89 pages • 2 hours read
The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson
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Symbols & Motifs
The Mississippi River
The Mississippi River played an important role in the life of Samuel Clemens, who even adopted the steamboat captain's call to "Mark the twain!" as his pen name. As a child, the river gave Twain access to the outside world and influences beyond his immediate realm, and provided employment and adventure as Twain grew older. Given its importance, it is no surprise that the Mississippi River is a featured component of several of Twain's works, including Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
The influence of the river is the same for the characters of Pudd'nhead Wilson, bringing the exotically foreign twins to town and allowing the people of Dawson's Landing to come and go. Yet the river is also the conduit to the slave trade, to gambling, and to other vices, and as such, it is a curse as well as a blessing. Being sold "down the river" to the cruel masters of the South is a constant fear for Missouri slaves, and because of this, the river plays the role of both enticing escape route and road to suffering.
Fingerprints
Mark Twain had a demonstrated interest in science and technology, and it is no surprise that he knew about, and used in his work, the study of fingerprints, which was new at the time Pudd'nhead Wilson was written. Several British scientists, Scotland Yard, and even Charles Darwin were involved in developing the science of fingerprinting, and in 1894, when Pudd'nhead Wilson was published, it was an accepted, but newly publicized, fact that every individual possesses a unique set of prints.
Twain had already played with the theme of switched identities in his book The Prince and the Pauper, but in Pudd'nhead Wilson, Twain adds a complicating layer: not only do Tom and Chambers belong to different social classes, they belong to different races. One can imagine the delight Twain must have taken in playing with the common plot of switched identities and imposing this added, controversial aspect. As America entered the 20th century, self-determination was the rule of the day, particularly as the outer boundary of the United States inched ever westward. In pointing out that even twins Luigi and Angelo have unique fingerprints, Twain uses the fingerprint motif to reinforce this very American notion that every individual is his or her own creation, solely responsible for his or her own actions, and—once slavery is abolished—with the ability to create his or her own destiny.
The Indian Dagger
The knife at the center of the murder, and the jeweled sheaf that houses it, represent the value the townspeople of Dawson's Landing place on everything foreign. Just as Luigi and Angelo are prized for their "otherness," so is the knife prized for its heritage and exotic origin story.
Twain joined in the American clamor for all things new and different, but modulated this with a deep appreciation for the classics. As the nation expanded westward, moving further away from the European culture that dominated the East Coast, some Americans, like Judge Driscoll's character, clung to Old World ideals and traditions, and the dagger represents this world. Tom Driscoll, on the other hand, who wants the Judge's money but not the burden of the Driscoll heritage, belongs to the New World, wherein a man creates his own identity and forges his own path. When Tom uses the dagger to kill Judge Driscoll, it is the death of the old way of behaving and thinking at the hands of the new, brash, young American way.
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By Mark Twain
