The Significance of Twins in Search of an Identity - Essay Example

Milton Cross The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson: The Significance of Twins in Search of an Identity Twain uses twinsand duality both as a device of the story and a tool to explore opposites and identity. Among the dualities he uses are the babies switched in the cradle, the Siamese twins Luigi and Angelo, the character of Pudd'nhead Wilson, the Free-Thinker's Society, the rum and anti-rum factions (the Sons of Liberty), the two disguises of Tom's (the young girl and the old woman), and the freethinkers vs. the Presbyterians. The twins are two different sides of the one personality, representing the fusion of positive and negative, good and bad in the same person; in a nutshell, "good twin, evil twin." This theme of doubling goes even deeper. Symbolic or figurative twins appear in the story. Slavery vs. freedom is a theme intertwined with identity and takes many forms. The motif of the Italian twins is intertwined with the theme of Tom and Chambers and intelligence is presented alongside stupidity. The use of twins evolves into a search for identity, which weaves itself throughout the events of the story. Coupled with the search is Twains assertion that each person may mask his identity, but everyone is unique and cannot disguise the true self. Tom and Chambers Tom and Chambers, though not twins by blood, are doubles who are contrasted, as well as linked. They were both born on the same day (24) and even the Judge could not tell them apart. Roxy says to Pudd'nhead, "Oh, I kin tell 'em 'part, Misto Wilson, but I bet Marse Percy couldn't, not to save his life" (30). Though they look alike, they are opposites. Tom is cruel and wanton owing to a pampered and dissipated childhood, while Chambers is an upright person, grown strong through hard work and a disciplined upbringing. They are also linked. Tom lives through Chambers; he stole "by proxy" since "Chambers did his stealing" (42). False Tom, himself, embodies several dualities. He uses two disguises, both of the opposite sex. Within these disguises is the duality of one being a young girl and the other being an old woman (102). Another is his false conduct toward the Judge as the good son and the reality of his behavior as a wanton gambler and spendthrift. The flip side of this is the Judge's attitude toward false Tom. Wilson explains to the twins that false Tom is a devil who is an angel to the judge (139). Twins-Luigi and Angelo Luigi and Angelo Capello are the second set of twins introduced into the story. They, too, support the theme of doubling, but also expand upon it as well. The concept that they are physically joined, Siamese twins is implied when they speak about themselves as only one person, "[. . . ] we were their only child" (52). Also, when speaking of the man that tried to kill Angelo, Luigi says, "If I had let the man kill him, wouldn't he have killed me too" (85) Angelo and Luigi, though joined, are opposites in several ways: one is fair one is not; one is a drinker, the other is not (88). They even differ in their perceptions-one liking Tom, the other not trusting him (80). Their very introduction into the community carries a duality. The relationship with Aunt Patsy contrasts formality with familiarity. The two noblemen are not treated with ceremony. "All constraint and formality quickly disappeared, and the friendliest feeling succeeded. Aunt Patsy called them by their Christian names almost from the beginning (51). Pudd'nhead Wilson Each member of the two sets of twins represents an opposite of the other. Compare this with Pudd'nhead Wilson, who holds the duality within himself. He is known as the town fool, hence the nickname "Pudd'nhead." However, Roxie recognizes that he is smarter than the people of Dawson's Landing believe. "Dey ain't but one man dat I's afeard of, en dat's dat Pudd'nhead Wilson. Dey calls him a pudd'nhead, en says he's a fool. My lan, dat man ain't no mo' fool den I is! He's de smartes' man in dis town, lessn' it's Jedge Driscoll or maybe Pem Howard." (38) It is interesting that Pudd'nhead creates a non-existent "twin," the "missing confederate," whom he believes to be a woman (147). He uses this label to describe the partner in crime who leaves the fingerprints on the knife. Freethinkers and Presbyterians He is a member of the Free-thinkers' society, another device that plays on the theme of duality. However, it is an example of opposites in harmony. The membership consists of two people-Judge Driscoll, the chief citizen of Dawson's Landing (23) and David Wilson, the alleged fool. The two opposites in the community, the one who matters most and the one who matters least are joined in harmony of thought and belief as freethinkers, the only ones who could be freethinkers and still maintain their places in society (49). The friendship of Judge Driscoll and Pembroke Howard is another example of opposites in harmony, as freethinkers are juxtaposed against Presbyterians. "Although Driscoll was a freethinker and Howard a strong and determined Presbyterian, their warm intimacy suffered no impairment in consequence" (93). Slave vs. Free Slave contrasted against free is another concept that presents opposite sides of the same coin. This recurring theme takes a number of different forms. Most prominent is the relationship between Tom and Chambers as master and slave. This is a social commentary on the gross injustice of racial prejudice-both children look the same and the switch equalizes them in