I cannot get the title of this story correct. I keep calling it "Pudd'nhill Wilson" because there is a fabulous little sandwich / chocolate shop in Greenville that my family loves stop at for lunch on our way to our lake house. I feel like I'm going to embarrass myself in class today by slipping up and referring to Mark Twain's piece at Pudd'nhill!
Now that that's out of the way, I am ready to discuss Pudd'nhead Wilson. First of all, for most of the book I was wondering why Twain chose to title the book Pudd'nhead when most of the story was about Roxy and "Tom." It wasn't until the last few chapters that I had the lightbulb moment.
I found the end quite satisfying, but predictable. I rarely fault anything for being predictable though - I hate that criticism about chick flicks, in particular. Hello! You're at a chick flick! Of course they're going to end up together! But, I digress. I was immensely pleased that "Tom" was sold down the river rather than be locked up in the slammer - having to be a slave after spending 23 years treating them so poorly was simply poetic.
The legal bits bored me compared to the rest of the story, to be quite honest. The twins weren't my favorite characters either. I much preferred the scenes with Roxy in them, because I found her terribly interesting. I also wish there was more of "Chambers" in the story - I felt like he was barely in it, except for the fact that he wasn't really Chambers!
The biggest surprise to me in this piece is that it is much more plot-driven than Twain's other Mississippi writings and he really doesn't go off on tangents and side-stories like in other books. It made for a fast and simple read.
All in all I enjoyed Pudd'nhead Wilson very much and continue to marvel at Twain's use of dialect. Anyone who wants to learn an accent needs to just pick up Pudd'nhead Wilson and read Roxy's monologues out loud again and again!
I enjoyed Pudd'nhead Wilson also. I totally agree with you on the accent part. I had a hard time getting through those long pages of Roxy talking. He is so good at it though. I got through this story very quick because of the progression and intense plot. You are right this is much more plot driven than the others we have read. Although predictable, Twain once again gets us thinking about identity and how nature, nurture, or both make us who we are. Perhaps it is relationships and experiences with friends and family that make us who we are, or maybe we just continue to change throughout life. Who knows, the jury is still out... get it? legal talk haha
ReplyDeleteI agree, Roxy's dialoge was incredibly hard to sift through. Yet, the book would just not be as "Twainical" without the dialect--he is indeed a dialect master! I also agree with you on the book's predictability, but that fact alone was enough to provide an explanation for the book's title very early on. If Pudd'nhead Wilson's character was not the dominant symbol for irony and other themes in the novella, his calendar entries would not have prefaced each chapter. His character was immediately put into presiding importance when he is mentioned in the very first moment of the book. For me, he was also a massive symbol of the debatable nature of individuality and identity, and it seems like he is ultimately the most respected character in the book for most readers.
ReplyDeleteHaha, "Twainical" - I love it!
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