"Life on the Mississippi"

            " Adventures in American Literature, Athena Edition. Austin: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1996, 599-605.
             "Life on the Mississippi" is an interesting exert of Mark Twains life. Twain wrote many stories and novels using his humor as a signature in them all. After writing a tall tale he heard in a mining camp he became famous. Twain was born Samuel Langhorne Clemens in the tiny Hamlet of Florida, Missouri. His fathers mistakes are believed to be the drive Twain had to explore and not miss opportunities in his life. He died the most famous man in America at age seventy-five.
             "Life on the Mississippi" is a good title because of how the story is explaining Twain's life as a club pilot on the Mississippi. The story tells of a couple nights Twain had on the Mississippi. In the beginning of the story Twain seemed to take the pilot job not as critical as he takes it near the end of the story.
             The setting of the story takes place on a boat coming back from New Orleans. The historical context is probably the mid-1800's since that would be the prime of Twain's life. The physical context is a dingy but starry night. The point of view is third-person because the narrator is the person in the story and knows all. The conflict is the narrator is having trouble learning how to become a pilot.
             Mark Twain is the protagonist. He is a static character because of how he feels that piloting is a hard and serious job throughout the story. Mr. Brixby or the Mississippi is the antagonist. They trouble twain during the story in becoming a pilot.
             I think the theme of "Life on the Mississippi" is you don't really know something or someone until you've been them or done it. Twain thinks that piloting a boat is strictly romantic. Then when he plays a role of the pilot he realizes how much work and effort must be put into the job. .
             In the exposition we are introduced to the Paul Jones an old steamboat piloted by a Mr.