"Letters From The Earth"

Charles So

English 48B

Feb. 23 2011

Journal for Twain

Author Quote:
"When he is at this very very best he is a sort of low grade nickelplated angel; at his worst he is unspeakable, unimaginable; and first and last and all the time he is a sarcasm. Yet he blandly and in all sincerity calls himself the "noblest work of God." (310)

Internet Quote:

"Twain is able to take the silliness that is present and study it with the common sense that is absent. Not so much an attack as much as a cold dissection" (Summary of Mark Twain's Letter From The Earth by Ryan Werner suite101.com)

Summary:

Here Twain is bluntly mocking human kind and its mentality as the highest forms of life. Throughout the letters Twain accurately dissects the human psyche in regards to religion and gives a haunting perspective of ourselves and our insane ways of behaving.

Personal Opinion:

I thought this material from Twain was very deep and dark, the contradictory ideas explained by Twain about sexuality in regards to Heaven is very touchy because to me it hits the discreet nature of our society. Twain's view on human misappropriation, due in part to the "bible god" is almost sacrilegious, its no wonder his daughter was cautious about publishing this work. I thought these letters were awesome and incredibly creative, when reading the letters you get this existential feeling about life.