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Eastern vs western literature
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Recommended: Eastern vs western literature
The main techniques that the author Mark Twain uses to show you a little of what it is like to be in the Old West during the Gold Rush is contrasting East with West with the use of the characters and the use of language and plot are distinctly good examples of realism and regionalism. In late 19th century American society/culture, the East was known for being civilized, cultured, and advanced while the West was seen as less educated and refined and naive or easily duped. Mark Twain uses these bias/stereotypes in his characters. Simon Wheeler, a American Western storyteller, is a old uneducated man who tell tall tales in a monotone with no storytelling techniques and vernacular language and his use of vernacular language supports the stereotype
The setting of the essay is Los Angeles in the 1800’s during the Wild West era, and the protagonist of the story is the brave Don Antonio. One example of LA’s Wild West portrayal is that LA has “soft, rolling, treeless hills and valleys, between which the Los Angeles River now takes its shilly-shallying course seaward, were forest slopes and meadows, with lakes great and small. This abundance of trees, with shining waters playing among them, added to the limitless bloom of the plains and the splendor of the snow-topped mountains, must have made the whole region indeed a paradise” (Jackson 2). In the 1800’s, LA is not the same developed city as today. LA is an undeveloped land with impressive scenery that provides Wild West imagery. One characteristic of the Wild West is the sheer commotion and imagery of this is provided on “the first breaking out of hostilities between California and the United States, Don Antonio took command of a company of Los Angeles volunteers to repel the intruders” (15). This sheer commotion is one of methods of Wild West imagery Jackson
Guttmann, Allen. “Mark Twain’s Connecticut Yankee: Affirmation of the Vernacular Tradition?” in Critics on Mark Twain, pp.103-107. Edited by David B. Kesterson. Coral Gables: University of Miami Press, 1973.
The only impulses that Twain intends to stir are a person’s moral compass in an attempt to rid society of their negative outlook toward African Americans. In the Explanatory of the novel, Twain tells the readers that “several different ‘dialects are used,’ which have been written ‘painstakingly,’ based on his own ‘personal familiarity with these several forms of speech’” (Adventures 3). Twain grew up in a setting similar to that of the
Mark Twain’s use of humor in the story mocks and shines light on the issues of our society’s political system from back then that continue
Throughout the book it is obvious that there are characteristics that Mark Twain either detests and despises, or respects and values them. Twain quite obviously is making fun of the undesirable characteristics such as the natural curiosity of people and also the greed for money. Although there are not many values that he respects, there is one that is shown in this book, friendship.
Every serious Twain scholar knows of Twain’s reputation as a burlesque humorist/satirist as well as his anti-imperialist and anti-religious tendencies. The scholar must be careful when labeling or categorizing Twain’s work because of his frequent use of sarcasm but Twain definitely liked blacks and abhorred slavery. His treatment of Natives and the Chinese was questionable when looked at apart from his work as a whole, but he slammed the white race more mercilessly than he ever condemned any other race. Sadly, the cynical and sarcastic Mark Twain can never be fully understood because only he knew what thoughts he was trying to convey.
Miller makes clear the impact of wilderness on early American life. While the Old World mentality presented wilderness as mysterious and filled with demons, the new American nation viewed it differently. Rather than possessing a sense of fear, their belief in the divine mission to spread democracy and civilization inspired them to journey west. Accordingly, they did so with a sense of excitement and a thirst for discovery. As such, I wholeheartedly agree with Miller’s view that the early romantic images of the American landscape were expressions of a new cultural nationalism. According to Miller, these early countrymen viewed the new nation as “...a place apart, an unpeopled wilderness where history, born in nature rather than in corrupt institutions,
What do you think of when you hear the term “Gold Rush”? The 1849 gold rush in California?
Twain’s novel was greatly influenced by the times and criticizes the imperfections in society. These errors in society were subjective to the current events during the Gilded Age. The following show the effects of the current times that influenced the context of the novel. One of America’s leading historians of America in the west, Patricia N. Limerick well elaborates on what happened in the Gilded Age. The following quote fro...
