American Literature

An In-Depth Analysis of Mark Twain and His Work

1.     The main character of Mark Twains book entitled A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthurs Court is Hank Morgan, a gunsmith from Connecticut who got hit in the crowbar and was knocked down during a fight and when he woke up, he found himself being taken to Camelot in the year of King Arthurs time. Hanks name was not revealed at once in the story and Twain referred to him as the Yankee until nearly the end of the story. Hank developed a relationship with a feisty lady from Arthurs kingdom named Alisande, or Sandy as Hank nicknamed her. Hank symbolizes the idealism of the contemporary time, modernization, justice, and practical thinking. Sandys character, on the other hand, represents the society of the old times. The relationship of Sandy and Hank epitomize the relationship of the more contemporary times with the behavior and mindset of the old age. Because of their relationship, Sandy improves by learning to adopt the way Hank thinks. Their relationship represents the beauty and possibility of reconciliation despite having opposite opinions and principle. The marriage of Hank and Sandy also represent that love is sufficient enough to unite two people who, in reality, come from different place and time.

Hank earned his title as the Boss when he made people believe that he is a powerful magician (Twain 56). The truth is his magic trick of making the day dark was due to an eclipse that he knew was coming. And so he relied in his faith on modern knowledge and in the wonders of Science to save himself.  The term the Boss symbolizes the modern-day idealism and practicality that dominates todays culture and way of life especially in powerful, democratic countries such as America.  He was almost successful too, but the different events that happened between him in the whole story also proved how modernization and technology could not fully help and change the narrow-mindedness of the old time. There is a big chance that whatever modern technology imparts could lead eventually to unbearable destruction. And this is exactly what happened in the story.

2.     The Yankee and the Boss are the nicknames or titles given to Hank Morgan, the central character of the story. The manuscript that Twain was reading is the life story written by Hank himself. In the story, he was narrating how he found himself in a different time and world, how he continued to live his life, how he achieved survival, and how he set out a mission to improve the sixth century England only to still find it tumbling down in the end. Hanks character can somewhat be compared to the film Bruce Almighty because Hank was given immense power in the kingdom when he was able to cunningly make the people believe that he is a powerful magician. Both Bruce and Hank reached d the very essence of their characters when they realized just how much influence they have to change the situation of the people around them. Both characters represent the reality of being big bosses in their society and how much they could change the world with their authority. Although Hank did not really have divine superpowers like Bruce had in the movie, the technological knowledge and practical wisdom that Hank had helped him become powerful with the people. And yet in the end, when the power and influence are taken back from them already, they also realized that what they can help to the world is still limited and that they should let the world have its own chance of improving itself.

    Demoiselle Alisande La Carteloise is the love interest of Hank in the novel. Sandy, as she is fondly called by the Boss, is a clever, strong-willed, and feisty woman. She is very vocal of her opinions that are shaped by the way of living in her time and this often leads to long discussions with Hank who has more practical and progressive way of thinking. But despite having opposite opinions, Hank grew to admire and eventually love Sandy. Later in the story, the two got married and even had a child. And even when they got separated, it had already been Hanks habit to write to Sandy everyday and Hank felt the communication flowing between them even when they are not seeing each other anymore (Twain 411).  In modern setting, her character can be compared to the character of the Yvaine in the movie Stardust. Both are Yvaine and Sandy are feisty and strong-willed females who are greatly influenced and changed by the man they travelled with. Sandy is very different from Hank in behaviour and belief, just like the character of Yvaine to Tristan in the movie. These two sets of lovers are unique because their relationships and love for the other had helped the other find more meaning in their existence.

    Puss was only mentioned very briefly in the novel. She is the girlfriend of Hank in his real world and her name was only mentioned when Sandy and Hank set out to travel alone and together and Hank felt it might be scandalous to look at because he had a girlfriend (Twain 83). Her character is only significant because it provides more emphasis on the love story of Hank and Sandy. Puss is very much alike the character of Jessica Alba in the recent movie Valentines Day. Their characters are given special mention in order to highlight what was lacking, missing, or wrong in their relationship with their men that Hank in the novel and Reed in the movie found in their new partners.

