Mark Twain's Later Huck and Tom Stories

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Mark Twain's Later Huck and Tom Stories THE UNDISCOVERED "TERRITORY": MARK TWAIN'S LATER HUCK AND TOM STORIES by HENRY CARR PHELPS B.A., The University of Toronto, 1972 M.A., The University of Calgary, 1974 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES (Department of English) We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA October 1982 (c) Henry Carr Phelps, 1982 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of LA The University of British Columbia 1956 Main Mall Vancouver, Canada V6T 1Y3 Date DE-6 (3/81) ABSTRACT This dissertation looks at all works of Mark Twain' s. concerning the boys Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, partic• ularly those written after the completion of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884). These include the two published narra• tives, Tom Sawyer Abroad (1893) and "Tom Sawyer, Detective" (1896), and five fragments unpublished in Twain's lifetime, but recently issued by the University of California Press in the volumes of the Mark Twain Papers Mark Twain's Hannibal, Huck &^ Tom (ed. Walter Blair) and Mark Twain' s Mysterious Stranger Manuscripts (ed. William M. Gibson). These five fragments are "Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer Among the Indians" (1884), "Tom Sawyer's Conspiracy" (1897-1899), "Doughface" (c. 1897), "Schoolhouse Hill" (1898), and "Tom Sawyer's Gang Plans a Naval Battle" (c. 1900). After completing Huckleberry Finn, Twain wrote or tried to write many more stories about Tom and Huck, continuing their adventures. Most of these were never finished, and the two that were completed and published are generally considered to be greatly inferior to the earlier novels about the boys. Despite their flaws, though, these later narratives do possess hitherto undetected significance and value. A major aspect of the later stories about the boys is Twain's deliberate and persistent attempt over a period of thirty years to have Tom Sawyer grow up from a thoughtless boy to a responsible adult. Twain's efforts to do this are visible in most of the later works, and the prominence of this attempted development demonstrates that Twain was vitally interested in the problems of maturity and becoming an adult. For him, childhood was not merely a nostalgic refuge from the problems and complexities of life, as scholars have tended to assume; rather, it was a time of often painful testing in preparation for the difficulties of adult life. In addition, the later Tom and Huck stories contain ele• ments that both parallel and supplement Twain's better known works from this time. The differences and similarities between the narratives about the boys and his other works help to en• hance our understanding of Twain's thinking on a number of subjects. Among these subjects are the Transcendent Figure, the "Matter of Hannibal," and the folly of romanticism. This dissertation, then, casts new light on hitherto obscure writings by Twain; it attempts to assess their value and illuminate aspects of Twain's thought that have not yet been the subject of close scrutiny. In particular, the willing• ness of Twain to grapple with issues of profound complexity is revealed in these works more clearly perhaps than anywhere else in his canon. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract ii Introduction 1 Chapter I: Critical Perceptions 11 Chapter II: History 39 Chapter III: The Theme of Maturity 91 Chapter IV: Other Themes 153 Conclusion 199 Bibliography 207 INTRODUCTION The long and persistent interest with which Mark Twain regarded his most famous characters, Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer, is a surprisingly little known and critically under• valued aspect of the author's career. Despite the vast amounts written about him, and particularly about his masterpiece, the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, it is not generally known that for virtually the entire span of Twain's life as a writer of fiction--from roughly 1870 to well into the 1900's--he created two novels, two1 novellas, a story, five lengthy unfinished narratives, at least two brief fragments, a play, and extensive notes, synopses, and outlines concerning the boys. This is a far greater amount, and written over a much longer period, than the material Twain wrote about two other characters who intrigued him, Colonel Sellers (of The Gilded Age [1873], "Colonel Sellers as a Scientist" [1884], and The American Claimant [1892]) and Simon Wheeler (of "The Celebrated Jumping Frog" [1867] and an unpublished novel