2. •Born Samuel Clemens in Florida, Missouri
in a slave owning family.
•Family later moved to river town of
Hannibal.
•Apprenticed as river boat pilot.
•Began using pseudonym Mark Twain
(meaning two fathoms) when writing
political reports as journalist for a Virginian
newspaper.

3. Twain’s celebrity
image—Associated
with river boat and
frontier myth.
Iconic image of
Twain as adventurer.
.

4. ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN
First published in 1885.

5. Commonly named among the Great
American Novels, the work is among the
first in major American literature to be
written in the vernacular.
Satirizing a Southern society, Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn is, among other things, an
often critical look at deep-rooted attitudes,
particularly racism.

6. Main themes
 racial prejudice and segregation
 rite of passage from childhood to
adulthood.

7. Very controversial and highly
censored because of the racial
implications dealt with in the book.
Mark Twain based his character
Huckleberry Finn on his childhood
friends.

8. HUCK IN THE MOVIES
IN 1920 In 1993

9. I have no race
prejudices, and I
think I have no
color prejudices or
caste prejudices
nor creed
prejudices. Indeed
I know it. I can
stand any society.
All that I care to
know is that a man
is a human being--
that is enough for
me; he can't be
any worse.

10. “Huckleberry Finn is the best book we’ve ever had.
There was nothing better. There’s been nothing as
good since”
Ernest Hemmingway

11. Watch the 1993 movie trailer and
a clip from the same film.