Throughout the novel Twain recognizes the cowardice, hypocrisy, and stupidity of the South during the period leading up to the Civil War. ... We are shown that every male in the family is shouldering a rifle, including the youngest boy, around the age of thirteen. ... Mark Twain included these chapters in the novel to show the stupidity and violence of life in the Southern United states. ... Towards the end of the novel, Huck is speaking with Aunt Sally in regards to his late arrival. ... The novel is filled with quotes similar to this one, painting a darker picture of the South each time....

• Word Count: 1495
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

I am just a poor boy, Though my story's seldom told, I have squandered my resistance For a pocketful of mumbles, Such are promises. ... Gerber in "Pudd'nhead Wilson as Fabulation,"" Mark Twain was not really a novelist - he was more of a "new journalist,"" who spun yarns that reflected American life as well or better than any "realistic- novel or overt political propaganda. ... In the private arena this meant wholesale intimidation, beatings, and lynching of black Americans, who didn't "give up the road."" ... Both blacks and whites (and every infinite gradation in be...

• Word Count: 3141
• Approx Pages: 13
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate