Adventures of Tom Sawyer & A Tramp Abroad - Essay Example

Samuel Clemens, also known as Mark Twain, was rather a money oriented artist, a trait which is often reflected in his writings. Most of his works, fictional or non-fictional, portray more or less his own personality though it is more apparent in some of his pieces (Emerson 1984). He has the skill to engage the readers with his impressive writing style, adding thrill and sometimes humor to the writings. The critiques find his writing style monotonous and dull; however his characterization creates real life characters which are often the essence of his works.

Comparing and contrasting two of his own works will reveal certain patterns and distinctive feature of his works, speaking for the versatility of his writing style. “The adventures of Tom Sawyer” published in 1876 is a unique blend of emotions and thrill which is still one of the most read novels around the globe. It is a story of Tom who is a young boy living across the Mississippi river in the St Petersburg town. This is a story of the most thrilling adventures of his life which he comes across with his companions Huck and Joe, the as stories connect the element of thrill intensifies and adds vibrancy to the story.

Tom is a mischievous young boy who trades his belonging with other kids to paint the fence for him, which he was compelled to do as a punishment. His adventurous nature takes him to the graveyard during the night to find a cure, which relates to a dead cat. During the course of this adventure Tom and Huck witness a murder which they decide to keep a secret. The three freedom loving boy Tom, Huck and Joe later leave for an island to take up their lives as pirates, while on their return the whole town appraises them, and Tom manages to win his love Becky back after being stuck with her in a cave overnight.

The story reaches its climax when Tom testifies about the murder and saves Muff Potter who was accused for the murder unjustifiably. The end of the story was open-ended which appealed more to the reader adding further interest amongst the readers. “A Tramp Abroad” follows an entirely different theme and pattern. It is a fiction piece written by Twain to raise money after his Bankruptcy, where he adds humor and satire to the travelogue. This book illustrates his journey along with his companion Harris who accompanies his through his journey to West Germany, Switzerland, Alps and Italy.

The plot revolves around the journey to these various places, where he observes different people and their reactions towards situations and describes them in interesting ways. He creates situations where he pretends to understand various situations and occurrences specific to the culture of the places he visiting; however he doesn’t understand anything in real. He thereby manages to add a tint of humor by describing an American experience in a foreign land. He also manages to characterize himself via the novel by describing his fascination for travelling and how he finds trying out various modes of transports as interesting experiences.

Though written by the same author, both books follow completely a different pattern as one is a thriller and the other is more of a travelogue. “The adventures of Tom Sawyer” is a fiction which takes out the spontaneous side of the author as it glorifies courage and chauvinism. The main characters of the story are high risk takers who come across various situations as they proceed through the novel. The essence of the story as well as the characterization lies in the diversification of situations which twain creates to justify his theme.

In other words, when the characters exhibit similar reactions of audacity while facing various situations, it gels together the theme and the plot beautifully. In contrast, “