Mark Twain Essay

When to analyze the works of Mark Twain, it becomes clear that the author’s style is simple and direct. Indeed, the author is very successful in convening his thoughts to the reader. Henry Nash Smith, the critique of Mark Twain’s style once made a remark that Mark Twain’s style is â€Å"as close as we are likely to get to the writer’s actual experience †¦ † (Smith 19). Richard Bridgman’s evaluation of Mark Twain’s style is even clearer. The researcher puts it in the following way: â€Å"Mark Twain leads the reader to things again† (Bridgman 79). Furthermore, when to analyze Mark Twain’s style it would be fair to claim that his description of life often takes the form of mediation. This form was very rare among Mark Twain’s contemporaries. In the final outcome this very style of medication largely contributed to formation of Mark Twain’s literary style. In addition, Twain is not only a realist, he is a humorist. It means that besides depicting realistic situation, Mark Twain was quite successful in telling something humoristic. As we can see from the rest of his works, Mark Twain is able to expose â€Å"illusion and pretense and folly† (Duncan 204). Besides, as Duncan has fairly noticed he could â€Å"aid and abet the realistic enterprise† (205). Mark Twain is famous for his humor stories. To make an example, one of his most humorous and noticeable sketches is the Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. Rich vernacular language makes the story sound even more lively and funny. Under the mask of humor the author had skillfully hidden the expression of confrontation which was observed between the East and West. The story is a representation of Twain’s unique style of writing humor stories. Mark Twain is famous for his humor stories. One of the most humorous and noticeable sketches by Mark Twain is the Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. Rich vernacular language makes the story sound even more lively and funny. Under the mask of humor the author had skillfully hidden the expression of confrontation which was observed between the East and West. The conflict is represented through the conversation of narrator, who is Easterner himself and Simon Wheeler, who is Westerner. The very first sentence of the story sets humorous mood, moreover narrator’s suspicion that the person he was looking for was a myth makes an impression that the following story will be unrealistic and humorous. From the first meeting of Simon Wheeler sets the reader at ease by the following description: â€Å"†¦ he was fat and bald headed, and had an expression of winning gentleness and simplicity upon his tranquil countenance† (Price). One of the themes is the author’s critical view on American way to success. Jim Smily is the bright representative of an American who is making money easily by betting on different stuff like â€Å"†¦rat-terriers, and chicken cocks, and tom-cats, and all of them kind of things†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Price). Jim was betting and was winning all the time, as he was very fortunate. However, this easy money proves to be not stable, as he lost the case when he bet on his frog Dan’l. In this, simple from the first sight story, the author criticizes some of the flaws of the clergy and religion. Jim Smily was attending priest before making a bet. Furthermore, the other flaws of American society are wittily criticized by Samuel Clemens in this short story. Thus the dog possessing almost humanly features had his own talents and this metaphor is representing simple people who have their own talents too and who can be successful: â€Å"†¦ good pup, was that Andrew Jackson, and would have made a name for hisself if he’d lived, for the stuff was in him, and he had genius I know it, because he hadn’t had no opportunities to speak of, and it don’t stand to reason that a dog could make such a fight as he could under them circumstances, if he hadn’t no talent† (Price). In this short story, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, the author skillfully criticizes the major flaws of American society. Mark Twain is very realistic in using the words that have a direct relation to human life. The way in which the writer reveals his humor is the technique of using the cross-eyed patterns of concepts. To some extend the use of the concepts reveal Mark Twain’s personal disappointment with the system. The realist implicitly regards words as something that is related to the material value of words. An important feature of realism is that it is predicated on commonsense empiricism. As for human, it is predominately based on philosophical idealism. Paying the most careful attention to Mark Twain’s style, we can see that this author is adhering to both traditions. