Tom Sawyer’s Pros and Cons

I recently started reading the classic book The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. I have wanted to read this novel for a little while now because lots of my family members have enjoyed reading it. Going into it I had no idea what the plot even was, and I have been pleasantly surprised with this novel so far. The main character of course being Tom Sawyer is a spunky young boy, who really does not like school or listening to his aunt. He lives his life exploring and not wanting to do what his is told. I enjoy his personality because it’s very entertaining watching him interact with his Aunt and purposely try to annoy her. I really relate to this character in the sense of wanting to explore and get away. Another entertaining part of this novel is Tom’s wit, he’s sarcastic, smart, and conniving. He knows how to work himself out of a situation and get what him wants causing for some very creative and funny scenes. Even though I have not gotten too terribly far in this novel I’m excited to see what trouble young Tom gets into.

Although there are some great parts so far in this novel, some areas I do not understand or see the purpose for. For example I have noticed the beginning chapters although are usually important for getting to know the characters, Mark twain seems to give little to no description of the other characters. Do to the mystery of the new characters being introduced it has caused the beginning of the book to drag on and on. I think Mark Twain did this on purpose and the novel will dive deeper into more personalities unraveling a more intense plot. Besides the slowly paced beginning to this novel, I have found this novel to be quite an interesting story and I’m looking forward to see where Mark Twain takes it.

2 comments

  1. brookeb2020 · January 21, 2019 at 6:42 pm ·

    I’m reading another classic, The Grapes of Wrath, and I’m having the same problem. The book really takes a long time to get into the story, and the first few chapters are really slow. And I also have some questions about why certain things are included in my book. There was an entire chapter describing a turtle crossing a road! Maybe that’s just how all books used to be? I hope that our books pick up, because I want to enjoy what I’m reading and I was considering reading Tom Sawyer in the future.

  2. seannr2020 · January 22, 2019 at 12:37 am ·

    I also agree that it is strange how Mark Twain focuses heavily on Tom Sawyer and doesn’t give any in-depth character descriptions of the other characters. I think this is because Twain wants to first develop Tom’s character and then start explaining how he relates to the other supporting characters. I also agree that the beginning of the book seems to move slowly however I believe that once the conflict begins, the book will start to move at a faster pace.