The Effect Samuel Clemens’ Mississippi River Childhood Had on The Books Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn
...terest young Sam . Throughout his childhood he dreamed of being a riverboat pilot. He and most of his friends all agreed that steamboat piloting was the best job ever. For many years Sam thrived to get a job working on steamboats. He eventually fulfilled his childhood dream of becoming a riverboat pilot . Sam had many childhood friends and these friends formed a special bond because they were all very close. His gang of friends was always getting in to some kind of mischief in the town. Dixon Wecter said in his book Sam Clemens of Hannibal, “In Hannibal Sam grew stronger in body and more aware of the world about him. ” Sam said that his youth along the Mississippi River was the only part of his life worth living over again. Sam’s dad died when Sam was very young. This forced Sam to work to help support the family, giving him great responsibility even though he was very young . Although his family was highly respected within their society, Sam was unconcerned as he ran around barefoot with the social outcasts. Sam took many things from his childhood and used them in the books Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. Many people say that Sam Clemens based Tom Sawyer’s appearance after himself as a child and Sam said that he and Tom’s behavior were very similar. He based many characters in his books on people he knew in real life. Huck Finn was based on a boy named Tom Blankenship who had no dad . Also Injun Joe was based on real man in Hannibal who died by starving in a cave. Although he was a mean man, the Injun Joe in Tom Sawyer was an exaggeration of the real man . Clemens also included many town happenings from his childhood in his writing like people drowning and house fires. Many popular stories and places of his childhood are also used in his books. The Clemens’ slave told Sam many stories which stuck in his mind until it came time to write his books. Also his uncle’s farm, his childhood schoolhouse, and his father’s grave are all settings in the books Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. The books Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn are very unique books and so are the characters in these books. Although the ages of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn are not stated in Clemens’ books, it is recognized that they are about nine or ten years old by their speech and actions. They played pranks on the people of the town which did not make them very popular. Both of them did not really like civilization very much because it meant they could not go on night time adventures and do other things along the river. Two things that these boys have in common was their zeal for adventure and a belief in superstition. Tom lived in a strange world filled with things of make-believe and he was pretty good with the ladies. Tom secretly had a crush on a girl named Becky Thatcher. He had a good heart and a pretty strong moral conscience though. Towards the end of Tom Sawyer he realizes he must take seriously the responsibility of being a role model to his friends. Tom and his friends loved to play alongside the river and sometimes he and his friends would go night exploring. Tom and his buddies did not really mind what society thought about them . In the story of Tom Sawyer, Samuel Clemens shows of a young boy maturing and leaving his adolescence behind him. Another character which Clemens wrote about was Huck Finn. Huck was similar to Tom in many ways, but he was also very different. Because Huck had no dad he was forced to live by himself, helping him develop good common sense. Huck was much more mentally mature than Tom because he had to learn to fend for himself. Huck’s maturity also made him more serious about a lot of other things in life. Young Huck had a good heart and was always wiling to help someone. Huck was always the envy of all the boys because of the freedom he had because of no parents. Although he w...