内容简介
TheAdventuresofTomSawyer,byMarkTwain,ispartoftheBarnes&NobleClassicsseries,whichoffersqualityeditionsataffordablepricestothestudentandthegeneralreader,includingnewscholarship,thoughtfuldesign,andpagesofcarefullycraftedextras.HerearesomeoftheremarkablefeaturesofBarnes&NobleClassics:Alleditionsarebeautifullydesignedandareprintedtosuperiorspecifications;someincludeillustrationsofhistoricalinterest.Barnes&NobleClassicspullstogetheraconstellationofinfluences—biographical,historical,andliterary—toenricheachreader'sunderstandingoftheseenduringworks.Perhapsthebest-lovednineteenth-centuryAmericannovel,MarkTwain’staleofboyhoodadventureoverflowswithcomedy,warmth,andslapstickenergy.Itbringstolifeandarrayofirresistiblecharacters—theawesomelyself-confidentTom,hisbestbuddyHuckFinn,indulgentAuntPolly,andthelovely,beguilingBecky—aswellassuchunforgettableincidentsaswhitewashingafence,swearinganoathinblood,andgettinglostinadarkandlabyrinthinecave.BelowTomSawyer’ssunnysurfacelurkhintsofadarkerreality,ofyouthfulinnocenceandna?vetéconfrontingthecruelty,hypocrisy,andfoolishnessoftheadultworld—athemethatwouldbecomemorepronouncedinTwain’sAdventuresofHuckleberryFinn.Despitesuchsuggestions,TomSawyerremainsTwain’sjoyfulodetotheendlesspossibilitiesofchildhood.H.DanielPeckisJohnGuyVassarProfessorofEnglishatVassarCollegeandistheauthorofThoreau’sMorningWorkandAWorldbyItself:ThePastoralMomentinCooper’sFiction.
作者简介
MarkTwainRiverboatpilot,journalist,failedbusinessman(severaltimesover):SamuelClemens--themanbehindthefigureof“MarkTwain”--ledmanylives.ButitwasinhisnovelsandshortstoriesthathecreatedavoiceandanoutlookonlifethatwillbeforeveridentifiedwiththeAmericancharacter.BiographyMarkTwainwasbornSamuelLanghorneClemensonNovember30,1835,inFlorida,Missouri;hisfamilymovedtotheporttownofHannibalfouryearslater.Hisfather,anunsuccessfulfarmer,diedwhenTwainwaseleven.Soonafterwardtheboybeganworkingasanapprenticeprinter,andbyagesixteenhewaswritingnewspapersketches.HeleftHannibalateighteentoworkasanitinerantprinterinNewYork,Philadelphia,St.Louis,andCincinnati.From1857to1861heworkedonMississippisteamboats,advancingfromcubpilottolicensedpilot.AfterrivershippingwasinterruptedbytheCivilWar,TwainheadedwestwithhisbrotherOrion,whohadbeenappointedsecretarytotheNevadaTerritory.SettlinginCarsonCity,hetriedhisluckatprospectingandwrotehumorouspiecesforarangeofnewspapers.AroundthistimehefirstbeganusingthepseudonymMarkTwain,derivedfromariverboatterm.RelocatingtoSanFrancisco,hebecamearegularnewspapercorrespondentandacontributortotheliterarymagazinetheGoldenEra.Hemadeafive-monthjourneytoHawaiiin1866andthefollowingyeartraveledtoEuropetoreportonthefirstorganizedtouristcruise.TheCelebratedJumpingFrogofCalaverasCountyandOtherSketches(1867)consolidatedhisgrowingreputationashumoristandlecturer.AfterhismarriagetoLivyLangdon,TwainsettledfirstinBuffalo,NewYork,andthenfortwodecadesinHartford,Connecticut.HisEuropeansketcheswereexpandedintoTheInnocentsAbroad(1869),followedbyRoughingIt(1872),anaccountofhisWesternadventures;bothwereenormouslysuccessful.Twain'sliterarytriumphswereoffsetbyoftenill-advisedbusinessdealings(hesankthousandsofdollars,forinstance,inafailedattempttodevelopanewkindoftypesettingmachine,andthousandsmoreintohisownultimatelyunsuccessfulpublishinghouse)andunrestrainedspendingthatlefthiminfrequentfinancialdifficulty,apatternthatwastopersistthroughouthislife.FollowingTheGildedAge(1873),writtenincollaborationwithCharlesDudleyWarner,TwainbeganaliteraryexplorationofhischildhoodmemoriesoftheMississippi,resultinginatrioofmasterpieces--TheAdventuresofTomSawyer(1876),LifeontheMississippi(1883),andfinallyTheAdventuresofHuckleberryFinn(1885),onwhichhehadbeenworkingfornearlyadecade.Anothervein,ofhistoricalromance,foundexpressioninThePrinceandthePauper(1882),thesatiricalAConnecticutYankeeinKingArthur'sCourt(1889),andPersonalRecollectionsofJoanofArc(1896),whilehecontinuedtodrawonhistravelexperiencesinATrampAbroad(1880)andFollowingtheEquator(1897).HiscloseassociatesintheseyearsincludedWilliamDeanHowells,BretHarte,andGeorgeWashingtonCable,aswellasthedyingUlyssesS.Grant,whomTwainencouragedtocompletehismemoirs,publishedbyTwain'spublishingcompanyin1885.Formostofthe1890sTwainlivedinEurope,ashislifetookadarkerturnwiththedeathofhisdaughterSusyin1896andtheworseningillnessofhisdaughterJean.ThetoneofTwain'swritingalsoturnedprogressivelymorebitter.TheTragedyofPudd'nheadWilson(1894),adetectivestoryhingingontheconsequencesofslavery,wasfollowedbypowerfulanti-imperialistandanticolonialstatementssuchas'TothePersonSittinginDarkness'(1901),'TheWarPrayer'(1905),and'KingLeopold'sSoliloquy'(1905),andbythepessimisticsketchescollectedintheprivatelypublishedWhatIsMan?(1906).TheunfinishednovelTheMysteriousStrangerwasperhapsthemostuncompromisinglydarkofallTwain'slaterworks.Inhislastyears,hisfinancialtroublesfinallyresolved,TwainsettlednearRedding,Connecticut,anddiedinhismansion,Stormfield,onApril21,1910.AuthorbiographycourtesyofRandomHouse,Inc.AlsoKnownAs:SamuelLanghorneClemens(realname);SieurLouisdeConteDateofBirth:十一月30,1835PlaceofBirth:Florida,MissouriDateofDeath:四月21,1910PlaceofDeath:Redding,Connecticut
