Mark Twain

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses how as both a journalist and fiction writer, Mark Twain commented on the events that were occurring in America at the time. In Twain's time the United States was undergoing many changes from an agricultural to an industrial and international country. Twain often had something to say about the impact of these changes on the nation and many of his thoughts created controversy. The paper looks at his "Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County," "Innocents Abroad" and "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn." The paper reveals that at first, his readers saw him primarily as a humorist who couched his beliefs in fiction. However, as he became well known, he became more serious on issues such as black Americans as human beings, votes for women and anti-imperialism.

From the Paper:

"Throughout the years, and until this day, Twain's stories and books have been read with mixed reviews--not on the style, but on the theme and meaning behind the words. When Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was first published in January 1885 it drew raves and boos from the beginning. It was praised by authors such as Ernest Hemingway and critics and scholars have treated it as one of the greatest American works of art. To the contrary, it was condemned by many reviewers in Twain's time as crude and by many commentators since as racist. In 1885 it was banished from the shelves of the Concord Public Library, which attracted a lot of publicity and press."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Kaplan, Fred. The Singular Mark Twain. New York: Doubleday.
• Kaplan, Justin. Mr. Clemens and Mark Twain. New York: Simon & Schuster.
• Schmidt, Paul. "The Deadpan on Simon Wheeler." Southwest Review (1956) 16, 27-277.
• Ward, Geoffrey, Dayton Duncan and Ken Burns. Mark Twain. New York: Knopf, 2001.

More papers on Mark Twain:

• Research Paper # 94642 : "Mark Twain"
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• Essay # 36188 : "Mark Twain"
• Analytical Essay # 9916 : "Mark Twain--A Man and his Literary Politics"

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