and play, "Simon Wheeler, Detective" [1877- 1879]). The great mass of material and the number of years over which the boys continued to interest him indicate the strong hold that Huck and Tom had on Mark Twain's imagination. There are several significant aspects of these works that have not been recognized by the relatively few scholars who have noticed the various unpublished pieces. First, despite the com• position of these works over such a long period and in the varying 1 2 circumstances of Twain's life, they possess a surprising con• sistency and coherence as a unit. In fact, they might almost be considered a continuing saga of the two boys. Secondly, these stories—particularly the later ones—show Twain grappling seriously with a number of ideas and themes through approaches that often are unique to these works. Consideration of these Huck and Tom stories, therefore, illuminates characteristics of Twain's thought that are not revealed in the better known sources. The intention of this dissertation is to provide such a consideration. The form of the dissertation will be thus: Following the introduction will be a chapter focussing on previous criticism of the later Huck and Tom narratives, covering some of the prob• lems Twain scholars have encountered in dealing with these stories and attempting to correct several misconceptions and errors. Then I will discuss the history of the composition of the stories over more than thirty years of Twain's life. This will be followed by extensive commentary on the major themes and concepts of these works, including the theme of maturation, the workings of fate, the "Matter of Hannibal," the Transcendent Figure, and Twain's attack on romanticism. Included in this discussion will be relationships between these stories and other works by Twain from the same periods in his life. As I hope to demonstrate, the ideas explored in these stories provide their value not only for Twain scholars, but for general readers as well. 3 The material that will be covered in this dissertation in• cludes, first and foremost, all the surviving narratives about the boys written after Huckleberry Finn. They include the frag• ments "Huck and Tom among the Indians" (1884), "Doughface" (c. 1897), "Tom Sawyer's Conspiracy" (1897-99), "Schoolhouse Hill" (1898), "Tom Sawyer's Gang Plans a Naval Battle" (c. 1900), and a play based on The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, written 1884- 85. None of these works were published during Twain's life• time, and were not generally available to scholars until they were published in 1969 in volumes of the Mark Twain Papers issued by the University of California Press.^ As well, there are the two published narratives written by Twain in the 1890's, and now held for the most part in critical ill-repute, Tom Sawyer Abroad (1893) and "Tom Sawyer, Detective" 2 (1896). Attention will also be paid to a much earlier fragment, a tentative version of Tom Sawyer dating from the early 1870's, called the "Boy's Manuscript." This work was published by 3 Bernard DeVoto in Mark Twain at Work in 1942. These works cover a fascinating range of plot and theme, as a brief description of each one illustrates. The "Boy's Manuscript" is humorous and satirical, concerning the puppy-love affair between the hero (here called Billy Rogers) and a little girl. The work can be considered a draft of Tom Sawyer, for many of its scenes and dialogue reappear virtually unchanged in the later novel. Unlike the latter, the "Manuscript" is written in the first person, however. 4 "Huck and Tom among the Indians" is Twain's first attempt to write a sequel to Huckleberry Finn. Written soon after he finished that novel, the fragment is an account of the journey the two boys and Jim make out west into the Indian territory immediately after their return from the Phelps farm in Arkansas to St. Petersburg. A grim piece, the plot centres on the kid• napping of Jim and two daughters of a pioneer family by a band of bloodthirsty Indians. Huck, Tom and the fiance of the elder daughter are in pursuit when the fragment breaks off. Tom Sawyer Abroad is also an account of a journey, a voyage by the trio aboard a mysteriously powered balloon. Built by a half-crazed scientist who falls overboard shortly after the voyage begins, the balloon drifts eastward across the Atlantic and eventually to Egypt. There the narrative abruptly ends when the boys are ordered home by Aunt Polly. "Tom Sawyer, Detective" returns the boys (this time without Jim) to the Phelps farm in Arkansas, where Uncle Silas is arrested for the murder of the brother of a rich landowner, Brace Dunlap.