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain and his short story The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County are two great works which give the reader a possibility to look at American society of the nineteenth century. One has a possibility to analyze today’s situation concerning race discrimination and equality of whites and blacks with the situation which existed at the beginning of the nineteenth century in time of slavery. Initially, the discussions of Twain’s style â€Å"have been concerned exclusively with his empirical pursuit† (Duncan 201). As a result, many critiques left aside the issue of the epistemological gap that existed between both the subject and object. The only pint all literary scholars actually agree with is that vernacular style used by Mark Twain is able to bring together both realism and humanism. Mark Twain’s style is predominately focused around the issue of conveying objective reality itself. Additionally, the writer goes so far as to convey his own experience of reality. This technique of writing has been already confirmed by Smith (19). His unique style of writing is able to accomplish many important life goals. However, the main achievement of Mark Twain’s style is its capacity to convey the objective reality. The objective reality that is so skillfully used in all works of Mark Twain often brings the reader face-to-face with objective reality. Jeffrey Duncan, the author of the article â€Å"The empirical and the ideal in Mark Twain† presents the famous writer as a kind of impressionist. Instead of conveying an original experience, Mark Twain decides to connect his original experience with his humor (Duncan 207). Mark Twain’s words are direct path to the real life experience. Moreover, the humor is an inseparable part of all his works. The empirical truth he tells is not conveyed just for its own sake, but for the humoristic effect. As it was discussed above, Huckleberry Finn is the representation of the vernacular style the writer employs to present the problem more sharply. To understand Mark Twain’s style of writing better, let’s take a closer look at one of his novels which is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It is one of the most well-known books of his time. The book by Mark Twain is an example of literary greatness that helped people to change their views on some important issues of those times. The author is a representative of Regionalism as his novel like his many works are written using simple language ordinary people spoke with all the collocations, variations and accents of the South. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is the representation of one of the complex and progressive writings of the time when slavery was a controversy and the first issue of American Society of that time. Jim’s character is the representation of all the enslaved blacks of that time and according to the morality and laws of American society he is inferior to Huck, who is representative of white free population of America. Slavery is one of the central issues that are discussed in the book. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn depicts the way in which African Americans were perceived by the outside world. The book itself is often associated with some anger and frustration that was expressed by the author in reference to the black people. At the beginning of the story, the gap between Huck and slave Jim is enormously deep, which Huck has enough power of mind to analyze the existing stereotypes in his society and their wrongness of thinking concerning blacks: â€Å"I knowed he was white inside† (Twain 351). In my opinion the core of the problem is Mark Twain’s depiction of Jim, the black American and the protagonist of the novel. In fact, Huck’s words are negatively perceived by the contemporary critiques, who often regard the book as racist and demeaning in its nature. However, Twain’s approach to slavery issue is motivated by many reasons one of which is stereotypes or as Schmidt put it â€Å"whites’ views of rebellious slaves or postwar freemen arrogantly claiming their rights† (449). I would go so far as to say that Mark Twain showed a real attitude of the white population of the South to the black people. The same thing was accentuated with the analysis of Huck’s character that shows the author’s specific approach to black people. Huck’s approach was typical for a narrow-minded white person who was seeing African Americans as a lower race. Loyalty to Jim can be described as very shaky. It means that everything depends on the situation into which a person is placed. Also Huck cared for Jim who had a strange approach to the reality and the things that took place in the American society. However, in general, Huck was aware of the ways in which he can show his loyalty to the other people. He cared for Jim realizing that Jim is black, thus needed the â€Å"other†, dehumanized approach to his personality. However, Huck really liked this simple man and he could even go to hell, but set Jim free: â€Å"All right, then, I’ll GO to hell† (Twain 417). However, according to Schmidt this decision is ill-conceived. Further more, the author points out that protagonist’s intentions are rather â€Å"illusion that Huck’s moral choice is absolute and self-determined† (Schmidt 455). During the post-Civil War African Americans were still treated as â€Å"slaves† in American society. The release of Jim Crow laws gave many important advantages to black Americans. The review of the current laws shows that the major part of African Americans was freed by Jim Crow law. As for white people, they did not change their attitude to black Americans, and continued to see them as heartless and soulless creatures. Also, there was a tendency to picture blacks as monsters who were deprived of human feelings. Under the circumstances like these African Americans were negatively perceived by the general public, and were even feared by the American society. Also, the release of Jim Crow laws widened the gap between the whites and blacks. The analysis of the book indicates that the society of those times was actually adding problems instead of searching for the solution of these problems. The main peculiarity of the book is the