1、The Name of Mark Twain Twains real name was Samuel Clemens.Mark Twain,which meanswatermark two,was a call used by sailors on the Mississippi to warn shipmates that they were coming into shallow water.Mark Twain(1835-1910)Mark Twain(1835-1910)Mark Twain was a great American writer,and he was also a f
2、amous speaker.Samuel Langhorne Clemens(Mark Twain)was born in Florida and he was not a healthy baby.In fact,he was not expected to live through the first winter.But with his mothers tender care,he managed to survive.As a boy,he caused much trouble for his parents.He used to play jokes on all of his
3、friends and neighbors.He didnt like to go to school,and he constantly ran away from home.Early life experienceEarly life experience Born in a little town in Mississippi At 11,he lost his father At 13,he stopped schooling Tramp printer Steamboat pilot on the Mississippi Confederate guerrilla Prospect
4、or Reporter on the far western frontier Traveler abroadHis MarriageHis Marriage At 34 years old he married Olivia Langdon Clemens,daughter of a New York coal magnate,a member of the countrys wealthy elite.She would be partner,editor,and fellow traveler in success and failure for the next thirty-five
5、 years.In His Middle AgesIn His Middle Ages By 1900 Twain had become Americas foremost celebrity.He was invited to attend ship launchings,anniversary gatherings,political conventions,and countless dinners.Reporters met him at every port of call,anxious to print a new quip from the famous humorist.To
6、 enhance his image,he took to wearing white suits and loved to stroll down the street and see people staring at him.His Later LifeHis Later Life There are many tragic events in his later life:the failure of his investments,his fatiguing travels and lectures in order to pay off his debts,and added to
7、 this,the death of his wife and two daughters which left him absolutely inconsolable.Some critics link these tragic events with the change of style in his later works,from an optimist and humorist to an almost despairing determinist.His DeathHis Death Mark Twain died of illness on April 21,1910.When
8、 he passed away,newspapers around the country declared,“The whole world is mourning.”By then,Sam Clemens had long since ceased to be a private citizen.He had become Mark Twain,a proud possession of the American nation.Mark Twain and the Mark Twain and the MississippiMississippi Mark Twain loved the
9、great river so much that he always went in the direction of the nearby Mississippi.Many of his great works are set in the background of the Mississippi River,such as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,and Life on the Mississippi.Samuel Clemens Major Works The Gilded Age
10、镀金时代 written in collaboration with Charles Dudley Warner Life on the Mississippi 密西西比河上 A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthurs Court亚瑟王朝里的康涅狄格州美国佬 The Man That Corrupted Hardleybug败坏了哈德莱堡的人 The Mysterious Stranger 神秘的陌生人 Autobiography These works contain bitter attacks on the human raceThe Innocents A
11、broad 傻子国外旅行记Roughing It艰难岁月Puddnhead Wilson傻瓜维尔逊The Prince and the Pauper王子与贫民 American Claimant美国申请人 Mark Twains Writing FeaturesMark Twains Writing Features1.local colourrepresented social life through portraits of local places which he knew best drew from his own rich fund of knowledge of people
12、 and places tall tales(highly exaggerated)a texture of most local color literature，a kink of humor 2.Literature is an art of language.Mark Twains language is artistic and like a sharp weapon without doubt.Mark Twain is famous for his humor and satire.He used the artistic style of hyperbole（夸张法）on th
13、e basis of the western traditional humor and made his writing full of allegories that lay behind the humor.Mark Twains Writing Features 3.He used a lot of colloquial idioms and colloquial syntax.a master oflanguage shortconcrete direct in effect simple,even ungrammatical sentence&structures words he
14、 used colloquial language,vernacular language,dialects American dialect an American language Mark Twains Writing Features Mark Twains Writing Features 4.He often described persons who was innocent,simple,naive,and ignorant as his heroes or heroines.Mark Twains Writing FeaturesHis Famous WordsHis Fam
15、ous Words “Wisdom teaches us that none but birds should go out early,and that not even birds should do it unless they are out of worms.”“The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up.”“Against the assault of laughter,nothing can stand.”“Humor is mankinds greatest blessing.”“F
16、leas can be taught nearly anything that a Congressman can.”It could probably be shown by facts and figures that there is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress.Picture from www.pbs.org“Classic-a book which people praise and dont read.”“The man who does not read good books has n
17、o advantage over the man who cant read them.”“Everyone is a moon,and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody.”Picture from Dave Thomson collection:“The holy passion of Friendship is so sweet and steady and loyal and enduring a nature that will last through a whole lifetime,if not asked to le
18、nd money.Picture from Dave Thomson collection:“The dog is a gentleman;I hope to go to his heaven,not mans.”Picture from Dave Thomson collection:“Of all Gods creatures there is only one that cannot be made the slave of the lash.That one is the cat.If man could be crossed with the cat it would improve
19、 man,but it would deteriorate the cat.”Picture from Dave Thomson collection:“Nothing is made in vain,but the fly came near it.”“Id rather have ten snakes in the house than one fly.”Good breeding consists in concealing how much we think of ourselves and how little we think of the other person.A Mirro
20、r of AmericaA Mirror of America1.“Mirror”here means a person who gives a true representation or description of the country.2.Generally speaking,all literary giants in human history are also great historians,thinkers and philosophers.Their works often reveal more truth than many political essays.3.Ma
21、rk Twain was one of these giants,and his life and works are a mirror of America of his time.A Brief AssessmentA Brief AssessmentHe was famous for his description of common people and the way they talked,but especially for his humor.Yale and Oxford honored him for his writing.美国文学界的美国文学界的林肯林肯。一位伟大的作家，一位优秀的一位伟大的作家，一位优秀的演说家。演说家。代表美国文学的世界一流作家。代表美国文学的世界一流作家。他是怀有赤子之心的勇士，亦他是怀有赤子之心的勇士，亦是仗义执剑的骑士。是仗义执剑的骑士。