    The character of Merlin is negatively portrayed in Twains novel. In A Connecticut Yankee, Merlin was a foolish and boastful magician who liked to bully and continually deceives the people of Arthurs kingdom. He tried to impose death to Hank since the beginning of the story but because of the eclipse that coincided with the execution day, Merlin lost his status as a powerful magician to Hank. Towards the end of the story, Merlin placed Hank in sleeping spell that allowed him to survive centuries and reach to the time when Hank was to meet the author in the introduction of the story. Merlins character is very much alike the character of Davy Jones in the movie Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Mans Chest. Merlins conflicting anger and fear of Hank can be compared to the revengeful feeling that Davy Jones harbour against Jack Sparrow in the film.

    Morgan Le Fay can be described like the character of Velma Kelly in the film Chicago. She is a beautiful but vicious sister of Arthur who also ruled her own kingdom. Both Velma and Morgans character are essentially recognized for being dangerously charming and their beauty connotes secrets of cruelties and cunningness. Hank met Le Fay when he set out in journey with Sandy. In their meeting, Hank saw how ugly the situation in Le Fays kingdom was and that people have greatly suffered in her autocratic rule. Hanks reputation as a powerful magician helped him influence Le Fay to change her cruel ruling and free the prisoners who are locked up in her castle.

3.    Mark Twain is considered one of the most notable and influential American novelist of all time. Aside from A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthurs Court, he wrote a lot of other successful novels in his lifetime, including the much loved novels of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Twains stories are well-received because of their humorous and yet critical attack on the socially related issues of his time. It can be observed that over the years, there are changes in the tone and perspective that Twain adopts when writing. These changes are influenced by the different events happening in his life and around him. Twains writings have become more serious and somewhat pessimistic as the years pass and this may be due to the financial hardships his family went through and the deaths of his wife and their two daughters. But despite all the tragedies in his life, Twain was able to maintain the charm, satirical humor, and unique appeal of his works and the apparent transitions of his writings probably helped become more mature and still well admired by the world.

    In his works, Twain successfully merges deep and critical insights on how the society is run with an imaginative storyline. Some of his works that particularly attacks injustice in society based on class standings are Huckleberry Finn and A Connecticut Yankee. These stories have common themes because they attack the setting of the time they were written. Hucks series of adventure depicts the profound racism taking place in America during the 18th century while A Connecticut Yankee, considered as a very ambitious book, criticized the life of England in the sixth century and highlights both the achievements and failures of the inventions of modern time. The character of Huckleberry Finn is one of the most memorable fictional characters in the world. Huck represents an intelligent youth clothed in simplicity and yet tempered by the struggles he faced in his society. On the other hand, the Yankee from Connecticut represents a hopeful and idealistic person who wanted to help change the world he accidentally found himself in by imposing social and political reform through the assistance of modern technology, only to fail also in the end.

4.     There may be a lot of good American writers to choose from, but I believe that Mark Twain indeed deserves the title of the greatest American writer. His successful and socially relevant novels have all been important contributions not only to literature but to all sectors of life as well. Twain was able to combine humor and critical thinking in his works, making them good reading materials not only in the academic setting but also as leisure readings. Twains works are highly intellectual and yet they are not boring or hard to read. This is a very rare quality of classics. Twains works appeal to all, regardless of age, gender, or social status. Also, je is an author with a goal and he achieves to send out important messages through his unique and lovable array of characters that breathe to life through his works. Twains writings are in touch with reality without lacking in imaginative concept.

    Twain had been a very influential writer and his works are recognized in all parts of the globe. The success of his novels can be attributed to the amazing way they were written because they are able to transcend important messages to their readers without leaving the pages of the book. Twain had contributed significantly to the social insights and political reformations dominating the world today through his inspiring quotations and significant works. For me, he remains to be Americas best novelist because his thoughts and works range different topics and social issues and this is possibly be due to fact that Twain has traveled and experienced a lot in his lifetime. He effectively conveys to his readers realities that importantly relevant to the society and potentially capable of changing the world.