbol of resistance and he abolish the apartheid in South America. Mark Twain was American writer who lived in America in a time of radical transformation. Both Mandela and Twain have similar qualities but...
Words: 693 - Pages: 3
...Mark Twain On Nov. 30, 1835, the small town of Florida, Mo. witnessed the birth of its most famous son. Samuel Langhorne Clemens was welcomed into the world as the sixth child of John Marshall and Jane Lampton Clemens. Little did John and Jane know, their son Samuel would one day be known as Mark Twain - America's most famous literary icon. Approximately four years after his birth, in 1839, the Clemens family moved 35 miles east to the town of Hannibal. A growing port city that lie along the banks of the Mississippi, Hannibal was a frequent stop for steam boats arriving by both day and night from St. Louis and New Orleans. Samuel's father was a judge, and he built a two-story frame house at 206 Hill Street in 1844. As a youngster, Samuel was kept indoors because of poor health. However, by age nine, he seemed to recover from his ailments and joined the rest of the town's children outside. He then attended a private school in Hannibal. When Samuel was 12, his father died of pneumonia, and at 13, Samuel left school to become a printer's apprentice. After two short years, he joined his brother Orion's newspaper as a printer and editorial assistant. It was here that young Samuel found he enjoyed writing. At 17, he left Hannibal behind for a printer's job in St. Louis. While in St. Louis, Clemens became a river pilot's apprentice. He became a licensed river pilot in 1858. Clemens' pseudonym, Mark Twain, comes from his days as a river pilot. It is a river term which means...
Words: 510 - Pages: 3
...Mark Twain was a good person, and a good writer. I think that, for a person, it's always good to take things with a grain of salt, as he does. He tends to see humor in most things, usually in the form of a hyperbole. And he also tried to accomplish his dream, despite all the hardships, which lead to many classics. In "Chapters from My autobiography: Chapter II" (Mark Twain), Mark explains that the house he had attempted to publish with was hesitant due to the "slight" humor that was included in his story. Even in the buggy ride with Mr. Drake, he talks about him as a man with a 'delicate' purpose. This is, of course, used in a negative connotation as it comes after he calls him a 'pathetic' person. Mr. Drake was afraid that the release of...
Words: 362 - Pages: 2
...------------------------------------------------- Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910),[1] better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist. He wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885),[2] the latter often called "the Great American Novel." Twain grew up in Hannibal, Missouri, which provided the setting for Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. After an apprenticeship with a printer, he worked as a typesetter and contributed articles to his older brother Orion's newspaper. He later became a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River before heading west to join Orion in Nevada. He referred humorously to his singular lack of success at mining, turning to journalism for the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise.[3] In 1865, his humorous story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" was published, based on a story he heard at Angels Hotel in Angels Camp California where he had spent some time as a miner. The short story brought international attention, even being translated to classic Greek.[4] His wit and satire, in prose and in speech, earned praise from critics and peers, and he was a friend to presidents, artists, industrialists, and European royalty. Though Twain earned a great deal of money from his writings and lectures, he invested in ventures that lost a great deal of money, notably the Paige Compositor, which failed because of its complexity and...
Words: 1950 - Pages: 8
...As being a well-known author and impacting American literature no one else comes to mind more quickly than Mark Twain. He has influenced American literature immensely by just one of his books, which all American literature comes from. “What has changed in our own climate to make Twain look bigger? Partly, it's that the one very good book now seems so very good a book that it would be mean-spirited to ask for too much more books like it. Hemingway's assertion that all modern American literature comes from "Huck" seems even more nearly true now than when he said it, back in the nineteen-thirties.” This is explaining why Mark Twain is such a titan in American literature, he has paved the way of all modern American literature. Every book from...
