This is the first time I've read The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and after reading half of the novel I absolutely agree that Mark Twain wrote this to remind adults of their childhood. The novel uses a young boy, Tom Sawyer, to tell a children's view of school, work, boys in the neighborhood and church.
The passage about Tom going to church really got my attention. The bargaining for colored tickets before entering Sunday school in order to obtain enough tickets to receive a bible was very ironic. The irony of bargaining in order to get ahead of other peers in Sunday school is entertaining within itself, but the entertainment doesn't stop there. Tom never had a drive to recite enough bible verses to obtain tickets nor had a desire to have a bible, but because Tom is a show off he uses his bargained tickets and receives a new bible. These childlike situations represent the larger picture that children and adults try to get ahead in all they do and sometimes resort to unethical ways of obtaining what they want.
Once in church Tom's observation of the long winded prayer the minister said. The church, the people of the church, other churches, the town, the county, the United States, the churches of the United States and so on where all included in the prayer. This reminded me that when I was little I was taught to pray for everyone and everything. I remember sitting with my 5 year old cousin before bed and she prayed for mom, dad, grandparents, friends at school, teachers at school (this continued for a few minutes) and concluded her prayer with "and I pray for the people that live under the bridge." When I read the passage about Tom's experience in church I laughed to myself because it was so similar to what I remember my church experiences being like while I was growing up.
It is interesting to see how Mark Twain can directly connect with his readers, no matter their age, because he uses basic day-to-day events that everyone can relate to and gives them a personal spin.
When Tom, Huck and Joe decide to run away and become pirates their families believe they had drowned, but the boys were having a great time playing, swimming and not being told what to do on an island on the Mississippi. At one time or another young children all think of running away from home, but Twain puts a unique twist on running away which draws the reader into the story while they constantly are asking "will the boys return home?", "how long will they survive alone?" and then you are surprised when they return Sunday to church. Their families and community is overwhelmed to see them and the young boys feel important and enjoy telling others of their adventures. That seems like a dream of young children to go off on adventures and return home with great stories. Twain shows dreams of everyday children through the adventures of Tom.
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Hi Chelsie,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the great post on the first half of TS. I am glad you found it an interesting read. I agree--MT's first intention is to recapture childhood, and the whole novel is infused with this nostalgia. But the more I read and think about it, the more I sense an underlying seriousness. MT's reflection on childhood is also an indirect focus on adulthood. I think MT perceives a lot of adults as being as childish and spoiled as TS, who seems quite adult-like by the end of the novel. The church episode is one of my favorites too. I look forward to reading more posts. dw
Hi Chelsie,
ReplyDeleteAs I read your blog I couldn't help but remember things from when I was little. Like in school we had "pretend" money, which was a reward for doing well in class or a test and then at the end of the week we could buy something or save it. I don't ever remember there being a Bible to purchase though.
I think Twain does a great job as well connecting with his readers because whether they are old or young, we all have something from our childhood that we have forgotten and Twain simply reminds us of those things.
I wonder if we could be writers by writing our day-to-day events while in college? That would be funny.