Mark Twain. One of the most influential writers and authors of all time.

He wrote many

novels and short stories and his works are held in very high regard in the literature world.

However, some of his books have brought forth much controversy. While some authors view him

as the foundation for modern American literature, one of his books, The Adventures of

Huckleberry Finn, is one of the most banned books from schools. Many of Mark Twain’s

characters, settings, and plots are unlike any other. Critics have many different opinions about the

writing of Twain, but it’s clear that Twain has incredible stories that leave much to be analyzed

and discovered.

The structure of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a topic that is often under analysis by

critics. Many people say that this novel is either a sequence of Tom Sawyer making mistakes and

later maturing, or there isn’t much structure. Hamlin Hill puts it this way, “These then are the

two poles: that Tom Sawyer has a narrative plan and exhibits what was for Twain a high degree

of literary craftsmanship; or that it is a ragbag of memories, thrown together at random with little

or no thought to order or structure” (Hill 379). This is an important thing to try and determine

because it gives us deeper insight into Twain’s mind as a writer. Indubitably, structure is one of

the most important aspects of a story, so no matter what “pole” Twain’s writing falls to, it still

creates an excellent setup for an even more excellent novel. Hill goes on to say, “The author’s

own statements suggested that he wrote those memories of his childhood which came to mind,

waited until he remembered some more, and then added them to his manuscript” (Hill 384). To

summarize, Hill is claiming that Twain didn’t have so much a structure as he had a hodgepodge

of memories thrown together to emphasize nostalgia and childhood. Nonetheless, Twain’s novel

accomplishes his exact goal — to make adult readers feel like children again, through his unique

structure.
 While the structure of a story is important to the novel, many people would argue that

characters are even more important. Mark Twain does an excellent job with character

development and character building in his novels. In The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Twain

shows us just how well he can portray a child through his character of Tom Sawyer. Forrest

Robinson shows us just how much thought went into creating this character, “Full self-awareness

on this score would be fatal to his gamesmanship, for it would be accompanied by the onset of

guilt, and the erosion of confidence and manipulative élan” (Robinson 24). In a sense, Tom

Sawyer has to be portrayed as an arrogant person so that he could believably pull off the stunts

that Twain needed him to do. It’s clear that Twain’s characters weren’t just created randomly on a

whim, but they were thoughtfully crafted and every part of them is for the bigger picture of the

novel. It’s because of this, people are so inclined to read Twain’s books and easily fall in love

with the characters, “…Tom will continue to occupy center stage before an audience of

breathlessly attentive and willingly “sold” admirers” (Robinson 24). Robinson makes it clear that

Twain created the character Tom Sawyer in the way he did, so readers could feel a deeper

connection with him. This, ultimately leading to Twain’s novels making a large impact on the

reader’s lives.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn includes many controversial themes surrounding

race and social inequality. Daniel Traber claims, “One of the most frequently examined, indeed

celebrated, themes in Huckleberry Finn studies has been Mark Twain’s advocacy of a

non-conformist individualism—the belief that independence and self-sovereignty can be

achieved by living outside the social institutions of “sivilization”” (Traber 24). Huck Finn goes

against the social norms during that time period by freeing a slave named Jim. This was very

controversial at the time and some would argue that through this, Mark Twain was trying to
make a point. Traber goes on to say, “Through Huck-the-narrator, Twain reminds readers that

social control is always present but never total” (Traber 42). Traber is suggesting that Twain

wanted to show the public that no matter what people did there would always be some form of

social control in society. This is clearly shown in Huckleberry Finn, because although Huck is

able to help his friend Jim, it doesn’t come without consequences. Twain uses the character of

Huckleberry Finn to make this statement to the readers.

One thing that’s excellent about many of Mark Twain’s writings is his inclusion of

morals. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is no exception to this, and many people would

argue that this novel includes many valuable life lessons. When discussing this idea, Gilbert

Rubenstein claims that one of the lessons Mark Twain is trying to teach us is the idea that,

“Human beings are superior to one another only in the goodness of their hearts and in their love

for people” (Rubenstein 76). The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn includes a large theme of

friendship in the face of adversity and choosing love over hate. This was a message a lot of

people needed to hear during the time this book was written, and Mark Twain used his novel to

do this. Rubenstein continues this idea when he claims, “But meanwhile it can surely be said that

the moral structure of the book alone teaches timeless lessons to all humanity” (Rubenstein).

Twain’s novels are much more than an entertaining book, they also teach valuable life lessons to

anyone who reads them.

It is clear that Mark Twain pays great attention to detail in what he writes. His books

include excellent characterization, morals and life lessons, and intentional structure. Ultimately

it’s because of all these things that Mark Twain is known as one of the best American authors

ever by some people. Mark Twain makes it easy for people to read his writings over and over

again and learn something new each time.