Recommended publications
  • Top Left-Hand Corner
    Department of English Amiable Humor and Dual Address in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Christoffer Molander Bachelor’s Degree Project Literature Spring Term, 2017 Supervisor: Giles Whiteley Abstract The humor of Mark Twain has long fascinated his readers. Critics such as Messent (2007), Budd (2005), Gerber (1988) and Camfield (2005) have all analyzed Mark Twain’s humor to reveal nuances and to help further the understanding of what makes Twain’s writing humorous. However, there is a distinct gap in the research so far conducted investigating Twain’s humor in relation to young readers, which this paper will begin to address. Twain’s novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (2007) poses a relevant subject for this research as Twain explicitly (in the preface to the novel) professes to write both for children and adults simultaneously. Writing in such a way can be categorized as either “double address” or “dual address”, understanding these terms according to the definitions of Barbara Wall (1991). In this paper I will argue that Mark Twain manages to create “dual address” in Tom Sawyer by using what Greg Camfield (2005) calls “amiable humor” and constructing scenes out of childhood in order to produce delight and nostalgia. By reading closely excerpts of the book and analyzing Twain’s specific use of humor through three prominent theories—superiority theory, relief theory and incongruity— it becomes possible to identify what the implied reader is meant to find humorous, and therefore if Twain manages to establish a “dual address”. An understanding of Twain’s humor from the perspective of both young and adult reader furthers our understanding of the novel by revealing Twain’s implementation of complex “dual address” narration and its implications.
    [Show full text]
  • Mark Twain Facts
    Name: Date: MARK TWAIN FACTS Directions: Read these facts about Mark Twain. Using the “Main Ideas and Supporting Details” handout, sift and sort them into categories. 1. Twain’s first famous story “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” is a humorous story about a trick frog owned by a gold miner in California. 2. Mark Twain was the Vice-President of the American Anti-Imperialist League; he believed that the US should not limit the freedoms of people in other countries. 3. Many of Mark Twains’ younger characters are inspired by his life growing up in Missouri. 4. Mark Twain was known for wearing all white clothes. 5. His most famous novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which are stories about the adventures of two boys growing up in Missouri. 6. After failing as a gold miner in Nevada, Mark Twain got a job as a writer for the Territorial Enterprise where he developed material for many of his early writings. 7. Mark Twain’s novels A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court and The Gilded Age criticized politics in the US. 8. Early in his career, Mark Twain was considered a writer in the Sagebrush School, a group of writers in Nevada writing about the life of miners in the Gold Rush. 9. Throughout his life, Twain was concerned with making sure that young people had a chance to learn and grow up in a safe environment. In 1906, he founded The Angel Fish and Aquarium Club for girls. 10.
    [Show full text]
  • Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven
    Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven Mark Twain Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven Table of Contents Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven...............................................................................................1 Mark Twain....................................................................................................................................................1 CHAPTER I...................................................................................................................................................1 CHAPTER II................................................................................................................................................13 i Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven Mark Twain This page copyright © 2001 Blackmask Online. http://www.blackmask.com • CHAPTER I • CHAPTER II CHAPTER I Well, when I had been dead about thirty years I begun to get a little anxious. Mind you, had been whizzing through space all that time, like a comet. LIKE a comet! Why, Peters, I laid over the lot of them! Of course there warn't any of them going my way, as a steady thing, you know, because they travel in a long circle like the loop of a lasso, whereas I was pointed as straight as a dart for the Hereafter; but I happened on one every now and then that was going my way for an hour or so, and then we had a bit of a brush together. But it was generally pretty one−sided, because I sailed by them the same as if they were standing still. An ordinary comet don't make more than about 200,000 miles a minute. Of course when I came across one of that sort − like Encke's and Halley's comets, for instance − it warn't anything but just a flash and a vanish, you see. You couldn't rightly call it a race. It was as if the comet was a gravel−train and I was a telegraph despatch.