dubious approach to the African American issues. As Huck has actually indicated, African Americans were more than just animals. The above mentioned words indicate on the fact hat Jim’s case was approached from the white man’s perspective. Huck analyses the situation in the following way: â€Å"I tell you gentlemen, a nigger like that is worth a thousand dollar – and kind treatment, too† (Twain 364). The situation itself has a deep meaning. Though disgraceful at the first glance, Huck’s approach to Black issue can be described as rather positive. The novel was written a few years after the slavery had been abolished between 1876 and 1883, whereas the events of the story take place before 1865. Thus Mark Twain was influenced by the changes which followed the Thirteenth Amendment and while writing the story was reflecting on the events of his past. Therefore, the novel has to be read and analyzed in the historical and social context. The views of the author concerning blacks and slavery are the combination of his childhood memories and the conscious rejection of slavery of writer’s adulthood. The time period between the abolishment and the time the story was written is relatively short, therefore actual social changes were slight, as the majority of the plantation owners of the South were strongly against the abolishment trying to prevent freeing slaves or their free workforce. Mark Twain was a progressive man, who knew that all people are equal despite their skin color or race. Therefore, friendship between a white boy Huck and black slave Jim is natural and obvious for the adventures events of the story. The two friends share everything what happens on their way down the Mississippi river and really enjoy each other’s company. To conclude, Mark Twain’s unique style of writing, his realism and very insightful sense of humor of his works is the undeniable evidence of the writer’s talent and hard work. His works have been fascinating literature for more than a century and will continue to be enjoyed by the readers of many future generations. Works Cited Benesch, Klaus & Schmidt, Kerstin (ed. ). Space in America: Theory, History, Culture. Rodopi: Amsterdam, 2005. Bridgeman, J. The Colloquial Style in America. New York: Ox- ford Univ. Press, 1966, p. 79. Duncan Jeffrey L. â€Å"The Empirical and the Ideal in Mark Twain†, PMLA, Vol. 95, No. 2 (Mar. , 1980), pp. 201-212. Smith, Henry Nash. Mark Twain: The Development of a Writer, xii,. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1962. Kaplan, Justin Mr. Clemens and Mark Twain: A Biography (New York: Simon, 1966), p. 197. Price, Angel. â€Å"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County†. Southwestern Humor and Mark Twain. n. d. Web. 25 Jan. 2010. Schmidt, Peter (ed. ). â€Å"Seven Recent Commentaries on Mark Twain†. Studies in the Novel. 34 (2002): 448-460. Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn with Connections. New York: Henry Holt & Company, 2004. Mark Twain Essay ?America: the land of the free and the home of the brave. When people think of America, they either think of fat Whites eating McDonalds or Yanks who love to invade other countries for oil. What people rarely think of when thinking of America, is the great writers that the country has produced. Throughout this year, I have read many great works written by many American writers. Over the course of America’s history, the nation has produced many great novelists. From Benjamin Franklin during the American Revolution era, to F. Scott Fitzgerald during the Roaring Twenties, many great American writers have written wonderful books and poems. When people from other countries think of great writers, they only think about Shakespeare or Homer, who aren’t even American writers. They rarely think about Henry David Thoreau or Ernest Hemmingway because they aren’t well known in foreign countries. These writers are famously known in America but one common question that people ask is, â€Å"Which American author is the greatest? †In my opinion, out of all the American writers, Mark Twain is the greatest and most influential author because of his humor and wonderful novels. Samuel Langhorne Clemens was born on November 30, 1835, nearly thirty years before he took the name Mark Twain, in Florida, Missouri. It is located some 130 miles north-west of St. Louis, and 30 miles away from the Mississippi River. His father, John Marshal Clemens, was from Virginia and was a failed country farmer and lawyer. His mother, Jane Clemens, met his father in Missouri and married him in 1823. His parents had seven children but only Twain, who was the sixth child, and three other siblings survived childhood. His surviving siblings were Orion, Henry, and Pamela Clemens. When Twain was four, his family moved to Hannibal, Missouri, a port town on the Mississippi River that inspired the town of St. Petersburg in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Missouri was still a slave state at the time which caused Twain to become familiar with the institution of slavery. He later explored this theme in his writings. As a child, â€Å"Young Twain reveled in life along the Mississippi, a river busy with steamboat activity and he often traveled in makeshift rafts or cavorted in various swimming holes† (â€Å"Mark Twain Biography† par 4). When Twain was eleven years old, his father died and Twain was forced to cease formal schooling and had to help support his family. He came to work for a newspaper called the â€Å"Hannibal Journal,† a newspaper owned by