' A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court Summary

3. Everyone can reach the top level of needs, but many can not get there due to life experiences

In a Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s court, Mark Twain sets the plot of the story in the 19th century in Connecticut. After Hank Morgan is struck by a crowbar, he wakes up 13 centuries that are in the past. In the event, a night from the court of King Arthur takes him prisoner as King Arthur orders his execution. Hank becomes the prime minister to the king by escaping execution through predicting that an eclipse will block the sun if he is executed (Lupack 162). Throughout this story, the theme of inequality is evident especially since social inequality and injustice is highlighted throughout the narrative. In one instance, Hank visits a village which is full of peasants who are dressed wretchedly. There is a clear disparity between the life in the royal court and that which is lived by peasants in the field.

Hank Morgan, “the Boss” in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court is a smart, innovative, and productive man. From the beginning of the novel he wants change in Camelot. To the Yankee Camelot is too medieval and promotes the ways of savagery. Hank Morgan is an excellent character promoting the “American way” by taking a community and forcing his ways on the people, while also taking away aspects of their community they may not have wanted to get rid of, in the first place.

“Here I was, a giant among pigmies, a man among children, a master intelligence among moles…”(Twain 40). Hank forgets his own humanity and begins to believe that his knowledge makes him more of a man, just as the nobility that he shunned believed they were better than the serfs because of the titles they held.

The story takes a while to get off the ground, but perhaps it is best that way, so we can see a clear description of the steady peaceful (and somewhat dull) life Henry had before change brought

*Who is the narrator of this story? What special insight does that provide the reader? What would you understand differently if the narrator had been another character?

Realism: a Candid Analysis and Critique through Literature Realism, a genre of writing is often presented in a variety of ways to critique and to present a fictitious situation like a reporter who wants to show only what has occurred without inserting personal biases into the interpretation of the fictitious events occurring. " Po' Sandy" by Charles Waddell Chesnutt and A Connecticut Yankee at King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain both give the reader a sense of moral ambiguity as each text candidly narrates events occurring and critiques different historical moments in which the texts were written. There are varying degrees of Realism which subtly critique their own moment in history through fictional situations. One

“I’ve lived here a little over ten years. I lived on a small farm on the outskirts of Camelot until I was nine years old. I lived there with my parents and my sister. That is, until King Urien’s men raided our village and killed my family. All three of them,” he said, his voice catching ever so slightly before continuing. “Owen, another farmer and family friend was a widower. He took me in and has been a father to me ever since. He had no children so it was just the two of us. Much of my time was taken up by farming chores, but Owen knew I dreamed of being a knight and made sure I continued on with my sword lessons. He’s a good man.”

In Sir Gawain and The Green Knight, not only is Sir Gawain’s personal virtues being tested but also Camelot’s system of Chivalry.

A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur’s Court By Mark Twain was the hardest summer reading book, of the three I read, mainly due to the style of writing. The style of writing was extremely different than the two other books I read during the summer.

Twain uses powerful people of Camelot as a representation of the upper class of the American South during the late 19th century. Twain primarily uses Merlin, the “great” wizard of Camelot, as a comparison to the rich and powerful of the American South. Merlin is characterized as very selfish and power-hungry, but where in The Crucible, Miller makes a direct reference to Joseph Mccarthy, in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Twain’s comparison is between Merlin’s actions to maintain his power and to the upper class of the American South as a whole. Throughout the novel Merlin only uses his power in the society to keep his power and not help the common people. This is compatible to how the upper class of the AMerican South during Twain’s time did not use their power to help those below them, but mainly used it in order to solidify their own power. Also whenever Hank tries to help the common people of Camelot in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Merlin tries to stop him, as an improvement in the conditions of the common people means a direct decrease in the advantage of Merlin over those common people. This is comparable to how during the late 19th Century the upper class of the American south blocked help from outside sources for their poor people, because this help would disallow them from keeping

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is an 1889 novel by the American humorist and writer Mark Twain. The novel is about the tale of a hardheaded New England factory manager in the late nineteenth century named Hank, who finds himself whisked back to the time of King Arthur. When he arrives, he clashes with their old time traditions such as wearing hose and burning witches at the stake. He soon has the whole court at his feet, rising to power and thwarting the nasty schemes of the wizard Merlin. Hank had a hard time blending in with the new environment, but he ends up solving that problem. Throughout the novel as readers we can see how Hank was getting annoyed by how the society worked. Twain demonstrate his feelings toward the society, by stopping the differences between the nobility and the peasants.

Malory uses direct and indirect characterization to reveal the theme of moral courage. He does this by using Sir Gawain’s words, actions and how he progresses as a person. In this tale, Arthur and all of the Knights of the Round Table sit around laughing, enjoying the festivities of the day with an enormous feast. When, a hefty green giant storms the palace doors, with an axe in hand. The giant proposes a challenge that will test the boldness of the knights. The challenge states that, a knight of the king’s court is to swing at him with the axe. Then, a year later they must go and search out the Green Chapel so the Green Knight can return the favor. But “There is silence in Arthur’s court, no one dares to move. As the Green Knight begins to mock their cowardice, King Arthur himself steps forward to accept the challenge”. So finally, Sir Gawain steps up and “insists that he be the one to perform the test”.

“And though so much distinguished, he was wise/ and in his bearing modest as a maid” (70-71). The Knight is admired by all because of his protection and respect for them.

Briefly, Morgana had wondered if he was the type who preferred the charms of other men. There were a few among the knights, she knew, one of Camelot's most poorly guarded secrets. But that didn't seem to be it either. For men and women alike, his gaze had been kind and respectful, nothing more.