essence-either one was capable of having the privileged life. However, it is also much more. Twain makes the point through the Tom/Chambers relationship that training and environment are what determine character, not race and breeding. "Training is everything. The peach was once a bitter almond; cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education." -Pudd'nhead Wilson's Calendar (46) After the real Tom is restored to his proper role, he cannot overcome his upbringing. He could not read and write, nor could he overcome his vulgar and uncouth bearing, gait, speech, and manners, which were those of a slave (167). Roxie physically journeys between slave and free, and even master and slave. However, she remains a slave to the truth that she switched the children. She begins a slave. When she switches the babies, she becomes a slave to false Tom, her son. Roxie regressed from being his mother to being his slave. "[. . .] [B]y the fiction created by herself, he was become her master;" She practices being his slave until it "[. . .] soon concreted itself into habit; it became automatic and unconscious" (41). Roxie achieves physical freedom when the judge frees her. Once she reveals the truth to false Tom, he becomes her slave, even kneeling to her (67). He, too, becomes a slave to the truth. Then he sells her down the river and she becomes a slave in reality, once again. After she escapes, false Tom becomes a slave to her yet again and does what she tells him. Roxie protects her physical liberty by safeguarding the bill of sale. However, even though she is free physically, she is always a slave to the truth of her deed-she switched the babies. She is never free of this truth, and when it unfolds in the courtroom, she is destroyed by it. "[T]he spirit in her eye was quenched, her martial bearing departed with it, and the voice of her laughter ceased in the land" (167). References to slave and free in other contexts are liberally sprinkled throughout the book. Luigi and Angelo were in slavery to debt and were forced to exhibit themselves to repay the money owed (53). However, after they worked their way out of their slavery, they were men, they had an independent identity (53). Pudd'nhead Wilson is a slave to public opinion, which keeps him from practicing law for 23 years. Even the rum and anti-rum factions embody the theme of slavery and freedom while contrasting opposites. The pro-rum group, the "Sons of Liberty" refer to themselves as "[. . .] the paradise of the free and perdition of the slave" (88). The real Tom is a slave to the fake Tom and is abused throughout his life because of his status as slave. Even the truth cannot liberate him from his upbringing and he feels more at home in the kitchen than he does in the parlor. Even fancy clothes cannot cover what he is. Twain concedes one circumstance where the distinction between slave and free does not exist. There is no difference between white and black where the love of a mother is concerned. Roxie says, "In de inside, mothers is all de same" (123). The Search for Identity The use of twins is a path to discovering one's identity. Several characters seem to evolve while journeying to find themselves. But Twain emphasizes that the underlying person does not change, even in a state of mental and moral upheaval, they merely appear to change. Tom and Chambers lose their true selves when Roxie switches them and each is brought up as the other. Chambers was referred to as "'Tom Driscoll's nigger pappy,'-to signify that he had had a second birth into this life, and that Chambers was the author of his new being" (p. 44). This was quite true since the false Tom was born from usurping the real Tom's identity and would not have existed but for the existence of the real Tom. However, just the knowledge of the truth is enough to change false Tom's perception of himself. His sense of self was disrupted. He spent time thinking, trying to get his bearings. He adopted "nigger" behavior (75). Tom imagined that his character had undergone a pretty radical change. But that was because he did not know himself. In several ways his opinions were totally changed, and would never go back to what they were before, but the main structure of his character was not changed, and could not be changed. (76) The trial focuses attention on the identity motif and enlarges it to expound on the uniqueness of the individual. Palmistry is one device that Twain uses to expose a person's identity (83-84). Fingerprints are used in a similar way, but delve deeper into the identity issue by representing one's uniqueness. They also symbolize a person's inability to change the nature of his true self. False Tom, under a misconception declares, "The hand print of one twin is the same as the hand print of the fellow twin" (81). However, Pudd'nhead states that fingerprints are marks that one is always identified with (158), and no two are alike (155). Furthermore, a person is incapable of hiding their true identity. Fingerprints are marks with which one is always identified (158) and no disguise will hide the truth the fingerprints tell (161). The irony in the Conclusion of the book is that the town finally recognizes Pudd'nhead's intelligence and perspicacity (166). His true identity is revealed. All it took was for him to reveal another's identity-Judge Driscoll's killer and the baby switched in the cradle-the real Valet de Chambre. Works Cited Twain, Mark. The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson. New York: The New American Library, Inc., 1964. Read More