Words: 682 - Pages: 3
...Samuel Langhorne Clemens, also know as Mark Twain, was born in 1835 and died in 1910 (Student Handbook 379). He is best known as an American humorist and for his realistic view of America in the nineteenth century through his novels and other stories. He had the whole world captivated through his expert writing and lectures. "I never let my schooling interfere with my education (home.eathlink.net/…/twain.html)," Mark Twain once said. Mark Twain was a great inspiration to America in the nineteenth century and is still an inspiration to contemporary writers today. Mark Twain was born as Samuel Langhorne Clemens in the small town of Florida, Missouri. He lived in a small, two-bedroom house, and being the fourth of five children, it was obviously very crowded in their house (Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia 1). In 1839, at the age of four, he and his family moved to Hannibal, Missouri which is located directly adjacent to the Mississippi River (World Book 530). Here is where Twain grew up as a boy. This was where his inspiration of most his books came from. He witnessed things that would later make him the great author as we know him today. Without this period in his life, a huge chunk of literary history would be missing from America. By living on the banks of the Mississippi River, he experienced many wonderful things like colorful steamboats traveling down the river, some would just pass by, while many would stop and exchange cargo. These steamboats would bring...
Words: 1692 - Pages: 7
...Mark Twain is recognized as one of the best literary author’s. He grew up in Hannibal, Missouri, a small town which gave him the inspiration to write books. Twain worked as a printer, reporter, editor, traveler and illustrator before he became a successful writer. He became a well-respected writer after writing Adventures of Huckleberry. Today his legacy as a writer is being passed on because it is being read by students in schools all over the country. Mark Twain was a distinguished writer who influenced American Literature with the realism, satire, and imagery presented in his books. Samuel Langhorne Clemens was born on November 30, 1835 to Jane and John Clemens in Florida, Missouri; he was the sixth of seven children. He was born about two weeks after the Halley’s Comet, which is the only comet that is visibly seen on earth. At the age of four his family moved to Hannibal, Missouri. His father worked as a judge, lawyer, and storekeeper. Growing up in Hannibal, Samuel Clemens seen a lot of death and violence. At the age of nine he seen a man kill a rancher and at the age of ten he seen a white man kill a slave. But there were somethings he did enjoy about his town and it was the steamboats. Clemens...
Words: 1061 - Pages: 5
...Thomas Nast known as The Father of American Caricature influenced the world with his humorous way to address serious situations. Known for his famous campaign against New York City’s political boss William Maegear Tweed, he devised the Tammany tiger, popularized the donkey as the symbol for the Democratic party, and popularized the elephant for the Republican party. He also crated the “modern” image of Santa Claus. He was even known to have re-elected Lincoln in 1864, and Lincoln himself commented that Nast was his best recruiting sergeant. Likewise, many people are influenced by comedy, more than any other type of style. With great fame, Mark Twain, much like Thomas Nast, portrayed a comedic writing style to draw in the attention of his audience. Influenced by himself, and many areas of his life, such as his home, jobs, and experiences, Mark Twain greatly impacted American literature with his humorous commentaries on reality. Twains early life transformed him into the man we know today, was born November 30, 1835, in the small town of Florida, Missouri. He was the sixth child of John and Jane Lampton Clemens, who originally named him Samuel Langhorne Clemens .When Samuel was only three, his parents' seventh and last child was born, a son named Henry. A year after that, the family moved to Hannibal, Missouri. In 1847, Twains father died when he was only 12(Twain 12). By this time, there were only four children of seven left in the Clemens’ household. As soon as they were old...
Words: 1719 - Pages: 7
...11/19/2014 Offensive Language in D.H. Hwang's Play, Trying to Find Chinatown - Wattpad Join Wattpad to read and share books and stories (for free). Choose a username Offensive Language in D.H. Hwang's Play, "Trying to Find Chinatown" Reality is what it is...real. To ignore any aspect of what is real sends us on a fool's errand and limits our exposure to ideas and ideals of individuals who do not meet our own "acceptable" criteria. This is part and parcel of the conflict spotlighted in the thought provoking play "Trying to Find Chinatown" by David Henry Hwang. The play centers on a chance encounter between two 20-something men on a New York Street. From the beginning their interaction is fraught with misunderstanding and prejudice. Ben, an out of town Caucasian is merely looking for an address when he happens upon an Asian, nearly his own age, working his heart out as a street musician on an electric violin. After showing his appreciation of the music with a few coins, he is instantly attacked when he asks for directions. The attack by Ronnie is full of insolence, malice, and seething hatred directed toward his "white" tormentor. Ronnie's tirade is peppered with profanity and frequent references to stereotypes of the rural inhabitants of the non-urban American South, twice referring to Ben as a "cousin fucker", completely ignoring Benjamin's own admission of being from the Midwest. Ronnie makes the assumption that due to Ben's skin color and rural background that he is the...
