The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

《汤姆·索亚历险记》是美国著名小说家马克·吐温的代表作，发表于1876年。小说主人公汤姆·索亚天真活泼，富于幻想和冒险，不堪忍受束缚个性，枯燥乏味的生活，幻想干一番英雄事业。小说通过主人公的冒险经历，对美国虚伪庸俗的社会习俗、伪善的宗教仪式和刻板陈腐的学校教育进行了讽刺和批判，以欢快的笔调描写了少年儿童自由活泼的心灵。《汤姆·索亚历险记》以其浓厚的深具地方特色的幽默和对人物敏锐观察，一跃成为最伟大的儿童文学作品，也是一首美国“黄金时代”的田园牧歌。本书的姊妹篇是《哈克贝利·费恩历险记》

@美国作家马克•吐温擅长使用幽默和讽刺，对后来的美国文学产生了深远的影响。人们普遍认为他是美国文学史上的一大里程碑。 @代表作有短篇小说《竞选州长》《百万英镑》长篇小说：《汤姆·索亚历险记》《哈克贝利·费恩历险记》

Short Introduction: The story is about the unusual life of a young boy living in a Mississippi River town during a summer in the 1840s. Tom lives with his Aunt Polly, his dead mother’s sister, along with his half-brother, Sid, and his cousin, Mary. By the second chapter, Tom’s naughty characteris revealed with the well-known fence whitewashing scene. Tom meets the new girl in town, Becky Thatcher, and falls in love with her. He begins a keen flirtation with her at school, which leads to his asking her to be “engaged” with him by lunchtime of her first day. Tom’s vagabond friend Huck Finn, the town drunk’s son, asks Tom to meet him at the cemetery at midnight, to test the wart-healing properties of his dead cat. While there, the boys come across the murder of Dr. Robinson by Injun Joe during a grave robbing attempt. Muff Potter, also part of the gang, becomes a scapegoat for Injun Joe.

Tom, Huck, and another friend, Joe Harper, decide to run away from St Tom, Huck, and another friend, Joe Harper, decide to run away from St. Petersburg to Jackson’s Island, in the middle of the Mississippi. There they live the life of pirates, playing day and night. After several days, the town prepares funeral services for the boys, by this time believing they are dead. The boys, however, return to town in the middle of the Sunday church services, and they are forgiven for their mischief. As the murder trial of Muff Potter gets near, Tom feels uneasy and guilty over allowing a man he knows to be innocent to be charged with murder. On the last day of the trial, Tom is called as a surprise witness, and he fingers Injun Joe with the crime. Joe jumps out of the window and runs away. Tom and Huck find Joe and a stranger at a deserted house on the outskirts of town, and learn of hidden gold Joe is carrying. Becky Thatcher invites many of the town’s children to a picnic. Tom and Becky go wandering in a nearby cave, and get lost. Also in the cave is Injun Joe, hiding out. Just as Tom and Becky lose all hope of finding an exit, Tom finds an opening to safety. Huck and Tom return to the cave, find Joe’s treasure, and become heroes in the town.

A point of view: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a literary masterpieces, written in 1876 by the famous author Mark Twain. Tom Sawyer is a mischievous young boy who lives in the small town on the Mississippi River called St. Petersburg. The story line is simple, the book reads like a biography or a memoir of a summer in Tom Sawyer's life. Tom Sawyer seems to be the precursor of and the template for misfit kids such as Dennis the Menace, Malcolm in the Middle, and Calvin and Hobbs. What makes this story great is that Tom Sawyer represents everything that is great about childhood. The book is filled with Tom's adventures playing pirates and war with his friend Joe Harper. Tom has a trusted friend, Huck Finn, who few of the adults approve of. The book is filled with ideas of how the world works, such as how pirates and robbers work, that are so innocent, they could only come from a child. It is a story filled with action, adventure, ingenious ideas, love, and schoolyard politics. The whole story is seemingly a complication of what people did or wish they did during their childhood.