Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Background notes on the author and the novel

Meet the Author

Mark Twain- born Samuel Clemens in Florida, Missouri, in 1835.

Twain grew up near the Mississippi River in Hannibal, Missouri, which is the setting for Tom Sawyer.

Mark Twain

Twain worked as a steamboat pilot, which gave him material for his stories.

Mark Twain is Samuel Clemens’ pseudonym, or pen name. Mark Twain refers to a measure of depth in steamboat navigation.

Twain is remembered for being a humorist and a master at writing social satires.

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Tom Sawyer was

published in 1876, and it remains one of his most popular works.

The sequel to Tom Sawyer is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Many of the characters in Tom Sawyer are inspired by people that Twain knew, including his own family.

Literary Terms Genre- a category of artistic, musical, or literary

composition characterized by a particular style, form, or content – Satire- a novel that criticizes society through the

use of humor– Picaresque- a novel filled with episodic

adventures– Coming-of-age- a novel whose adolescent

character matures emotionally, physically, and spiritually

– Bildungsroman- a novel that follows the development of a hero from childhood through adolescence and into adulthood.

Twain intended for Tom Sawyer to grow up, but, instead, Tom Sawyer only explores Tom’s boyhood.

Literary Terms Protagonist- the principal character

who is the leader of a cause or brings about important change.– Tom Sawyer

Theme- a story’s insight about life– Moral and social maturity– Authority (hypocrisy)– Freedom through isolation

Literary Terms Symbol- an object or action that means

something more than its literal meaning– The Cave– The Storm– The Treasure– The Village

Dialect- a particular form of a language that is peculiar to a specific region or social group– Early nineteenth-century Southern dialect

Literary Terms

Motif- a recurring element in a book-- usually relates to one of the story’s themes– Crime– Trading– The Circus– Showing off

Literary Terms

Foreshadowing- the use of hints to suggest what will happen later in the story– Tom declares to Becky that he will be a pirate.– Tom is afraid of Injun Joe.– Tom is obsessed with the oath he and Huck took

to never talk about the murder.

What could these events foreshadow?

Famous Twain Quotations A person who won't

read has no advantage over one who can't read.

'Classic.' A book which people praise and don't read.

Good friends, good books, and a sleepy conscience: This is the ideal life.