    [Show full text]
  • March 2013, Volume 4, Issue 11 Focusing on Mechanical Circulatory Support
    MARCH 2013, VOLUME 4, ISSUE 11 FOCUSING ON MECHANICAL CIRCULATORY SUPPORT TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Title, Author 2 MCS Council Report, Jeff Teuteberg 4 Formula 1 in Cardiac Surgery, Evgenij Potapov 6 The World of Mechanical Circulatory Support after the FDA Approval of HeartWare: Is Competition the Answer to All Our Questions?, Matthias Loebe, Erik Suarez, and Arvind Bhimaraj 13 MedaMACS: The Medical Arm of Mechanically Assisted Circulatory Support, Garrick Stewart 16 The 2013 International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation Guidelines for Mechanical Circulatory Support: Observations and Future Directions, Salpy Pamboukian 18 Should LVAD Implantation Be the New Gold Standard for Terminal Heart Disease?, Thomas Krabatsch, Christoph Knosalla, Evgenij Potapov, and Roland Hetzer 20 In the Spotlight: ISHLT 2013 in Montreal 22 A Journey to the Other Side: Part 1, Stewart Howard 25 First Naïve, Later Delinquent: How Immune Maturation Benefits and Jeopardizes Transplantation, Simon Urschel 28 The Editor’s Curse, Andreas Zuckermann 31 In Memoriam: Vale Professor Donald Esmore AO, Trevor Williams 32 ISHLT 2013 in Montreal: IMACS Registry Booth and Meeting, James Kirklin 34 Outta This World Links 35 Tattling Links 36 Anti-Imperialism, The Other Side, and Reality, Vincent Valentine 40 Quotable Quotes 41 Near Misses, Near Hits 42 Editorial Staff MCS Council Report Jeffrey J Teuteberg, MD ISHLT MCS Council Chair [email protected] With only a couple of months left in my tenure as MCS Council Chair, I suppose it is a good time to reflect on the past year. We certainly have been busy over the past 10 months or so, with the final edits, reviews and subsequent submission and publication of the ISHLT MCS Guidelines.
    [Show full text]
  • Nina Clemens Gabrilowitsch, 55, Twain's Last Direct Heir, Dies
    Nina Clemens Gabrilowitsch dies Home | Quotations | Newspaper Articles | Special Features | Links | Search The New York Times, January 19, 1966 Nina Clemens Gabrilowitsch, 55, Twain's Last Direct Heir, Dies LOS ANGELES, Jan. 18 (AP) - The county Coroner's office reported today that Miss Nina Clemens Gabrilowitsch, the last direct descendant of Mark Twain, had died Sunday. She was 55 years old. Miss Clemens was found dead in her room at a Los Angeles motel where she often stayed. Several bottles of pills and alcohol were found in the room, the police said. An autopsy was planned. A Los Angeles bartender said today that Miss Clemens had quipped to him on Saturday night: "When I die, I want artificial flowers, jitterbug music and a bottle of vodka at my grave." She was the granddaughter of Twain, whose real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. She preferred to use the writer's family name rather than her own. Miss Clemens, who was born four months after her grandfather died, once said that although she had never known him she knew his works "backwards and forwards." Miss Clemens was the daughter of Twain's daughter, Mrs. Clara Langhorne Clemens Samoussoud, and Clara's first husband, Ossip Gabrilowitsch. Mr. Gabrilowitsch was conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1919 until his death in 1936. Miss Clemens's mother died in San Diego on Nov. 19, 1962. A family attorney, Al Matthews, said Miss Clemens had lived on the income of Twain's estate, which he estimated at about $2-million. He said Miss Clemens had an income of $1,500 a month after taxes.