Words: 895 - Pages: 4
...Medical Marijuana If a substance can make someone who is ill feel better, why keep it from him or her? On the surface this sounds right. People who advocate making marijuana legal for medical purposes take this approach. What could it hurt? A closer look reveals that marijuana should not be legalized for medical use, because young people are given mixed signals about drugs, other drugs can be used that are easier to regulate, and there are more harmful side effects. Marijuana is one of the most abused drugs in America today. It is estimated that close to four million Americans regularly use marijuana. It is often one of the first illegal drugs that young people experiment with (Gassett2). Legalization for medical purposes would send a mixed signal to our youth. Young people are taught at a very early age about the harmful effects and the abusive potential of marijuana. If at the same time, they are told that marijuana is medically benevolent, the result could be confusion. Andrea Barthwell, former deputy Director of the office of National Drug Policy said this in 2004, “Children entering drug abuse treatment routinely report that they heard ‘pot is medicine’ and, therefore, believed to be good for them.” (19). At a time when recreational drug use is at an all time high, it would not be wise to legalize marijuana for medical purposes. The war on drugs begins with young people. If they are confused about whether or not a drug like marijuana is harmful, the battle...
Words: 2175 - Pages: 9
...also known as “Mark Twain” was born on November 30, 1835 in Florida but was raised in Hannibal, Missouri. Son of John Marshall Clemens and Jane Lampton Clemens was the seventh child. His brother Orion, Henry, and his sister Pamela managed to survive through their childhood. The other three siblings died before they could reach the age of eleven. Margaret (1830 - 1839) died when Mark was only three and then three years later his brother Benjamin (1832 – 1842) died tragically. Mark’s other brother Pleasant (1828 – 1829) died after six months of being born. When Mark was four years old his family moved to the city Hannibal in Missouri also known as the “slave state” where he was raised. Also Mark noticed the institution of slavery, which was a topic he would use in his writing later in the future. Mark’s father John Marshall Clemens died on March 24, 1847 of pneumonia when he was 11. His father was a local judge and attorney. Soon after his father passed away he became a printers apprentice for a newspaper owned by his brother Orion. He would work on the Hannibal Journal as a typesetter. Later at the age of eighteen he left Hannibal, Missouri to work as a printer in New York City and other states. He also joined the union and studied in public libraries when he could and learning more in the libraries than he could at school. When he was twenty two Mark returned to Hannibal...
Words: 3619 - Pages: 15
...NORTH AMERICAN FICTION BRIEF INTRODUCTION: Before starting our study of American Fiction we must understand what American Literature is in itself and which pieces of writing we can include within this label. It is believed that when a piece is written in North America, more precisely in the USA, it would automatically be given this epithet. But it should be taken into account that this idea is quite broad and doesn’t reflect the real essence of the term. However, there is also another definition that gathers this essence: American Literature is the one that represents the Americanism, the singularity of the USA philosophy and culture. This way, instead of focusing on who the author is, it is focused on the content of the writing. In that which concerns Fiction, the following documents are the ones considered as narrative: Speeches Letters Short Stories Essays Political Documents Sermons Novels Diaries 1 FIRST LITERARY EXPRESSIONS The first documents in which the idea of Americanism is very present are the Sermons. They respond to the strict Protestantism settled in the New Continent after the arrival of the Pilgrim Fathers and Puritans in the Mayflower (1620) and the Arabella (1630). They established a theocratic community whose main and only point of reference was the Bible. That is why the idea of the ‘city upon a hill’ is still very present in American mentality. As we all know...
Words: 12691 - Pages: 51