his brother Orion. With no formal education like many other Americans at the time, he got his education in print shops and newspapers. When he turned eighteen, he left Hannibal for New York and worked as a printer. Twain eventually left New York in order to travel to New Orleans down the Mississippi in a steamboat piloted by Horace E. Bixby, who inspired Twain to become a steamboat captain himself. After being rewarded with his steamboat pilot license, Twain received his pen name, Mark Twain, from â€Å"mark twain,† meaning the river is measured at two fathoms. While Twain was training for his pilot’s license, his younger brother, Henry was killed when the steamboat he was working on exploded. Twain, having foreseen this in a dream one month earlier, joined the â€Å"Society for Psychical Research. † Twain continued working on the Mississippi until 1861 when the American Civil War broke out and river was curtailed or blocked off in order to separate the Confederate States in half. At the start of the war, Twain volunteered briefly in a Confederate local unit before the company was disbanded by Twain and his friends two weeks after joining. In 1861, Twain joined Orion and together, the two brothers traveled west across the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains, visiting a Mormon community in Salt Lake City. Their journey ended in the silver-mining town of Virginia City, Nevada where Twain became an unsuccessful miner. He eventually worked at the â€Å"Territorial Enterprise,† a newspaper in Virginia City. His experiences here gave him material for his 1965 novel, â€Å"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. † Twain then moved to San Francisco, California in 1864 where he was still a journalist and met writers such as Bret Harte and Artemus Ward. His first success was his tall tale â€Å"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County† which brought him national attention. In 1867, Twain toured Europe and the Middle East where he met his future brother-in-law, Charles Langdon. Langdon showed Twain a picture of his sister, Olivia Langdon, in whom Twain immediately claimed to have â€Å"fallen in love at first sight†. Twain eventually married Olivia in Elmira, New York. She came from a â€Å"wealth but liberal family,† and through her he met abolitionists, socialists, and activists for women’s rights such as Frederick Douglas and Harriet Beecher Stowe. The couple moved to Buffalo, New York where they had four children; Langdon, Susy, Clara, and Jean. Twain moved his family to Hartford, Connecticut in 1973 where he eventually wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), The Prince and the Pauper (1881), Life on the Mississippi (1883), and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885). Throughout the later years of Twain’s life, he passed through a period of deep depression largely based on the Death of his daughter Susy in 1896 of meningitis, Olivia’s death in 1904, and Jean’s death on December 24, 1909. In 1909, Twain was quoted saying, â€Å"I came in with Halley’s Comet in 1835. It is coming again next year, and I expect to go out with it. It will be the greatest disappointment of my life if I don’t go out with Halley’s Comet. The Almighty has said, no doubt: ‘Now here are these two unaccountable freaks; they came in together, they must go out together† (Mark Twain Biography par 17). Twains prediction was strangely accurate, he died of a heart attack on April 21, 1910, in Redding Connecticut, one day after Haley’s comet made its closest approach to Earth. Twain is buried in his wife’s family plot at Woodlawn Cemetery in Elmira, New York. Mark Twain’s historical background influenced his perspective by making him have a negative view on society slavery. Twain grew up during America’s period of slavery and he witnessed first-hand how cruel people could be to minorities and how little Whites cared for them. An example of this is when Huck says Now I struck an idea, and fetched it out: â€Å"It warn’t the grounding –that didn’t keep us back but a little. We blowed out a cylinderhead. † â€Å"Good gracious! anybody hurt? † â€Å"No’m. Killed a nigger† (Twain 315). These few lines of dialogue say all there is to say about how blacks are viewed at that time by the Whites: that they are â€Å"nobody†, less than human, with lives that are of little or no value to anyone. Twain also felt that the difference between the rich and the poor is unfair because the rich only think about themselves leaving the poor to live their own miserable lives. During Twain’s time, America was practically owned by a hand few of men such as John D. Rockefeller and George Pullman, both wealthy business men who made their money off of cheating their workers by giving them low pay. All the people cared about was making money no matter how they make it. For example, Huck’s father said in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, â€Å"I’ve been in town two days, and O hain’t heard nothing but about you bein’ rich. I heard about it away down the river, too. That’s why I come. You git me that money-tomorrow-I want it,†(Twain 333). Pap is only interested in Huck’s money and was willing to beat Huck, his own son, for the money until he passes out. Once Pap gets the money, he just uses it to go buy alcohol. In these lines, Twain is satirizing how the rich are willing to take money from the poor then use the money on useless possessions. Major social issues of Twain’s time were the issue of slavery and gap between the lower class