SAMUEL LANGHORNE CLEMENS

ALSO KNOW AS MARK TWAIN

Samuel Langhorne Clemens was born on November 30, 1835, in Florida, Missouri. He was sickly as a
boy, but grew to be healthy. He was both adventurous and mischievous. In 1839, his family moved to
Hannibal, Missouri. He spent much of his time playing along the Mississippi River and in the woods
nearby.
He spent summers at an uncles farm where hed get into mischief along with his group of friends. At the
farm, he also saw several disturbing incidents, including slave beatings and murder, which he later
used as material for his novels.
Samuels father died in 1847, and he left school and became a printers apprentice to help support his
family. He left Hannibal in 1853 to pursue his printing work in St. Louis, New York, Philadelphia,
Cincinnati, and Iowa. From 1857 until the Civil War started in 1861, he piloted a riverboat on the
Mississippi River. After the war, he went to Nevada to prospect for silver and gold, but he didnt like the
Wests hardships.
He returned to the East and worked as a reporter under the pseudonym of "Mark Twain," which was a
boating phrase that indicated two fathoms of water. In 1864, he went to San Francisco and wrote for
magazines and newspapers.
In 1866, he started traveling extensively, visiting Hawaii, Europe, and the Middle East, studying people
to gather material for his writing. In 1870, Samuel married Olivia Langdon. They had a son who died in
infancy and three daughters. The family lived in Hartford, Connecticut, from 1871 until 1891. In 1872, he
published his first book Roughing It. He published his first of many novels, The Guilded Age, in 1873. In
1876, he published The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and in 1885, he published The Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn.
Clemens was often depressed and melancholy during his last twenty years of life. He had financial
obligations after several failed investments, and he went on a lecture tour in Europe in 1895 and 1896 to
raise money to pay his debts. During the tour, his daughter Suzy died. His wife Olivia died in 1904. His
youngest daughter Jean died in 1909. His family members deaths and his own poor health added to his
depression.
He received honorary degrees from Yale in 1901 and from the University of Missouri in 1902, and he
received another honorary degree from Oxford in 1907. On April 21, 1910, Samuel Clemens died of
angina.
1. Answer the questions.
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)

Where was S. L. Clemens born? _He was born in Florida Missouri

What was he like as a chid? He was sickly as a boy,
When did his family move to Hannibal? His family moved to Hannibal in 1839,
Where did he spend his summers? He spent his summers at an uncles farm
What jobs did he have?He had some jobs: a printers apprentice, he piloted a riverboat on the
Mississippi River and wrote some novels .
6) What did Mark Twain mean? Mark Twin indicated two fathoms of water.
7) What did he do in San Francisco? He wrote for magazines and newspapers.
8) How many children did Samuel and Olivia have? They had four children.
9) When did he publish his first novel? He published his first of many novels in 1872
10) Why was he depressed during the last 20 years of his life? He was deprssed becuase He had
finantial obligations , failed investments and his family died.

11) What did S. L. Clemens die of? Samuel Clemens died of angina.
2. Find verbs in the Past Simple in the text. Copy them into the correct column, find their
infinitive forms and translate them into Slovene.
REGULAR VERBS
Past Simple
Infinitive
Slovene
Moved
Move
Preseliti
Used
Use
Uporaba
Piloted
Pilot
Pilot
Returned
Return
Povratini
Started
Start
Start
Married
Marry
Prococity
Died
Die
Die
Added
Add
Dodajte
Received
Receive
Prjamanji
Published
Publish
Objavi
Lived
Live
Zivo

IRREGULAR VERBS
Past Simple
Infinitive
Slovene
Was
Be
Biti
Spent
Spend
Prezucti
Saw
See
Glej
Left
Leave
Pusti
Became
Become
Postanejo
Went
Go
Go
Wrote
Write
Pisati
Had
Have
Imeja

3. Put the following sentences into negative and question forms.

a) He was sickly as a boy.
X He wasn't sickly as a boy
? Was he sickly as a boy?

b) Samuel's father died in 1847.

X Samuel's father didn't die in 1847
? Did Samuel's father die in 1847?
When did Samuel's father die?

c) S. L. Clemens spent summers at an uncle's farm.

X S.L.Clemens didn't spend summers at an uncle's farm
? Did S.L. Clemens spend summers at an uncle's farm?
Who spent summers at an uncle's farm?
Where did S.L. Clemens spend summers?

4. Read the text again. Look at the information in bold. Ask questions. (in your NBs)
5. Here is a paragraph from Mark Twain's book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Chapter 2,
p.5). Complete it. Put the verbs in brackets into the Past Simple.
Three or four months __went__ (go) past and it was winter time. The Widow sent (send) me
to school every day. I could (can) spell and read and write a little. They wanted(want) to
teach me numbers, but I didn't like (not like) them and I didn't learn (not learn) very much.
At first I hated (hate) school, but after that it was (be) OK. When I got (get) really bored
with it, I didn't go (not go). The teacher hit (hit) me the next day, but I didn't mind(not
mind). Soon I even liked (like) living with the Widow. Sometimes I still slept (sleep) in the
woods, but most of the time I liked sleeping in a bed. I didn't (not know) where Pap was.
Paps my dad. He came (come) to town sometimes. Ialways hid (hide) in the woods when he

came to town. One day, I heard (hear) that he was dead. But you could never be sure about
Pap.