A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur’s Court By Mark Twain (1835 – 1910) Essay, Research Paper
Mark Twain was fascinated by Sir Thomas
Malory’s “Morte d’Arthur.” According to his notebook, Twain dreamed one
night of being a knight in Arthur’s court and of the many inconveniences
this presented. This dream inspired him with his story of a clever Yankee
machinist who attempts to modernize and improve Camelot.
A Connecticut Yankee exposes the glorified
knight errantry of legend as childish barbarism; a feudal system that abused
and deprived the common people. Conversely, Twain’s principles of good
government lifted the commoners and the nobility alike into a new life
of dignity and purpose.
From beginning to end, this book is a surprising
and powerful combination of homiletics and humor. For instance, Twain vividly
portrays the brutality of slavery, and immediately follows these scenes
with a comical rescue of the King and Hank Morgan by knights on bicycles.
The novel was originally envisioned as a pleasant burlesque of Camelot;
but social conscience and outrage against man’s inhumanity to man consistently
found their way to the surface, producing a serious social satire layered
with wit and wisdom. This constant shifting between social humor and social
disgust makes this book one of Twain’s most memorable.”