Mark Twain and Jack London both wrote stories titled “The San Francisco Earthquake”, which tell of their experiences in San Francisco during an earthquake. Both men were physically present in San Francisco during the earthquake, and witnessed the effects of the earthquake firsthand. Although both Twain and London experienced a similar event, the two writers approached the subject very differently in their writing in order to portray their messages.
Mark Twain describes his experience of the great San Francisco earthquake using a first person narrative voice. He tells the story based on what he experienced and what he saw. A good example of this is the way he describes the start of the earthquake. Twain’s description of how “the street …show more content…
This point of view helps the reader to feel more connected to the story and personally involved in the events, and makes the experience of this giant earthquake seem more relatable. This emphasizes his purpose by giving the people’s point of view on the disaster and how his experiences provide the reader with a more in-depth, detailed description of the events that took place. Although he is writing about a catastrophic event, Mark Twain depicts his experiences in a humorous way. When the earthquake causes the consul’s wife to flee the bath wearing just a towel, Twain writes about how a man witnessing this says to his wife, “Now that is something I like! Get out your towel, my dear!” These funny anecdotes help to show the people in Twain’s story to be human and vulnerable, despite the chaos and danger surrounding them. Also, understatements are used to reach the same purpose as the humor element. Twain …show more content…
He writes about everything that happens during the earthquake, and not just what he personally sees. From the destruction of the factories and warehouses to the streets that were “humped into ridges and depressions and piled with the debris of fallen walls”, this all encompassing point of view helps to portray how large and destructive the earthquake was for the city. This also emphasizes his message about how nature is always stronger than what man is capable of. Another way that London portrays his message is through personification. Throughout the entire passage, London relates the city of San Francisco to the human body. An example of this is in the fourth paragraph where “By Wednesday afternoon, inside of twelve hours, half the heart of the city was gone.” was stated, as well as “All the shrewd contrivances and safeguards of man had been thrown out of gear by thirty seconds’ twitching of the earth’s crust.” This is used to bring a different way of looking at how man sizes up with the natural world. With all of the work put into the fortification of the city to protect from tragedies, just a little twitch from the earth’s crust and the “heart” or lifeline of the city starts a downward spiral of chaos until the city is completely dead. With that message, London shows that even the most valiant efforts by man does not even compare to the capabilities of nature. The
Mark Twain describes his experience of the great San Francisco earthquake using a first person narrative voice. He tells the story based on what he experienced and what he saw. A good example of this is the way he describes the start of the earthquake. Twain’s description of how “the street …show more content…
This point of view helps the reader to feel more connected to the story and personally involved in the events, and makes the experience of this giant earthquake seem more relatable. This emphasizes his purpose by giving the people’s point of view on the disaster and how his experiences provide the reader with a more in-depth, detailed description of the events that took place. Although he is writing about a catastrophic event, Mark Twain depicts his experiences in a humorous way. When the earthquake causes the consul’s wife to flee the bath wearing just a towel, Twain writes about how a man witnessing this says to his wife, “Now that is something I like! Get out your towel, my dear!” These funny anecdotes help to show the people in Twain’s story to be human and vulnerable, despite the chaos and danger surrounding them. Also, understatements are used to reach the same purpose as the humor element. Twain …show more content…
He writes about everything that happens during the earthquake, and not just what he personally sees. From the destruction of the factories and warehouses to the streets that were “humped into ridges and depressions and piled with the debris of fallen walls”, this all encompassing point of view helps to portray how large and destructive the earthquake was for the city. This also emphasizes his message about how nature is always stronger than what man is capable of. Another way that London portrays his message is through personification. Throughout the entire passage, London relates the city of San Francisco to the human body. An example of this is in the fourth paragraph where “By Wednesday afternoon, inside of twelve hours, half the heart of the city was gone.” was stated, as well as “All the shrewd contrivances and safeguards of man had been thrown out of gear by thirty seconds’ twitching of the earth’s crust.” This is used to bring a different way of looking at how man sizes up with the natural world. With all of the work put into the fortification of the city to protect from tragedies, just a little twitch from the earth’s crust and the “heart” or lifeline of the city starts a downward spiral of chaos until the city is completely dead. With that message, London shows that even the most valiant efforts by man does not even compare to the capabilities of nature. The