Race has been and always will be a subject that will have different opinions and ideas about it. Mark Twain uses his novel “Pudd’nhead Wilson” to express his thoughts on race in a variety of ways. There are some plausible reasons to believe that Twain thinks blood essentially defines a character. However, it seems as if he states these in a joking matter in many cases. Also, the idea of nature versus nurture is a key factor in identifying the views Mark Twain has on race and it seems to outweigh any thought that can point towards race being able to define character. Mark Twain uses a variety of situations to explain how an individual’s character through the lives of the characters Tom and Chambers. Looking at these two characters throughout
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Race was an irrelevant aspect of life when it came to Mark Twain and through the upbringings of Tom and Chambers the reader can see that. Twain uses a black baby being raised as white and a white baby being raised as a black slave with neither of the two knowing their true identity and explains how each got their personality and physical abilities based off the environments each endured. When Tom and Chambers were infants Roxy switched them so Chambers could receive a better life and be treated and raised as a white human being even though he has black in his blood. While growing up Tom, which was actually Chambers, would abuse Chambers, which was actually Tom, and whenever Chambers would fight back it “had cost him very dear at headquarters” (Twain, 77). Tom was viewed as a white child so he was raised to believe he could disrespect Chambers with zero consequences because Chambers was thought to be an African American and a slave. When a child realizes that he can get away with something …show more content…
This idea began to run through his mind and started to make him crazy in a sense because he was terrified that his true identity would get out. He began to do uncharacteristic things such as not extending his hand for a hand shake. Tom believed that it was “the ‘nigger’ in him asserting its humility” (118). Growing up Tom believed that the African American race was worthless, nothing compared to the whites, and that the entire race should worship the ground that whites walk on. Once Tom found out he was actually apart of this group, that he was trained his entire life to be ashamed of, it shattered him mentally. Being apart of the white community for so long he started to feel the humility that he inflicted onto the black individuals. Tom started to struggle with his self worth because he is this human being that he went most of his life looking down on. Tom found “the ‘nigger’ in him involuntarily giving the road, on the sidewalk, to the white rowdy loafer” (118). Even though Tom was raised with all the white privileges he still witnessed how the black community was trained to act. Once Tom found out he was black it was as if the black in his blood caused him to take in all that training as well and his mind was causing him to think less of himself. Tom was used to having African Americans defer to
Race was an irrelevant aspect of life when it came to Mark Twain and through the upbringings of Tom and Chambers the reader can see that. Twain uses a black baby being raised as white and a white baby being raised as a black slave with neither of the two knowing their true identity and explains how each got their personality and physical abilities based off the environments each endured. When Tom and Chambers were infants Roxy switched them so Chambers could receive a better life and be treated and raised as a white human being even though he has black in his blood. While growing up Tom, which was actually Chambers, would abuse Chambers, which was actually Tom, and whenever Chambers would fight back it “had cost him very dear at headquarters” (Twain, 77). Tom was viewed as a white child so he was raised to believe he could disrespect Chambers with zero consequences because Chambers was thought to be an African American and a slave. When a child realizes that he can get away with something …show more content…
This idea began to run through his mind and started to make him crazy in a sense because he was terrified that his true identity would get out. He began to do uncharacteristic things such as not extending his hand for a hand shake. Tom believed that it was “the ‘nigger’ in him asserting its humility” (118). Growing up Tom believed that the African American race was worthless, nothing compared to the whites, and that the entire race should worship the ground that whites walk on. Once Tom found out he was actually apart of this group, that he was trained his entire life to be ashamed of, it shattered him mentally. Being apart of the white community for so long he started to feel the humility that he inflicted onto the black individuals. Tom started to struggle with his self worth because he is this human being that he went most of his life looking down on. Tom found “the ‘nigger’ in him involuntarily giving the road, on the sidewalk, to the white rowdy loafer” (118). Even though Tom was raised with all the white privileges he still witnessed how the black community was trained to act. Once Tom found out he was black it was as if the black in his blood caused him to take in all that training as well and his mind was causing him to think less of himself. Tom was used to having African Americans defer to