    [Show full text]
  • 351 Farmington Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105 Annual Report FYE 2015
    The Mark Twain House & Museum 351 Farmington Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105! ! Annual Report FYE 2015 - February 1, 2014 through January 31, 2015! Report from Joel Freedman, President of the Board of Trustees To: Members, Friends, and Supporters of The Mark Twain House & Museum! January 31 marked the end of our fiscal year, as well as my first year as President of the Board of Trustees. It was a pivotal year with significant developments. ! We again raised over $2.5 million from our many individual, corporate, foundation, and government supporters. Due to our aggressive programming, which continues to expand our brand, we spent a bit more than raised, leaving us with a small deficit for the fiscal year. Our programming ranged from free community events, such as our annual Ice Cream Social, Tom Sawyer Day, and our popular “Trouble Begins” lectures, to celebrities such as Garrison Keillor and Ralph Nader. We also hosted Noam Chomsky and Ann Rice in larger area venues when demand outstripped our auditorium capacity. Lastly, we continued our marquee events at The Bushnell with best-selling author Dan Brown and our 4th annual “Mark My Words” event with Wicked author Gregory Maguire and Steven Schwartz, who created the Broadway musical. We increased revenue from admissions by 15% and are on track to meet our goal of 50% in three years. Our talented staff also added a popular Servants Tour to the other theme tours enabling guests to turn every visit into a new experience. The year also included many financial milestones. We made progress with our excellent corporate partner, Webster Bank, in renegotiating our debt from the construction of the Museum Center many years ago.
    [Show full text]
  • Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn As Anti Racist Novel
    Journal of Literature, Languages and Linguistics www.iiste.org ISSN 2422-8435 An International Peer-reviewed Journal Vol.46, 2018 Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn as Anti Racist Novel Ass.Lecturer Fahmi Salim Hameed Imam Kadhim college for Islamic science university, Baghdad , Iraq "Man is the only Slave. And he is the only animal who enslaves. He has always been a slave in one form or another, and has always held other slaves in bondage under him in one way or another.” - Mark Twain Abstract Mark Twain, the American author and satirist well known for his novels Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer , grew up in Missouri, which is a slave state and which later provided the setting for a couple of his novels. Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn are the two most well-known characters among American readers that Mark Twain created. As a matter of fact, they are the most renowned pair in all of American literature. Twain’s father worked as a judge by profession, but he also worked in slave-trade sometimes. His uncle, John Quarles, owned 20 slaves; so from quite an early age, Twain grew up witnessing the practice of slave-trade whenever he spent summer vacations at his uncle's house. Many of his readers and critics have argued on his being a racist. Some call him an “Unexcusebale racist” and some say that Twain is no where even close to being a racist. Growing up in the times of slave trade, Twain had witnessed a lot of brutality and violence towards the African slaves.
    [Show full text]
  • The Social Consciousness of Mark Twain
    THE SOCIAL CONSCIOUSNESS OF MARK TWAIN A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the School of Social Sciences Morehead State University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in History by Rose W. Caudill December 1975 AP p~ ~ /THE ScS 9\t l\ (__ ~'1\AJ Accepted by the faculty of the School of Social Sciences, Morehead State University, in partial fulfillment of the require­ ments for the Ma ster of Arts in Hist ory degree. Master ' s Commi ttee : (date TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • . • • . I Chapter I. FEMINISM . 1 II. MARK 1WAIN 1 S VIEWS ON RELIGION 25 III. IMPERIALISM 60 REFERENCES •••• 93 Introduction Mark Twain was one of America's great authors. Behind his mask of humor lay a serious view of life. His chief concern, . was man and how his role in society could be improved. Twain chose not to be a crusader, but his social consciousness in the areas of feminism, religion, and imperialism reveal him to be a crusader at heart. Closest to Twain's heart were his feminist philosophies. He extolled the ideal wife and mother. Women influenced him greatly·, and he romanticized them. Because of these feelings of tenderness and admiration for women, he became concerned about ·the myth of their natural inferiority. As years passed, Twain's feminist philosophies included a belief in the policital, economic, and social equality of the sexes. Maternity was regarded as a major social role during Twain's lifetime since it involved the natural biological role of women. The resu·lting stereotype that "a woman I s place is in the home" largely determined the ways in which women had to express themselves.
