Mark Twain’s Travel Literature

This critical study analyzes major concepts in the travel literature of Mark Twain and notes how his oeuvre (including his classic works of fiction) revolves around travel as a central issue. The book focuses especially on his representations of time, place, and identity in the travel works Roughing It, A Tramp Abroad, The Innocents Abroad, Life on The Mississippi, and Following the Equator. All receive an in-depth analysis, noting Twain’s strong sense of nostalgia for the disappearing American frontier, his growing concern over the assimilation of Native American cultures, and his continual search for a sense of personal and national identity. One appendix provides a complete list of the travel literature contained in Twain’s personal library.

Harold H. Hellwig is an associate English professor and director of composition at Idaho State University. He lives in Pocatello, Idaho.

Harold H. Hellwig
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 227
Bibliographic Info: 20 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2008
pISBN: 978-0-7864-3651-4
eISBN: 978-1-4766-0002-4
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments      v

Preface      1

1. Travel as a Quest for Knowledge      7

2. Travel as a Method of Piloting the River of Life      29

3. Innocents Abroad: A Parody of Tourist Books      45

4. Roughing It: Travel as a Way to Find an Identity      61

5. A Tramp Abroad: Travel Experiment and Narrative Lapse      80

6. Life on the Mississippi: Travel as a Form of Knowledge      98

7. Following the Equator: Travel as Nostalgia, Loss and Recovery      116

8. Mark Twain’s Travel: Looking for an Identity in Fiction      144

9. Mark Twain’s Travel: Looking for Stable Time in His Fiction      163

Appendix: Travel Works Probably Read and Owned by Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain)      181

Notes      201

Bibliography      207

Index      213

“scholarly and detailed…a must”—The Midwest Book Review.