and the higher class. Twain believed that the Whites were foolish for thinking themselves better then every other race, â€Å"There are many humorous things in this world, among them, the white man’s notion that he is less savage than the other savages† (Mark Twain Biography par 73). This quote provides good historical context in that it shows us how Twain feels about Whites being racist to minorities. He witnessed racism first-hand while growing up in the south. The Whites view other races as savages when in reality, the Whites are the true savages for enslaving a race of people just because they have a different skin color. Mark Twain’s works makes him a realist and a regionalist. Regionalism is when an author implements words and ideas into their work in order to make it sound like the region of the country the story takes place. Realism is when an author writes about life as it currently is. Most of Twain’s works take place in the south and he gives his characters dialogue to match the region in which they came. This is shown when Huck says, â€Å"How is servants treated in England? Do they treat ’em better ‘n we treat our niggers? No! A servant ain’t nobody there. They treat them worse than dogs,†(Twain 345). In these lines, we see Twain using dialogue to show how southerners talk during the time showing his regionalism. These lines are also realist in that they talk about social issues during the time which in this case is slavery and the serf system in England. Mark Twain wrote many great works when he was alive. From the tall tale of the Jumping Frog of Calaveras County to the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain has managed to capture the attention of readers across the country with his amazing works. Out of all of the novels that Twain has written, I would say that there are three that have made the largest impact in America. The first important text that Mark Twain wrote is The Prince and the Pauper. In this work, Twain attempts to inform us about the differences between the upper class and the lower class. The main conflict of the story is about Tom Canty and Prince Edward IV switching roles so that Tom is the prince and the Prince becomes Tom who lives in poverty and their attempts of switching back to their normal lives. The book takes place in England and main plot is about two identical boys , one a prince and one a pauper, switching lives so they can see how the other lives. A few complications are when the real prince gets kicked out of the castle, Tom suddenly becoming King after the previous king dies when Prince Edward was supposed to be king, Prince Edward trying to get back to the castle, Tom’s abusive father beating Tom and Edward, Edward getting arrested, and The Great Seal of England goes missing. The climax of the story is when everybody finds out that Tom is really a pauper and that Edward is the true King. The story resolves with Tom becoming the official ward of the new king of England, King Edward and getting to live in the castle. The most important quote of the novel is said when Edward discovers how bad his citizens live, â€Å"When I am king, they shall not have bread and shelter only, but also teachings out of books; for a full belly is little worth where the mind is starved . . . â€Å"(Twain 154). Edward says these lines because he wants to help out his citizens after discovering how poorly they live. In these lines, Twain is satirizing the wide gap between the rich and the poor in the U. S. Most rich people in the U. S. at the time had no idea that the people living in poverty had terrible living conditions. Twain is also saying that instead of the government just giving us shelter and food, it should also give us education. This text is an important work of Twain’s because it shows the wide gap between the rich and the poor. It is a realist work of literature because it talks about social issues of the time. This text is still relevant today in that there is still a wide gap between the rich and the poor in the U. S. and that the government doesn’t do enough for education because of all the budget cuts and laying off of teachers. The next important text by Mark Twain is The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. In this novel, Twain attempts to entertain us about a boy’s life during the early 1800’s. He also informs us about racism towards Indians during this time. The book is about the childhood adventures of Tom Sawyer. The book takes place the fictional town of St. Louis and the main conflict is Tom trying to find treasure Injun Joe hid while avoiding Joe at the same time. A few complications are when Tom and Becky are lost in the cave, Huck was running from Injun Joe, and Tom trying to avoid Joe in the caves. The climax of the story is when Tom discovers that Injun Joe was in the cave with Tom and Becky while they were lost. The story resolves with Tom and Becky being found, Tom and Huck finding Injun Joe’s treasure, and Injun Joe discovered dead. This text is an important work of Twain’s because it is known as one of the greatest American novels alongside The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. This book lead to Huck Finn being written because of its success. The novel is a regionalist work of literature because it uses dialogue from Mississippi. This book shows racism towards Indians when Twain rights, †[They] confessed that they had had almost as satisfactory a time at the funeral as they could have had at the hanging† (Twain 294). In these lines, we see Twain satirizing how a bunch of white people from around the county went see the funeral of an Indian that was a murderer and they treated it like it was a show. This reveals how truly racist the White were if they were willing to travel far to treat the funeral of an Indian as entertainment. