Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Official website of the State –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
On November 30, 1835, the day Halley's Comet reappeared over Missouri for the first time in 75 years, Samuel Langhorne Clemens was born in a Florida village. He became a writer whose name, Mark Twain, has gone down in history as a symbol of freedom, honesty, and a keen wit capable of subtly and good-naturedly ridiculing hypocrisy, bigotry, and xenophobia.
What's in a name?
The writer chose a real shipping term for his pen name: "Mark Twain! Mark two!" the riverboat crews would shout as they sounded the channel of the fickle and treacherous Mississippi. This meant that there was a minimum depth of two meters ahead, meaning that vessels following the pilot would not run aground. For Clemens, who grew up on the banks of North America's main river, this command became more than just a nickname. It was a stance on life: move forward, avoid shallows, and lead the way.
Samuel was the sixth child of a small merchant. His father died early, leaving the family in debt. The boy went to work—first as a typesetter's apprentice at his brother's newspaper, then traveling to New York, Philadelphia, and Cincinnati for work. In the evenings, the future classic of children's literature went to the library to compensate for his lack of education. In 1857, he became an apprentice pilot on the Mississippi, and by 1859, he had earned his license—and thus the mighty Mississippi became his school, university, and first muse.
When the Civil War broke out in America, Clemens fought for two weeks on the Southern side, but, realizing the futility of the conflict, he left for Nevada to join his brother, a government official. Samuel first tried his hand at gold mining, then found a job at The Territorial Enterprise, where he first signed his name as "Mark Twain." The budding writer's first success came in 1865 with the short story "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County." It was the story of a wondrous amphibian that somehow learned to leap farther than anyone else. The story spread across the United States and became incredibly popular because its sparkling humor concealed serious themes. After all, Twain wrote about ordinary people, their ingenuity, dreams, and naivety, using their language and without embellishment.
In 1867, Mr. Mark traveled to Europe and the Middle East as a correspondent. His travel notes and letters formed the basis of his book, The Innocents Abroad (1869). To ensure its success, he himself wrote an anonymous, enthusiastic review and published it in the press. This wasn't a deception, but rather an understanding of the reader's soul and a belief in his own word.
Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn
In 1870, Twain married Olivia Langdon, a woman from a wealthy family who became his moral compass. They moved to Hartford, Connecticut, where they built a house that is now a National Historic Landmark. It was here that he wrote his most important works.
In 1876, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was published—a book conceived as a third-person autobiography. But Twain felt Tom was too perfect, too heroic. He wanted to create a truly living character. And in 1884, Huckleberry Finn was born—a novel that Ernest Hemingway called the origin of all American literature. Huck is a boy who speaks "bad" English, steals food, disbelieves in school, but has a clearer conscience than many eminent adults. When Huckleberry decides he'd rather go to hell than betray his black friend, the escaped slave Jim, it's not rebellion. It's a choice for humanity in a world where laws permit people to be enslaved.
Of course, there was a huge scandal, because racial prejudice hadn't yet disappeared. In 1885, the book was removed from the Concord library for being "coarse and obscene." Newspapers wrote that it was "more suited to the slums than to polite citizens." But that was precisely its strength: Twain wrote not for salons, but for life. He wasn't afraid to be uncomfortable, criticizing racism, imperialism, cruelty, and the hypocrisy of the press. Incidentally, the writer was a member of the American Anti-Imperial League, opposed the annexation of the Philippines, and wrote scathing pamphlets ridiculing the theory of the "chosen people" and the "civilizing mission" of the United States.
Eternal pilot of dignity
Mark Twain wasn't particularly fortunate in business. In the 1890s, his publishing company went bankrupt. He invested in an automatic printing press, but it never worked. To pay off his creditors, Twain abandoned bankruptcy and embarked on a worldwide lecture tour, intending to personally repay every debt—an act of moral dignity.
During these years, he wrote "Personal Memories of Joan of Arc," his most serious and moving prose. He also wrote "Puddock Wilson," which, in his playful vein, once again raised the issue of racial inequality. After the death of his wife in 1904, Mr. Mark fell into a deep depression. Two daughters died: Susie from meningitis, and Jean from epilepsy. The writer even ruefully joked that life was a walk through a cemetery.
In his final years, Mark Twain dictated his autobiography—not for his contemporaries, but for the future. Therefore, he forbade its publication until 100 years after his death. The archives were opened in 2010: the world once again heard his voice—clear, ironic, prophetic.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens died on April 21, 1910, the year of Halley's Comet's return. His ashes lie in Elmira, New York, next to his wife and children, and a crater on Mercury bears his name. Quotes from Twain adorn school and university walls, courtrooms, collections of aphorisms, and websites. His books are read in Russia and everywhere else where boldness of thought and honesty of speech are valued.
He once said: truth is always stronger than fiction—because fiction must be believable, but truth must not. It's been 115 years since Mark Twain passed away, but he still leads us all, preventing us from running aground on the shallows of despair and stupidity.
Subscribe to the "Our GUU" Telegram channel. Publication date: November 30, 2025.
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source. It represents an accurate account of the source's assertions and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
