Brief biography of Mark Twain


The writer, journalist and lecturer, he gave the world the literature of witty adventurers who conquered more than one generation of readers. The latter wrote that it was Twain who sang the greatness of man at a time when "the heroic beginning seemed to disappear forever." We turn to the biography of Mark Twain and recall how the author of "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" lived and became famous.

Biography of Mark Twain The writer was born on the last day of autumn of the year - November 30. He came from the judge's family. At birth, the boy received the name Samuel Langhorn Clemens. Sam became the third child in the family: he had the older brother Oraion and sister Pamela. A little later, the younger brother of Henry appeared. Three more children of Clemens - Margaret, Benjamin and Plinders - died in infancy.

Samuel’s childhood was held in the town of Hannibal, Missouri. Clemens lived poorly. And when Samuel was twelve years old, the situation worsened even more: the father of the family died of pneumonia and left the heirs a lot of debts. Trying to feed himself and relatives, the oraion began to publish his own newspaper. Samuel supported his brother and earned his work as a set of texts.

Sometimes he published his own compositions under other people's names in the newspaper. Sam always attracted the sea, so in the year he went to study at the pilot. Before the outbreak of civil war, he worked on a river steamer. In the year, the Clement brothers moved to the small city of Virginia. Samuel joined the miners producing silver, but this work did not bring the expected income.

Then Clemens got a job in the local newspaper. And then he moved to San Francisco, where he began to work at once in several publishers. He took the literary name Mark Twain, borrowed from navigable terminology. The pseudonym of Clemens is literally translated as a “deuce label” - a minimum depth suitable for walking river vessels two sea fathoms. In Twain, "The famous galloping frog from Kalaveras," came out in the story.

It was he who brought fame to the writer. The humorous story was reprinted by large American newspapers and found fans in all states. The career quickly went uphill. Mark Twain was sent on a business trip to Hawaii. There he began to publish, ways that were very popular. Returning to San Francisco, Twain discovered that he had gained literary glory.

Brief biography of Mark Twain

The writer began to give lectures with which the United States spoke. The witty statements by Mark Twain scattered into quotes. Then another business trip followed - to Europe. Twain printed notes, on the basis of which a successful novel “simpleton abroad” was written. Then such books by Mark Twain were published as: Essays “On foot in Europe”; The novel "Prince and the Beggar"; collection "Life on Mississippi"; The novel "Adventures of Geklberry Finn"; the novel "Yankees from Connecticut at the court of King Arthur"; The novel "Tom Sawyer abroad"; The story "Tom Sawyer is a detective" and other works.

The writer ridiculed social inequality, racism and corruption. The philosophical content of his work was balanced by an affordable conversational language, flavored with vernacular and humor. In the 19th century, this method was considered innovative, and it was he who allowed the name of Mark Twain to gain a foothold in the history of American literature. Personal life and family of Mark Twaine speaking about the biography of Mark Twain, one cannot help but say a few words about the family life of the writer.

In the seventies, at the peak of popularity, the writer tied his fate with the lover of Olivia Langdon. The first years of living together were unstable. The Clemens spouses often moved: they lived first in Buffalo, then in Elmir, later in Hartford. The first child of Samuel and Olivia was born prematurely and died, not having lived until two years old, and Olivia herself fell ill with a typhoid.

Mark Twain continued to give lectures and publish satirical works. His fees were enough to provide the family with a comfortable life. But even in this situation, difficulties did not retreat. The crisis of the nineties forced the Clemens to temporarily move to England. And at the beginning of the 20th century, the Publishing Company Twaine declared itself bankrupt, which also affected the state of the family.

In front of Mark Twain, three of his four children died. He also found the death of his beloved wife and friends. In the last years of his life, the writer fell into depression. But even in a depressed state, he continued to publish witty humorous texts. The point in the biography of Mark Twain was set on April 21. The nee Samuel Clemens died at the age of 75. Here are just some interesting facts from the writer’s biography: on the writer’s birthday in the sky, one could see the comet Galley.

She flew over the ground on April 20, the day before Twain's death; Samuel Clemens was born prematurely, at the age of seven months, and until seven years old suffered from poor health; Samuel did not graduate from school. After the death of his father, he was forced to leave his studies in order to earn money and feed his family; In the year, Twain, who worked as a journalist, summoned an employee of a competent newspaper to a duel.However, the writer was able to avoid the fight, having timely moved to San Francisco; The first critic to write an enthusiastic review of the novel "Simple abroad" was Mark Twain himself: he published a laudatory review anonymously; Mark Twain loved cats with all his heart: he could contain up to nineteen cats at a time; The first date of Samuel and Olivia, the future couple of Clemens, took place at the lecture by Charles Dickens; Most of Twain's lectures have not survived to this day: the writer rarely recorded his performances; One of Mark Twain's closest friends was Nikola Tesla; Twain was interested in paranormal phenomena and was in the Society of Mental Research.

Moreover, he negatively belonged to religion. But the soul must be kept in neatness ”; “True is more incredible fiction, because fiction is obliged to stay within the framework of credibility, but the truth is not”; “People who have their grief can console others”; “Humanity has one truly powerful weapon, and this is laughter”; “If you are telling only the truth, you do not need to remember anything”; "The secret of success is to start." Now you are familiar with the brief biography of Mark Twain.

At one time, the nee Clemens contributed to the development of English -speaking literature. And today, after the years of the writer's birth, his works are a universally recognized world classic. Read also:.