    [Show full text]
  • Bulloch Times and Statesboro News
    Georgia Southern University Digital Commons@Georgia Southern Bulloch County Newspapers (Single Issues) Bulloch County Historical Newspapers 11-11-1920 Bulloch Times and Statesboro News Notes Condition varies. Some pages missing or in poor condition. Originals provided for filming by the publisher. Gift of tS atesboro Herald and the Bulloch County Historical Society. Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/bulloch-news- issues Recommended Citation "Bulloch Times and Statesboro News" (1920). Bulloch County Newspapers (Single Issues). 983. https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/bulloch-news-issues/983 This newspaper is brought to you for free and open access by the Bulloch County Historical Newspapers at Digital Commons@Georgia Southern. It has been accepted for inclusion in Bulloch County Newspapers (Single Issues) by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons@Georgia Southern. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THURSDAY. NOVEMBER 4. 11120. , H- r+++ I II I I 1"1 ++-1 .....1-......-M-"l·+·h·..."i"·.-·I-I-++++++-I-++ STATEMENT �� HUNTING SEASON WILL SOON BE HERE-SEE US BEFORE' I t Receipt An" Di'buroement. for the YOU BUY YOUR SHELLS. WE CAN SAVE YOU MONEY. of St.teboro for 1920. :� CI·Y. Sept .• WE SELL NITROS. Receipts • :j: I I • Ealance Augst �! We have a number of second h311d Syrup Barrels-e-Wl]! sell cheap ,. BIlls p.'J� .e 4.150.0U SPECIAL5! SFECIALS I S�ECIALS! SPEC[ALS! + hV!her and light ec llections 2,G12 72 - n --.=."' -- � DO tax $1.043.12149787 _ LLQCI-I· rl�IM. 10 Ibs. Brown Mule Tobac- 8 Ib bucket Lard $190 :j:IGenelal �, ..iII!WLUllllliDlllDlillllmnmnnOl!j!!!!!!lijfiiij!UIDIJlIIUI!JI1!!1!!JI!!Immrnmnmmmm!IIII!j!l!!!!!jDmIlI!l!IT!ljllIUI!!!J1!!MJllJ + l'mes and for!el�u'es ----- 16000 co $7.50 24 Ib good Flour AND $170 - - + stock - - - - - - l4 pkgs Pnnce Albert To- Impounded 77.55 STATESBORO � cans Sardmes _ _ __ __ _ _ rudweise.
    [Show full text]
  • Tom Sawyer, Detective
    https://onemorelibrary.com Tom Sawyer, Detective by Mark Twain Harper and Brothers, New York, 1896 Contents CHAPTER I. AN INVITATION FOR TOM AND HUCK CHAPTER II. JAKE DUNLAP CHAPTER III. A DIAMOND ROBBERY CHAPTER IV. THE THREE SLEEPERS CHAPTER V. A TRAGEDY IN THE WOODS CHAPTER VI. PLANS TO SECURE THE DIAMONDS CHAPTER VII. A NIGHT’S VIGIL CHAPTER VIII. TALKING WITH THE GHOST CHAPTER IX. FINDING OF JUBITER DUNLAP CHAPTER X. THE ARREST OF UNCLE SILAS CHAPTER XI. TOM SAWYER DISCOVERS THE MURDERERS CHAPTER I. AN INVITATION FOR TOM AND HUCK [Note: Strange as the incidents of this story are, they are not inventions, but facts—even to the public confession of the accused. I take them from an old-time Swedish criminal trial, change the actors, and transfer the scenes to America. I have added some details, but only a couple of them are important ones. — M. T.] WELL, it was the next spring after me and Tom Sawyer set our old nigger Jim free, the time he was chained up for a runaway slave down there on Tom’s uncle Silas’s farm in Arkansaw. The frost was working out of the ground, and out of the air, too, and it was getting closer and closer onto barefoot time every day; and next it would be marble time, and next mumbletypeg, and next tops and hoops, and next kites, and then right away it would be summer and going in a-swimming. It just makes a boy homesick to look ahead like that and see how far off summer is.
