Mark Twain and Philosophy

Read the rest of _The Mysterious Stranger_. Take very good notes.  It's longer than the first part.  Don't delay. Here's the LINK .  

Now we'll read a novel, in parts.  Twain never finished it, and he left behind lots of drafts, not very similar to each other.  This one we'll read is good for us--it offers a lot of philosophical grist, many connections to what we've seen so far.   So here's the first part--read it very very carefully, and take notes.          For the QUIZ.      HERE .

Late in his life, Twain wrote a series of letters in the voice of Satan, reporting back to other angels about the newly created human race.  It is not short, and it is kind of...rant-y...and I want you to read it well.  So get started. You don't have to print anything out.  But I do want to see in your hands at least a handwritten list of important points, bubble-popping, etc. I may quizzzzzzzzzz. Here's the LINK .

OK, this, in its entirety:  HERE . We have talked about how Twain takes a "deflationary" or "displacing" approach to treasured aspects of our conception of humans. Is he doing it in this reading?  How?  ONE PAGE (maximum), TYPED (and printed, no excuses)  In class.

1)  Read Twain's "War Prayer."  HERE . 2)  Read this HERE .   Go slow--it is full of scanning typos, but it is the only version of it that appears online.  Watch for themes and thoughts that we've seen in earlier readings.  No written assignment for Monday, but be ready for some in-class writing.

Read the essay on lynching (it is in the same document as the stories about watermelon).  Set aside some time for this. I've decided not to have you write about it for homework.  But read it carefully and take notes, because there may be a quiz .

You can call it oldie.  But listen to it.  I think it is hard to beat.  HERE .

OK, the linked document contains several selections.  There are some small ones that are records of speeches Twain gave.  Then there's a longer, and horrifying one, about lynching in America.  For Monday, read everything up to the lynching essay, and stop at the beginning of that.  (We'll get to that later.)  I may ask you to do some in class writing, so make sure you read these things carefully. LINK

Read the rest of the dialogue called "What is Man?".   Produce a one-page summary, just as we did for the first half.

Next we'll read a more robust account of some of Twain's moral views.  The piece is called "What is Man?" and it takes the form of a dialogue between an older man and a younger one. I want to read this in two parts. So: For Wednesday, 1)  Read the first half.  Stop when you get to "After an Interval of Several Days."  That is about half way. 2)  Provide a short summary of the Older Man's views so far.  One page.  Typed.  Single spaced.  No more than one page.  No excuses for lateness. 3)  Here's the LINK .  (And of course, since we're going to read the whole thing, feel free to keep going!)

Read this story.  It's not short.   I will quiz.   Also , I want a one-page list of ideas about religion that Twain is poking at in the story. That's typed, due in class, only your own work.  Just a list, not an essay.  Here's the LINK . 

Read The Facts Concerning the Recent Carnival of Crime in Connecticut .   Take good notes.  Be ready to talk about themes it has in common with Was it Heaven or Hell? Also, expect a quiz.