Arthur's Court Connecticut Yankee In King example essay topic

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A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court By Mark Twain (1835 – 1910) 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. '.