A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

By

4.8
(5 Reviews)
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain

Published:

1889

Pages:

352

ISBN:

0553211439

Downloads:

26,402

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A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

By

4.8
(5 Reviews)
An extravagant but cleverly planned burlesque that works as a condemnation of Chivalry, one of Twain's chief aversions.

Book Excerpt

d be startled at me instead of at the other man, was too many for me; I couldn't make head or tail of it. And that she should seem to consider me a spectacle, and totally overlook her own merits in that respect, was another puzzling thing, and a display of magnanimity, too, that was surprising in one so young. There was food for thought here. I moved along as one in a dream.

As we approached the town, signs of life began to appear. At intervals we passed a wretched cabin, with a thatched roof, and about it small fields and garden patches in an indifferent state of cultivation. There were people, too; brawny men, with long, coarse, uncombed hair that hung down over their faces and made them look like animals. They and the women, as a rule, wore a coarse tow-linen robe that came well below the knee, and a rude sort of sandal, and many wore an iron collar. The small boys and girls were always naked; but nobody seemed to know it. All of these people stared at me, talked about me, ran into the huts and fetc

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One of Mark Twain's masterworks, this exceptional book is a rich stew of pseudo-science fiction, adventure, character studies and the machinations of a fish out of water all drenched with the magnificant sarcaism and wit for which Sam Clemens is so well known. This is a superb read for anyone from age 15 to 105. The "Boss" is an amazing and most American character, neither likeable nor offensive. One who means well and try's to force everyone for what he imagines is their own good to live life as he wishes it to be lived (a true liberal and decades ahead of his time). It also takes on chivalry, one of Twain's many opponents along with prejudice and pomposity.
Your time reading "Yankee" will be well spent and you shall remember the book fondly for the remainder of your life. Equal to Huck Finn in almost every way.
Goes over the top far too often; otherwise a pungent and penetrating book. However, one cannot and does not sympathise with the main character, i.e the Boss
We're reading this book over at CraftLit.com right now and I LOVE this book. I think it might be a mistake, though, to equate Twain with The Boss as a previous reviewer does. Admittedly, it's hard not to, what with the tone of voice sounding SO like Twain, but I think MT was pretty vociferous in his own indictments of Hank Morgan. Twain just criticizes EVERYthing and everyone--part of his charm--but does it in a way that makes us laugh. It's a pity everyone thinks they know this book but really only know Bugs and Bing (not that I'm slamming either). The book is way deeper and even sadder than you'd expect. The link to the Connecticut Yankee podcasts (they're all free like this site is) can be found here: http://crafting-a-life.com/craftlit/?cat=59
One of my favorite books of all time. However, I actually think the main character, The Boss, is egotistical and I disagree with his attitude toward the medieval people he meets. Since I suspect Mark Twain himself totally identifies with The Boss, then I suppose I disagree with him as well! The plot is believable, only because it clearly is a delusion. If one accepts that Hank Morgan, a.k.a. The Boss, really went back in time and managed to remember dates of eclipses and knew how to recreate the conveniences of "modern" civilization, then he must surely be a genious! The premise is highly unlikely, and it never occurs to him or the author that the lifestyle of the medieval peoples and the social structure of their society was meant to progress at its own pace. Despite disagreeing with all of it, I really love this book, which surely means Samuel Clemens is the real genius!