    [Show full text]
  • Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn
    THE ADVENTURES OF TOM SAWYER & HUCKLEBERRY FINN CAST OF CHARACTERS: Showboat Captain (also plays Percy, Injun Joe, Preacher) Dolly, Captain's wife (also plays Aunt Polly, Schoolteacher) Tom Sawyer Harley, the first mate (plays Jim) Colin, showboat actor (plays Huck) Abigail, showboat actress (plays Becky) AS THE LIGHTS COME UP WE SEE A SHOWBOAT UPSTAGE. THE PADDLEWHEEL IS STILL TURNING AND SMOKE STILL FLOWS FROM THE SMOKESTACK THE BOAT HAS JUST DOCKED AT A WHARF. THE SHOWBOAT CREW AND COMPANY ARE ON HE DECK SINGING AND WAVING. AS THEY SING THE GANGPLANK IS LOWERED AND THEY SET UP THEm "PLAYING AREA" BOTH ON AND OFF THE BOAT. ON DECK IS THE CAPTAIN OF THE SHOWBOAT, A MAN OF :MIDDLE YEARS WHO IS PROBABLY MORE OF A SHOWMAN THAN A SEAMAN; THE CAPTAIN'S WIFE, DOLLY WHO IS ALSO THE LEADING LADY; ABIGAIL, THE INGENUE; HARLEY, THE FmST MATE; AND COLIN, THE JUVENILE AND LEADING MAN. HERE IT COMES, HERE IT COMES! HEY, LOOK UP THE RIVER, IT'S A SHOWBOAT HERE IT COMES, HERE IT COMES! CHUG A LUG! CHUG A LUG! CHUG A LUG! HEY! HERE IT COMES! LOOK UP THE RIVER, THERE'S A BOAT A-COMIN HUSH UP AND LISTEN TO THE MOTOR IillMMIN IT'S A SHOWBOAT! GREAT LAND 0 ' GOSHEN! THERE'S A SHOWBOAT PULLIN IN TODAY. AINT NO DOUBTIN THERE'LL BE SONGS FOR SIN GIN GOTTA BE THERE SHOUTIN WHEN THE BELLS START RINGIN ON THE SHOWBOAT. GREAT LAND 0 ' GOSHEN! THERE'S A SHOWBOAT PULLIN IN TODAY. THE BOAT'S FINISHED DOCKIN AND THE PADDLEWHEEL IS STOPPIN LISTEN UP AND YOU'LL HEAR THE CAPTAIN SAY..
    [Show full text]
  • Mark Twain's Adventures of Tom Sawyer: a Discussion Guide
    Mark Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer: A Discussion Guide By David Bruce SMASHWORDS EDITION Copyright 2008 by Bruce D. Bruce Thank you for downloading this free ebook. You are welcome to share it with your friends. This book may be reproduced, copied and distributed for non-commercial purposes, provided the book remains in its complete original form. If you enjoyed this book, please return to Smashwords.com to discover other works by this author. Thank you for your support. Cover Illustration: By True Williams This illustration is the frontispiece to the 1876 first edition of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. ••• Preface to This Book The purpose of this book is educational. I have read, studied, and taught Mark Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer many times, and I wish to pass on what I have learned to other people who are interested in studying Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer. In particular, I think that the readers of this guide to Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer will be bright high school seniors and college first-year students, as well as intelligent adults who simply wish to study Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer despite not being literature majors. This book uses a question-and-answer format. It poses, then answers, relevant questions about Twain, background information, and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. This book goes through The Adventures of Tom Sawyer chapter by chapter. I recommend that you read the relevant section of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, then read my comments, then go back and re-read the relevant section of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
    [Show full text]