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is still relevant today because of the fact that the social issues, such as racism towards minorities, that Twain wrote about still exist today. The book is also still relevant today because people talk about it being the prequel to the greatest American novel of all time: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The last important text by Mark Twain is no doubt The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn because it is considered the greatest American novel written and the most controversial American novel because of the time it uses the word â€Å"nigger. † In this novel, Twain is trying to inform us about racism during the early 1800s. The book is about Huckleberry Finn and Jim, an escaped slave, trying to escape from the people who try and own them. The book takes place in Mississippi and the main conflict is Huck trying to help Jim escape slavery. A few complications are when the Duke and the King tag along with Huck and Finn, Huck’s dad trying to take Huck’s money, Huck and Jim getting separated, and Jim getting recaptured with Huck trying to save him. The climax of the story is when Huck pretends he is Tom Sawyer, and Tom pretends that he is Sid Sawyer,  Tom’s brother. The story resolves with Jim getting his freedom and Huck being finally free from his father after learning that Pap is dead. This text is an important work of Twain’s because it is widely considered to be the greatest American novel ever written. It correctly explains the main social issue of that time and keeps a reader reading until the very end. The most important quote of this book is when Huck decides not to write a letter to Jim’s owners explaining where Jim is and says, â€Å"All right then, I’ll go to hell (Twain 2410). Huck says these lines when Jim gets captured and he has to contemplate whether to tell his owner or help Jim and go to hell. Huck decides to rip and the letter and help Jim even if it means going to Hell. He knows that he is going against the teachings of the church, the teachings of his elders, basically going against the full of society that he has been immersed in. The statement is heartfelt, as Huck sees his betrayal to hold serious consequences. This quote also reflects Twain’s belief in that you should help other people no matter the consequences. This book is still relevant today because the social issues brought up in this book are still around today. Mark Twain is still relevant today in many ways. There are schools, parks, and streets named after him. Recently, there was an article saying that the city of Elmira will put up signs explaining about Twains life. The article says,† A project is under way in Elmira to place signs at three sites to provide historical background and explain their significance in the life of Mark Twain. † In these lines, we still see that Mark Twain is still important today even 100 years after his death. These signs will tell the new generation of people who Mark Twain is and hopefully get them interested enough about him in order to read his novels. I think that Mark Twain is the greatest American writer because of the books that he wrote and the time period that he wrote them. He lived during the time of slavery and wrote his books based on denouncing slavery and racism. The most important thing I learned about Mark Twain is that he was one of the few non-racist Whites in America during that time. He was willing to help minorities which is something most people didn’t do, â€Å"To be good is noble; but to show others how to be good is nobler and no trouble† (Mark Twain Biography par 16). This quote gives us the message that we should help other people in order to truly be a good person. Mark Twain lived by this rule and wrote his books based on it. The main reason why I think Twain is still important today is that he was the father of American literature. His two greatest books, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, are considered by many as the greatest American novels ever written. His books can relate to people who read them because they can find similarities between themselves and Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. The main reason why I think that Mark Twain is the greatest American writer is because his works are about satirizing the common belief at the time that the White man is better than the Black man and any other minorities. His works reflect his belief that minorities should be treated equally. In order for one to be great, one must have the will to help others that aren’t as fortunate as them and treat them the way you want yourself to be treated. Works Cited Finger, Ray. Signs Will Tell Mark Twain’s Story in Elmira. The Star Gazette. 7 May 2013 Web. 1 June 2013 http://www. stargazette. com/apps/pbcs. dll/article? AID=/20130507/NEWS01/305070051/1113/ Twain, Mark. Life on the Mississippi. New York: New American Library. 1961 Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. New York: New American Library. 1979 Twain, Mark. The Prince and the Pauper. New York: New American Library 1979 Mark Twain Biography. The New York Times. Web. 6 June 2013 http://people. brandeis. edu/~teuber/twainbio. html