Mark Twain: An Author Study

Born Samuel Clemens on November 30, 1835 Recognized by his pen name, Mark Twain Who was he?

Family left Florida, MO: Twain was four Moved to Hannibal, MO Hometown - Hannibal Single click speaker for audio clip >>>>

Florida to Hannibal, MO

Mark Twain’s Boyhood Home in Hannibal

Childhood home is a museum Additional sites connected with Twain: tourist attractions in Hannibal Tourist Attraction Annual pick of “Tom” and “Becky” sponsored

Twain is considered the greatest humorist of 19 th century American literature. A humorist is defined as: –“an author who specializes in short, humorous articles and essays.” Twain’s humor wasn’t limited to stage. Most well-known for his classic novels. American Humorist

Born prematurely Father: Judge John Marshall Mother: Jane Lampton Clemens Youth

Young Twain played in slave quarters Listened to slave stories and spirituals Influence of Slavery Missouri was a slave state Family owned a slave who told Twain stories Uncle owned several slaves

Father died when Twain was 11 Twain left school in the 5 th grade Worked as printer’s apprentice at a local newspaper Growing Up Fast

Moved east and continued a career in newspapers Returned to the Mississippi River in 1857 to become a riverboat pilot Career Journey Single click speaker for audio clip >>>>

Halted riverboat traffic on Mississippi No need for riverboat pilots Ended Twain’s pilot career Confederate volunteer for two weeks Civil War

In July 1861, moved out west with hopes of becoming a miner, but failed. Began writing for Nevada newspaper First used pen name “Mark Twain” Name came from riverboat days A Name Is Born Single click speaker for audio clip >>>>

In 1864, moved to San Francisco First major success came in 1865 when he published the short story, “Jim Smiley and His Jumping Frog” Traveled all over the world as a traveling reporter Very popular writer and lecturer Jumping to Success

Married Olivia Langdon in 1870 Moved to Hartford, CT Daughter born same year first child died from diphtheria Had two more daughters Home in Hartford

The Prince and the Pauper Adventures of Huckleberry Finn The Adventures of Tom Sawyer A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court Major Works - Novels

Set in St. Petersburg, MO Depicts childhood adventures along Mississippi River Introduced characters who appear in later novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer 1876

Several bad investments in inventions Went bankrupt Oldest daughter died Wife died Youngest daughter died A Streak of Bad Luck

Died April 21 st, 1910 Was 74 years old Buried in Elmira, NY Lead a life of greatness. Twain’s Death