This is a presentation on Mark Twain and his book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

1. Mark Twain and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn By: Willie Hope, III

2. Mark Twain was born on November 30, 1835 as Samuel Longhorn Clemens in Missouri He lived In Hannibal, Missouri for most of his childhood When he was 12, Clemens’s father died Living in Hannibal inspired some of Clemens’s writings such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn When he was 21, he began to fulfill his dream of becoming a steamboat pilot. However, his dream was stalled when the Civil War began. Mark Twain’s young life

3. When the Civil War started, Clemens moved out West to Nevada and California. After trying to go after silver and gold, Clemens found work as a reporter for the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise. It was here where he adopted the pen name “Mark Twain”. Twain eventually became one of the best storytellers in the West. In February 1870, Twain married twenty-four year old Olivia (Livy) Langdon, the daughter of a rich New York merchant. The couple had four children. Twain out west

4. Twain’s breakthrough with books In 1876, Twain published The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Shortly after that, he started writing the sequel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In 1881, Twain published The Prince and the Pauper. In 1883, he published Life on the Mississippi. In 1889, he published A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. In 1894, Twain published The Tragedy of Pudd'nheadWilson.

5. His last years were filled with many public awards. He received his degrees from Oxford and Yale. Twain was regarded as a celebrity and an entertainer. However, in 1896 his favorite daughter Susy died at age 24 with spinal meningitis. In 1909, his younger daughter Jean died of a heart attack at age 29. In 1904, Livy died after battling with a long illness. Twain was often traveling while she was sick. Mark Twain eventually died on April 21, 1910 at the age of 74 in Connecticut. Mark Twain’s Final years

6. The Adventures of huckleberry finnSummary One of Twain’s most famous books was The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The story is about a young boy who loves adventure. Huck Finn decides to run away on an adventure. To escape his crazy father, Huck fakes his death. During his adventure, Huck meets his friend Jim, a slave on his foster family’s plantation. Jim has run away because he heard that he was going to be sold away from his family. Huck decides to help Jim escape. The two go on many adventures, including escaping a steamboat, meeting two con men, and living with other families. While they are with the con men, who are posing as a dead man’s brothers, Huck finds out that Jim has been thrown in jail for Huck’s murder and for being a runaway slave. While that is going on, the con men are caught in their lies when the real brothers of the dead man show up. Huck escapes the crowd and frees Jim with the help of his friend Tom Sawyer. When the three are trying to run away, Tom is shot in the calf by a mob trying to catch the boys. When they get him, the mob is ready to kill Jim. However, a doctor saves Jim’s life by telling the mob that Jim was helping save Tom Sawyer’s life. They also all find out that Miss Watson died two months ago and in her will set Jim free. In the end, Jim tells Huck that his father died on the steamboat and Huck decides to go west to seek more adventures.

7. Key characters Huck Finn – Huck was the protagonist in the story. Huck is a 13 year old boy who’s father is an alcoholic and has a knack for adventure. He is very imaginative, and this is shown when he lies throughout the book. Tom Sawyer – Tom is Huck’s best friend. Just like Huck, Tom loves adventure and is very imaginative. Some of Huck’s imagination is influenced by Tom. He features in the book The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. However Tom is in many ways the opposite of Huck. He is very stubborn, and sometimes does some cruel and stupid things.

8. Key characters (continued) Widow Douglas – She adopts Huck and tries to civilize him. Miss Watson – She is the sister of Widow Douglas. She teaches Huck how to read and right. Both sisters are very rich. Jim – Miss Watson’s slave who runs away when he hears that he is going to be sold. He is also Huck’s best friend. Pap – Huck’s father who is always drunk and very violent. He kidnaps Huck for money.

9. Key characters (continued) The Duke – He is a scheming con man who wants to be treated like a duke. He pretends to be Peter Wilks dead and deaf brother, William, but is caught in his lies and is tarred and feathered. The King – He and the Duke are partners. He also wants to be treated like a king. He pretends to be Peter Wilks brother, Harvey. He too is tarred and feathered when he is caught in his lies.