California, the place to turn cant’s into cans and dreams into plans. The same situation and scenarios apply to today and even over one hundred and sixty five years ago. Then and now are not so different, people are thriving or failing from the land of plenty, supplying themselves with knowledge, wealth, or skill to either spread their wings and take flight or crash and burn. Each state in the United States of America has a correlating nickname to either why it’s famous or an explanation of its history. California’s state name is The Golden State, and going all the way back to 1849 is why this was such an influential time for California and all of America. This is the period of the Gold Rush. Reasons why this event was so impeccable, to the development of California, are the years leading up to the discovery, the first findings, the journey, and so much more.
Twain describes local customs and the ways that the characters behave to create a more realistic setting for the story. In the story the characters engage in behavior or activities that would be unusual for a regular person to do. For example, the narrator says:
The California Gold Rush in 1849 was the catalyst event for the state that earned them a spot in the U.S. union in 1850. This was not the first gold rush in North America; however, it was one of the most important gold rush events. The story of how the gold was discovered and the stories of the 49ers are well known. Men leaving their families in the East and heading West in hopes of striking it rich are the stories that most of us heard about when we learn about the California Gold Rush. Professors and scholars over the last two decades from various fields of study have taken a deeper look into the Gold Rush phenomena. When California joined the Union in 1850 it helped the U.S. expand westward just as most Americans had intended to do. The event of the Gold Rush can be viewed as important because it led to a national railroad. It also provided the correct circumstances for successful entrepreneurship, capitalism, and the development modern industrialization. The event also had a major influence on agriculture, economics, and politics.
The story of the American West is still being told today even though most of historic events of the Wild West happened over more than a century ago. In movies, novels, television, and more ways stories of the old west are still being retold, reenacted, and replayed to relive the events of the once so wild and untamed land of the west that so many now fantasize about. After reading about the old west and watching early westerns it is amazing how much Hollywood still glorifies the history and myth of the old west. It may not be directly obvious to every one, but if you look closely there is always a hint of the Western mentality such as honor, justice, romance, drama, and violence. The most interesting thing about the Old West is the fact that history and myth have a very close relationship together in telling the story of the West.
Mark Twain, who is a realistic fiction writer, incorporates satire and humor in his writing, including Archetypal elements to modify how the reader interprets the story. He uses many archetypal characters like Huck and Jim who both can be argued as the heroes. They both have good intentions and help others. Mark Twain portrays Jim as a deeply caring and loyal friend. Jim becomes a father figure to Huck, helping him realize the human face of slavery. Twain Portrays Huck as a young and naive boy who has been under the wrong influence for a long time. Another archetypal element that Mark Twain uses is Jims Quest for freedom. This was a quest for most all African Americans, to run away north so you could be free. But Jim was one of the few who was brave enough to do so; that’s he can be classified as the hero in the story. But Jim’s life is not too bad compared to historical records about the lives of slaves. Even though he had to struggle for his freedom, he didn’t have any good reason to leave. His life contested of helping round and not doing hard enduring work like some of the other slaves. The way Jim’s life is portrayed in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Mark Twain criticizes the life of African Americans at the time.
"I have no race prejudices, and I think I have no color prejudices or caste prejudices nor creed prejudices. Indeed I know it. I can stand any society. All that I care to know is that a man is a human being--that is enough for me; he can 't be any worse," (Internet History Sourcebooks). Twain commented on prejudices- not just about African Americans- which further the point that a part of Twain made up a lot of Huck Finn as a character. Mark Twain also left the Civil War "after his militia disbanded and moved to Nevada. There he worked as a miner. "Roughing It" describes Twain 's journey out West with his brother Orion," (Official). Twain had experience away from civilization and out West where Huck wanted to be. In general Mark Twain seems to be angry towards mankind and sees society as Huck