Thursday Week 6 Post

Week 6 Reading Journal

List all the institutions and figures satirized in Mark Twain’s The Innocents Abroad excerpt on travels in Rome. How is each depicted by Twain? (ie. Italian clergymen: hypocritical, having penchant for violence, miserly, exploitative of public goods and Italian people).

The number of institutions and figures satirized by Twain is incredible: essentially everyone mentioned is in satire and no one is left alone.

Italy in general is shown as unconcerned with its people, and the people are portrayed as ignorant.

The Italian clergy is satirized in that they are shown as concerned with no one but themselves, and the catholic church is shown as decadent.

The Medici are shown as Tyrannical.

Many artists of the Renaissance (Titian, Raphael) are portrayed as dishonorable. Michaelangelo’s followers are shown as blind followers who idealize him and his work.

American women are portrayed as silly and their fashions are unnecessary and ridiculous.

Americans in general are shown as ignorant and lazy.

Relics are shown as irrational and unbelievable.

Cite six moments in the text where Twain’s word choice creates humor; identify which word(s) in each of these citations provokes amusement or “surprise” in the reader. What are the devices Twain is employing to achieve this effect?

“They do not call it confiscating the Church property. That would sound too harshly yet.”
Word: confiscating
Devices: This is making fun of the way that they’re using specific wording to cover up what’s really going on and to make it sound better than it is, though all know the truth.

“They thought I wanted to take the town, likely. Little did they know me. I wouldn’t have it”
Word: I wouldn’t have it
Devices: This sentence surprises the reader because they are expecting Twain to state that he wouldn’t take the town in general, because that would be wrong or bad or immoral, but instead he wouldn’t take it because he didn’t want it.

“And so I explained and explained and explained, and they took notes of all I said, but the more I explained, the more they could not understand it, and when they desisted at last, I could not even understand it myself…”
This is making fun of the ignorance of the Italian people and how they are too thick to get a joke, and it surprises the reader by showing that they over analyzed the joke so much that it finally confused Twain.

“Under the circumstances, the woman’s conduct was pardonable, perhaps, but we suggest that such exhibitions interfere with the decorum which should be preserved during the performances, and are highly improper in the presence of the emperor.”
Word: pardonable, perhaps and highly improper
This is making fun of how gory the Coliseum was and how perhaps a woman freaking out at her sons death could be understandable, perhaps, but that is wasn’t prudent in the present company of the emperor and that interfered with the “decorum”.

“Marcus Marcellus Valerian (stage name – his real name is Smith)”
This is making fun of the true Roman names, and kind of playing with the audience. It would be ridiculous is a Roman was named Smith.

“I used to worship the mighty genius of Michelangelo – that man who was great in poetry, paining, sculpture, architecture – great in everything he undertook. But I do not want Michelangelo for breakfast-for luncheon-for dinner-for tea-for supper-for in between meals. I like a change occasionally…. I never felt so fervently thankful, so soothed, so tranquil, so filled with a blessed peace as I did yesterday when I learned that Michelangelo was dead.”
This portion of the story is making fun of the obsession with Michelangelo and how the public is so entirely focused on him and everything he does. The surprise comes when he sets up Michelangelo as a “mighty genius” then knocks him down by saying that he’s had too much of him, and later that he’s happy that Michelangelo is dead!!!