FREE ESSAY ON TOM S

TOM S

I. Introduction A. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain B. This type of book is
realistic fiction. C. The main character is Thomas Sawyer, a twelve year old boy, whose
parents are dead. Tom lives with his aunt, Polly. Tom is busy either making trouble or
thinking up new schemes. Another character is Huckelberry Finn, hated by all mothers and
loved by all children. Tom is friends with Huck and they share many adventures together.
Becky Thatcher, the daughter of a judge, who likes Tom but sometimes fights with him.
Injun Joe is an indian who kills someone named Dr. Robinson and makes everyone believe
that the real killer is a man named Muff Potter. Mr. Potter, a nice man, helps Tom and
Huck to fish and fly kites. D. This story takes place in St. Petersburg, Missouri, in the
mid-1800's. E. The main problem in this story is the many ways which Tom tries to avoid
Injun Joe because as a witness to the murder of Dr. Robinson, Injun Joe is trying to kill
Tom. Poor Tom also has to deal with being punished on a Saturday when he could be out
playing. The last problem is how Becky and Tom will escape from a cave. II. Tom, Sid,
Tom' half brother, and Tom's Aunt Polly were sitting down at the table eating supper.
Aunt Polly asked Tom questions hinting that she suspected him of playing hooky and going
swimming instead of going to school. Aunt Polly gave up but then Sid pointed out that Tom
had a different color thread than the one Aunt Polly sewed on Tom's collar. Tom's
punishment was to whitewash the fence, but Tom wanted to go out and play. Tom used
reverse psychology to make his friends think that whitewashing was an honor and they even
gave him trinkets for the honor of whitewashing the fence. At school, Tom meets a new
girl, Becky Thatcher, daughter of Judge Thatcher. Becky and Tom both like each other but
Tom mentioned that he was engaged to Amy, and Becky hated him for it. Tom and his friend
Huck go to the cemetery with a dead cat, a supposed wart cure. While at the cemetery they
see Injun Joe kill Dr. Robinson while blaming Muff Potter. Both Tom and Huck swear to
themselves that they will not say a thing about the murder. One day when looking for
treasures in a haunted house, Tom and Huck overhear Injun Joe talking with another man
about finding treasures. Tom and Huck decide to track the men in order to find the
treasures which the men hide in the number 2. Becky invites Tom to a picnic and they both
end up getting lost inside a cave. Finally they find an opening in the cave and slip out
without Injun Joe, who was there, realizing that Tom and Becky were there too. Becky's
father decides to seal the cave so that no one will get lost in there. Tom asks that
Judge Thatcher open the cave and they find Injun Joe's dead body. Tom returns to the cave
with Huck and they notice a number 2 printed on the wall, the mark of the hidden
treasure. Tom and Huck find the treasures under a big rock and bring their wealth back
with them from the cave. III. A. My favorite character is Huck Finn because he is so free
and doesn't worry about school or parents. He has the freedom to pick up Tom in the
middle of the night and not worry about being caught. While the other children in the
book are at school, Huck is relaxing and probably smoking without being criticized or
punished for doing it. IV. I enjoyed reading this book because it has many ideas and
adventures that I can easily relate to. This book was not hard to follow but it did have
some challenging vocabulary words. V. I would rate this book, on a scale of 1 - 5, a 4. I
would recommend this book because it was put together nicely and well written. Mark Twain
is a fine writer who writes interestingly, using metaphors, similes, etc. VI. 1. vise -
noun, a two jawed instrument which holds things steady while they are being worked on. 2.
zephyr - noun, the west wind named after the ancient Greek god, Zephyrs; or any gentle
breeze. 3. clandestinely - adverb, secretly. 4. conflagration - noun, a great destructive
fire. 5. vivacity - noun, liveliness and animation. VII. 1. At the beginning of the book
I would agree with Twain's description of the story as a hymn to boyhood. The book warmly
tells the story of childhood, especially boyhood. Although as the book progresses we see
more and more of Tom as a boy becoming a man, maturing as all boys eventually do.