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Getting to know mark twain and huck finn. Who is Mark Twain?. 1835-1910. Samuel Langhorn Clemens (Mark Twain was his pen name) was born in Missouri and grew up in a small town near the Mississippi. At 18 he moved east and worked as a printer in New York, Washington, and Philadelphia.
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Who is Mark Twain? 1835-1910
Samuel Langhorn Clemens (Mark Twain was his pen name) was born in Missouri and grew up in a small town near the Mississippi.
At 18 he moved east and worked as a printer in New York, Washington, and Philadelphia.
He became a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi (he got his pen name from this experience –Mark Twain means “twelve feet of water”)
His books and stories reflect his life on the Mississippi and the political struggles he saw during his life.
What makes Mark Twain qualified to tell this story? Twain was simply writing about the world around him, the things he saw.
What makes Mark Twain qualified to tell this story? • Huck Finn is ranked number five on the American Library Association’s list of Most Frequently Challenged books: • Addresses issues that are hard to talk about: 1. Racism 2. Slavery 3. “N” word
What is Censorship? • to examine in order to suppress or delete anything considered objectionable • “We uphold the principles of intellectual freedom and resist all efforts to censor library resources.”—ALA Code of Ethics“
What is Censorship? • “They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”—Benjamin Franklin.
The novel is set in various locations along the Mississippi River (what is now known as the Mid-west) during the 1830’s or 1840’s .(see map)
This region was still a frontier during this time –only a few cities and towns along the river- only partially civilized.
Huck Finn Map • Huck Finn is set Pre-Civil War. Boarder towns would require paperwork for a slave to become free. If a slave were to run away, they would have to travel to a Northern city/state not bordered by a slave state.
Huck Finn Map Handout • Look at the handout of the map I gave you and mark the states “free” or “slave” using the next map. Huck Finn is set Pre-Civil War.
Pre-Civil War • Industrialization was in its early stages (steam technology- steamboats, railroads) • Slavery was abolished in Northern states, but the South still supported slavery at this time (racists beliefs were commonplace)
Literary Elements • Point of View -First-person narrator- Huck tells the story • Use of dialect –uses southern regional -Spelling is even unorthodox (sivilized) to suggest Huck’s brief exposure to formal education.
Tall tale- story featuring larger than life characters that perform superhuman feats • Satire- mocking or making fun of human characteristics and society as a whole
Symbolism- Mississippi River is a symbol of life and maturity • Imagery- descriptive passages of life on the raft
Foreshadowing- hint of things to come • Characterization- brings characters to life with dialect (each has a distinctive vocabulary) -notice Huck Finn’s growth
Lampoon- the literary form in which vices or follies are ridiculed (type of satire) • Themes: slavery and racism; individual and society; transformation and maturity • Irony –uses situational irony to show simple-mindedness of his characters
Realism- A literary manner that seeks to portray life as it really is lived.
-Usually focused on everyday middle or working class conditions and characters, often with reformist intentions (wanting to change society, or conditions for the character)
Themes to look for: • Society’s values and laws can be in conflict with higher moral values. • People must live outside of society to be truly free. • Gullible people are partially responsible for their own deception. • People tend to behave irrationally and even cruelly in large groups.
