Asher Sisneros

A Place for Twain

After going through multiple of Mark Twain’s stories for Dr. Gary North’s English class, I have discovered where Twain lies in the catalogue of American authors and whether there is a place for his humorous writings or not. Surely the vast majority of literate Americans—which, in fairness, are far and few between—agree that Twain’s writing style has a way of tickling one’s stomach muscles until he or she compulsively bursts out into laughter. It is a natural response to reading Mark Twain. The fact is that he is funny. But in a world of deeply principled Reformed Christians, one may (hypothetically) hear rebuttals against Mark Twain on a philosophical level because of his extremely atheistic personal beliefs. There is also, of course, the critique that his writing only provides amusement for amusement’s sake and it does not glorify God in any way—and arguably attacks Christian morals in his glorification of Tom Sawyer-like deceit—making it unedifying and therefore improper for Christian readers. 

From the perspective of edification, there is a strong case against Mark Twain. If anything, his writing is not edifying, and those looking for an underlying moral in his stories will be hard pressed to find one. Even he attacked the idea of an intentional moral undergirding his writing, saying this in the beginning of Huckleberry Finn: 

Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot.¹

Clearly, he only had one goal as a writer: Make people laugh. 

But is that so contemptible? Is that such a horrible motive? Sure, there are instances where humor can be inappropriate, and Christians should avoid reading such material. But is it so wrong for a writer to have no other goal than to humor his readers? The world is riddled with pressures, and the workers of the world feel the burdens of their parents. Anxiety and stress are prevalent, especially among the youth, for a variety of reasons. While the Bible calls for people to be diligent and work hard, using each minute wisely, it also says: 

A merry heart does good, like medicine, 

But a broken spirit dries the bones. 

(Proverbs 17:22)

There is a purpose for laughter and amusement. In moderation—and to the extent that does not propagate bad morals—it is healthy and good. 

Mark Twain fits that bill. Most of his writing is amusing because it points out stereotypical truths in the world and exaggerates it. Take, for example, his short story, Concerning Chambermaids. In it, he pokes fun at the differences between men and women and exaggerates the truth. Whereas men tend to arrange their affairs in terms of practicality and practicality alone, women allow poise classiness to play a factor. Twain humorously takes this truth and acts as if there is a conspiracy among women to ruin male practicality, saying: 

[Chambermaids] always put the pillow at the opposite end of the bed from the gas-burner, so that while you read and smoke before sleeping (as is the ancient and honored custom of bachelors), you have to hold your book aloft, in an uncomfortable position, to keep the light from dazzling your eyes. 

When they find the pillows removed on the other end of the bed in the morning, they receive not the suggestion in a friendly spirit; but, glorying in their absolutely sovereignty and unpitying your helplessness, they make the bed just as it was originally, and gloat in secret over the pang their tyranny will cause you.²

Obviously, nobody believes that there is genuine conspiracy among women, but the story is amusing because the differences between men and women are valid and real. Comedy is only funny and amusing if there is an element of truth to the joke, and there is no condemnation in the Bible against exposing the truth or spreading laughter and joy. The only danger Christians must vigilantly watch out for is the all-too-common trap of sluggishness. 

Another critique is that Mark Twain was himself an ardent atheist. But his writings, by and large, are agnostic. There is no heavy anti-Christian message. Even Dr. Gary North, Mr. Theonomy, says Twain was incredibly mellow in projecting his atheistic beliefs, which allowed him to become popular in Christian America.³ Again, there is hardly any underlying moral or principle in Twain’s writings, much less an anti-Christian one.

Of course reading Mark Twain will not strengthen one’s faith and turn him or her into a powerful apologist. But given that Mark Twain does not promote evil morals and causes laughter, which is healthy, I see no reason to shun him and cast his books into the burning furnace of personal contempt. On my bookshelf, there is a place for Mark Twain, and I fully expect to read him outside of compulsory school assignments.

1. Mark Twain, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, (New York, New York: Charles L. Webster & Company, 1885), “Notice” ↩︎
2.  Mark Twain, “Concerning Chambermaids, Sketches Old and New (1865), retrieved from https://www.ronpaulcurriculum.com/Twain-Sketches.pdf, p. 35 ↩︎
3.  Dr. Gary North, “Mark Twain, Part 5,” American Literature, (class lecture, Ron Paul Home School Curriculum, Dallas, GA, 2013), t. 24:05-25:18 ↩︎