Samuel Longhorn Clemens, Mark Twain - 875 Words

â€Å"I am not an American, I am the American† (Duncan and Ward). Quoting his friend Frank Fuller, Twain boldly declares himself the embodiment of American living, and in all honesty, with some right to do so. Twain was born in 1835 to parents John and Jane Clemens under Halley’s Comet in Florida, Missouri and later moved to Hannibal. He would later die under the same comet 75 years later in 1910. He traveled along the American South and Midwest writing as he went, originally moving west with his brother, Orion, in 1861 hoping to strike it rich in Nevada’s silver rush (Ramussen). Twain’s real name was Samuel Longhorne Clemens but took on the name Mark Twain as a reference to a measurement in his job as steamboat captain, a job that would†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"The Anti-Imperialist League sprang into being to fight the McKinley administration’s expansionist moves†¦ including the presidents of Stanford and Harvard Universities, th e philosopher William James, and the novelist Mark Twain† (Bailey, Kennedy, and Cohen 637). Twain should be an inspiration to the masses to follow what you believe in. He incorporated these beliefs into his writings. Further, Mark Twain covered a large range of areas in his writings transitioning from an almost silly humorist to a serious writer who attacked his targets with much darker view of the world. When he began, Twain was a humorist writing books like The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, the book that skyrocketed him to fame in 1867 (Bailey, Kennedy, and Cohen 580). Later on he wrote possibly his most famous book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which was a heartwarming tale of a boy who travels down the Mississippi River helping his friend and ex-slave escape. In his story, that was very unusual for his time, he used the dialects of the people along the river, something unheard of in his current era of writing. In his later years his wrote angrier and h arsh works such as The Mysterious Stranger a tale in which the devil visits an Austrian village in the Middle Ages. â€Å"As Twains career progressed, he seemed to become increasingly removed from the humorous, cocky image of his younger days† (Gribben). Twain neverShow MoreRelatedHuckleberry Finn, By Samuel Longhorn Clemens1520 Words   |  7 Pagesapplicable to this paper. They are as follows: 1. (adj.) the essence of a thing while in it’s purest and most concentrated form. 2. (adj.) The most typical example or representative. Huckleberry Finn, written in December of 1884, by Samuel longhorn Clemens (under surname â€Å"Mark Twain†) encompasses the life, thoughts and adventures of the 12-year-old title character Huckleberry â€Å"Huck† Finn. Throughout the book Huck struggles with a negative opinion of racism and slavery that is otherwise not voiced by your

Catcher in the Rye4 Essay Example For Students

Catcher in the Rye4 Essay The Catcher in the RyeBy. J.D. SalingerThe setting for the Catcher in the Rye was in New York around the 1950s. The novel covered about four days from beginning to end. The setting took place in a mental hospital in California where he flashes back to these four days in New York. This was were his family lived and thats why this was important for the setting. There was one main character in this book and his name was Holden Caulfield. He was very smart and he was always thinking about something. He wanted people not to be phony but this never happened the way he wanted it. He never changed his thinking about people but in the end he did miss them. I liked all the characters except Holden because he always had too many thoughts. I did like his sister because she was always nice to him and forgiving. The most important conflict in the novel was when he was going to say good bye to his sister at the end of the book. The most exciting part was when he went back home to visit her. The plot of Catcher in the Rye began with Holden being expelled from school. He left school and took a train to New York. While he was there, he went to parks, museums and bars and met an old friend named Sally Hayes and also a former teacher of his. He finally met up with his sister who seemed to be the only person he really cared for and she was able to talk him into going back home with her. The story is told using flash-backs because the entire time he is talking to his psychiatrist in a hospital. The point of view is first person. Because of this, you only see Holdens view of the events and how he perceives people. The impact of the story would change if you had other characters reactions to what Holden was saying and doing. Holden Caulfield was disgusted at the way the whole world seemed false to him. He was disgusted at the way his brother sold out and went to Hollywood and was now what he considered to be a phony. Holden was very affectionate and loving to his sister. She was the only person that he really wanted to see in New York. Holden was very sad and angry about the way the world was. The theme of Catcher in the Rye was that peoples actions toward one another affect people in many ways. Our society is so large that it is difficult to build strong interpersonal relationships. Holden wanted to be the catcher in the rye who helped other children from falling off a cliff and becoming what he considered to be phony. I beleive that the book is trying to make a point of that adolescence is a difficult time because it is a search for who we are and the realities of the world. Bibliography: