{"id":6030,"date":"2015-08-09T19:58:53","date_gmt":"2015-08-09T23:58:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/?p=6030"},"modified":"2018-08-24T15:06:27","modified_gmt":"2018-08-24T19:06:27","slug":"twains-mysterious-stranger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/?p=6030","title":{"rendered":"Twain\u2019s Mysterious Stranger"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"15-08-08<\/a>Some famous books are obvi\u00adous mas\u00adter\u00adpieces, most have a mix\u00adture of mer\u00adits and flaws, but a few are just plain weird. In the last cat\u00ade\u00adgo\u00adry, few would hes\u00adi\u00adtate to place Mark Twain\u2019s Mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous Stranger<\/em>. Even attempt\u00ading to find and read a copy can be a con\u00adfus\u00ading task. Twain\u2019s last nov\u00adel exist\u00aded in a num\u00adber of frag\u00admen\u00adtary, unfin\u00adished ver\u00adsions, writ\u00adten in between 1897 and 1908. None were pub\u00adlished in his life\u00adtime. His lit\u00ader\u00adary execu\u00adtor, Albert Bigelow Paine, and Fred\u00ader\u00adick Dune\u00adka, an edi\u00adtor at Harp\u00ader &<\/span> Broth\u00aders, cob\u00adbled togeth\u00ader a ver\u00adsion and pub\u00adlished it in 1916. This is the ver\u00adsion that became known to the pub\u00adlic. I have just reread this 1916 ver\u00adsion in its orig\u00adi\u00adnal edi\u00adtion, The Mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous Stranger \u2014 A Romance by Mark Twain with Illus\u00adtra\u00adtions by N.C.Wyeth <\/em>[shown at left]. Wyeth\u2019s illus\u00adtra\u00adtions add great\u00adly to the plea\u00adsure. He was one of the great\u00adest of book illus\u00adtra\u00adtors in a peri\u00adod that boast\u00aded Kay Niel\u00adson, Howard Pyle, Akseli Gallen-Kallela, Edmund Dulac and Arthur Rack\u00adham. How\u00adev\u00ader, this edi\u00adtion took extra\u00ador\u00addi\u00adnary lib\u00ader\u00adties with Twain\u2019s work, a fact which was not made plain until 1963, when John S. Tuck\u00ader pub\u00adlished Mark Twain and Lit\u00adtle Satan: The Writ\u00ading of The Mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous Stranger<\/em>. Twain had first attempt\u00aded the sto\u00adry in 1897, leav\u00ading an unti\u00adtled frag\u00adment [now called the St. Peters\u00adburg Frag\u00adment<\/em>]. Between 1897 and 1900, Twain pro\u00adduced a more sub\u00adstan\u00adtial man\u00adu\u00adscript which he called The Chron\u00adi\u00adcle of Young Satan<\/em>. In 1898, he pro\u00adduced a short and much very dif\u00adfer\u00adent text which he called School\u00adhouse Hill<\/em>, incor\u00adpo\u00adrat\u00ading ele\u00adments from the first two. Final\u00adly, between 1902 and 1908, Twain pro\u00adduced an almost com\u00adplete ver\u00adsion which he titled No. 44, the Mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous Stranger: Being an Ancient Tale Found in a Jug and Freely Trans\u00adlat\u00aded from the Jug<\/em>. Tucker\u2019s schol\u00adar\u00adship revealed that Paine and Dune\u00adka had relied pri\u00admar\u00adi\u00adly on the ear\u00adli\u00ader Chron\u00adi\u00adcle of Young Satan<\/em>, had removed sub\u00adstan\u00adtial por\u00adtions, changed names, char\u00adac\u00adters, added bits writ\u00adten by them\u00adselves, and past\u00aded the last chap\u00adter of Twain\u2019s final ver\u00adsion onto the pas\u00adtiche. None of these extreme alter\u00adations was acknowl\u00adedged, an act of lit\u00ader\u00adary van\u00addal\u00adism and fraud that went uncor\u00adrect\u00aded until the Uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adty of Cal\u00adi\u00adfor\u00adnia Press pub\u00adlished three of the orig\u00adi\u00adnal man\u00adu\u00adscripts in 1969. No.44, the Mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous Stranger<\/em>, Twain\u2019s final ver\u00adsion, did not see pop\u00adu\u00adlar pub\u00adli\u00adca\u00adtion until 1982, and I have final\u00adly read this author\u00adi\u00adta\u00adtive text. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"15-08-08<\/a><\/span>It reveals a work even more pecu\u00adliar than the 1916 ver\u00adsion. The sto\u00adry is set in the year 1490, in a fic\u00adtion\u00adal Aus\u00adtri\u00adan vil\u00adlage. The nar\u00adra\u00adtor is a six\u00adteen-year-old vil\u00adlage boy named August Feld\u00adner, an appren\u00adtice in a print-shop. Twain, who was him\u00adself a printer\u2019s appren\u00adtice in Han\u00adni\u00adbal, Mis\u00adsouri when he was a boy, fills the nar\u00adra\u00adtive with the arcana of the print\u00ading trade. The print shop\u2019s mas\u00adter is a sym\u00adpa\u00adthet\u00adic char\u00adac\u00adter, but there are sev\u00ader\u00adal vil\u00adlains: the master\u2019s shrewish and schem\u00ading wife, a fraud\u00adu\u00adlent magi\u00adcian-alchemist, and a per\u00adse\u00adcut\u00ading priest. The appren\u00adtices, among whom August counts for lit\u00adtle, are a mixed bag of char\u00adac\u00adters, but all are obsessed with the perquisites and peck\u00ading order of the trade. Twain takes every occa\u00adsion to demon\u00adstrate the super\u00adsti\u00adtious and cred\u00adu\u00adlous men\u00adtal\u00adi\u00adty of the time, using his well-honed satir\u00adi\u00adcal style. But he also evokes the inno\u00adcence of child\u00adhood and the hum\u00adble plea\u00adsures or vil\u00adlage life. Twain began writ\u00ading this ver\u00adsion while he was stay\u00ading in a small Swiss vil\u00adlage, which he likened to Han\u00adni\u00adbal in his diary. Into this fic\u00adtion\u00adal com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adty there sud\u00adden\u00adly arrives a mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous stranger, a boy appar\u00adent\u00adly of August\u2019s age, bedrag\u00adgled, seek\u00ading food and shel\u00adter, for which he offers to work. When asked his name, he gives it as \u201cNum\u00adber 44, New Series 864,962.\u201d Twain dwells on the boy\u2019s bewitch\u00ading beau\u00adty. Befriend\u00ading August, and tak\u00ading him into his con\u00adfi\u00addence, he reveals him\u00adself as an \u201cangel\u201d, in fact a rel\u00ada\u00adtive of Satan him\u00adself (Satan, of course, being the rebel angel), and exist\u00ading out\u00adside of space and time. He com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adcates tele\u00adphath\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly with August, teach\u00ades him how to make him\u00adself invis\u00adi\u00adble, brings him arti\u00adcles from the future, and whisks him to moun\u00adtain tops and Chi\u00adna in an instant. They trav\u00adel to the past. He also shows August human\u00adi\u00adty\u2019s hor\u00adrors, includ\u00ading the burn\u00ading alive of a \u201cwitch\u201d, the trag\u00adic lives of the poor, and the grim results of alter\u00adnate time-lines of his\u00adto\u00adry. He seems utter\u00adly obliv\u00adi\u00adous to August\u2019s notions of pro\u00adpri\u00adety, piety, and ethics. When No.44\u2019s dili\u00adgence earns him a posi\u00adtion as appren\u00adtice, the oth\u00ader appren\u00adtices go on strike in resent\u00adment, sab\u00ado\u00adtag\u00ading an urgent print\u00ading job. No.44 con\u00adjures up an army of dopple\u00adgangers who do the work, and there is a com\u00adic bat\u00adtle in which each char\u00adac\u00adter fights his own dupli\u00adcate. Final\u00adly, No.44 is burnt as a witch, only to reap\u00adpear to August and explain to him that:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>Noth\u00ading exists; all is a dream. God \u2014 man \u2014 the world, \u2014 the sun, the moon, the wilder\u00adness of stars: a dream, all a dream, they have no exis\u00adtence. Noth\u00ading exists save emp\u00adty space \u2014 and you!\u201d\u2026 \u201cAnd you are not you \u2014 you have no body, no blood, no bones, you are but a thought. I myself have no exis\u00adtence, I am but a dream \u2014 your dream, crea\u00adture of your imag\u00adi\u00adna\u00adtion. In a moment you will have real\u00adized this, then you will ban\u00adish me from your visions and I shall dis\u00adsolve into the noth\u00ading\u00adness out of which you made me\u2026.<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"15-08-08<\/a>
\n He explains that human ideas are self-evi\u00addent\u00adly absurd, such as a belief in \u201ca God who could make good chil\u00addren as eas\u00adi\u00adly as bad, yet pre\u00adferred to make bad ones; who could have made every one of them hap\u00adpy, yet nev\u00ader made a sin\u00adgle hap\u00adpy one; who made them prize their bit\u00adter life, yet stingi\u00adly cut it short; who gave his angels pain\u00adless lives, yet cursed his oth\u00ader chil\u00addren with bit\u00ading mis\u00aderies and mal\u00adadies of mind and body; who mouths jus\u00adtice, and invent\u00aded hell; who mouths morals to oth\u00ader peo\u00adple, and has none him\u00adself; who frowns upon crimes, yet com\u00admits them all; who cre\u00adates man with\u00adout invi\u00adta\u00adtion, then tries to shuf\u00adfle the respon\u00adsi\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adty for man\u2019s acts upon man, instead of hon\u00ador\u00adably plac\u00ading it where it belongs, upon him\u00adself; and final\u00adly, with alto\u00adgeth\u00ader divine obtuse\u00adness, invites this poor abused slave to wor\u00adship him!\u2026<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"15-08-08<\/a>It\u2019s no won\u00adder that Twain con\u00adsid\u00adered the book unpub\u00adlish\u00adable. And it\u2019s not sur\u00adpris\u00ading that it was writ\u00adten in the shad\u00adow of tragedy. Of the three daugh\u00adters that Twain dot\u00aded on, one died of menin\u00adgi\u00adtis in 1896, at the age of twen\u00adty-four, anoth\u00ader drowned in a bath\u00adtub in 1909. Ear\u00adli\u00ader, his only son had died of dipthe\u00adria when but a tod\u00addler. Olivia, his wife of thir\u00adty-four years, to whom he was utter\u00adly devot\u00aded, died after a pro\u00adtract\u00aded ill\u00adness while they were in Italy. Twain had plen\u00adty of rea\u00adson to be bit\u00adter. This strange nov\u00adel embod\u00adies, in one way or anoth\u00ader, all of his life-long obses\u00adsions, from his fas\u00adci\u00adna\u00adtion with child\u00adhood, and with the Mid\u00addle Ages, to his par\u00ading of dual char\u00adac\u00adters, one \u201cnor\u00admal\u201d and the oth\u00ader a kind of pagan spir\u00adit \u2014 Tom and Huck mutat\u00aded into August and #44. His hatred of injus\u00adtice and reli\u00adgious hypocrisy are in there in spades. But most of all, the nov\u00adel dwells on the puz\u00adzle of suf\u00adfer\u00ading and the mul\u00adti-faceted nature of con\u00adscious\u00adness. All Twain\u2019s doubts and tor\u00adments are resolved in a bizarre kind of meta\u00adphys\u00adi\u00adcal solip\u00adsism. I don\u2019t think, how\u00adev\u00ader, that this should be tak\u00aden as a dec\u00adla\u00adra\u00adtion of Twain\u2019s actu\u00adal belief. Twain was a Menip\u00adpean writer, giv\u00aden to play\u00ading out con\u00adtra\u00addic\u00adto\u00adry schema\u00adta of the world in the form of satires, melo\u00addra\u00admas and bur\u00adlesques. But there is no doubt about his using this instru\u00adment to deal with per\u00adson\u00adal anguish.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

In the same year that the recov\u00adered text reached gen\u00ader\u00adal pub\u00adli\u00adca\u00adtion, a small film pro\u00adduc\u00adtion com\u00adpa\u00adny made a rea\u00adson\u00adably faith\u00adful cin\u00ade\u00admat\u00adic ver\u00adsion of the sto\u00adry. This is one of the odd\u00adest \u201cfam\u00adi\u00adly films\u201d (for it was mar\u00adket\u00aded as such) ever made. No.44\u2019s final speech, blas\u00adphe\u00admous by any Chris\u00adt\u00adian stan\u00addards, is in the film, which would nowa\u00addays make it non gra\u00adta<\/em> in the U.S., even though it prob\u00ada\u00adbly voic\u00ades the dis\u00aden\u00adchant\u00adment of many mod\u00adern Amer\u00adi\u00adcans. It was filmed in Aus\u00adtria. Pro\u00adduc\u00adtion val\u00adues were low-end, but ade\u00adquate. August was played by Chris Make\u00adpeace, a Cana\u00addi\u00adan child actor who had briefly been suc\u00adcess\u00adful in the com\u00ade\u00addy Meat\u00adballs<\/em>. No.44 was played by Lance Ker\u00adwin, a hard-work\u00ading juve\u00adnile tele\u00advi\u00adsion actor. The cast\u00ading was per\u00adfect. Makepeace\u2019s na\u00efve per\u00adsona and Kerwin\u2019s mis\u00adchie\u00advous one fit the sto\u00adry well. Iron\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly, Ker\u00adwin lat\u00ader became a drug addict, then found religion.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2014<\/p>\n

26166. [2] (Mark Twain) The Mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous Stranger [ill. N.C. Wyeth] [1916 Harp\u00ader Edition] <\/span>
\n [not same as Esel\u00addorf ver\u00adsion [Diary of Young Satan<\/em>] at 22281 or No.44 version] <\/span>
\n26167. (Mark Twain) No.44, the Mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous Stranger [Mark Twain Project text]<\/span>
\n26173. (Joseph Csic\u00adsi\u00adla) John S. Tuckey\u2019s Mark Twain and Lit\u00adtle Satan [arti\u00adcle]<\/span>
\n26174. (John Sut\u00adton Tuck\u00adey) Mark Twain and Lit\u00adtle Satan: The Writ\u00ading of The Mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous <\/em><\/span>Stranger<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some famous books are obvi\u00adous mas\u00adter\u00adpieces, most have a mix\u00adture of mer\u00adits and flaws, but a few are just plain weird. In the last cat\u00ade\u00adgo\u00adry, few would hes\u00adi\u00adtate to place Mark Twain\u2019s Mys\u00adte\u00adri\u00adous Stranger. Even attempt\u00ading to find and read \u2026<\/p>\n

Read more \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[946,13],"tags":[1323,1324,1315,1319,1316,1317,1322,1318,1321,1320],"class_list":["post-6030","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-b-reading","category-bl-reading-2015","tag-chris-makepeace","tag-lance-kerwin","tag-mark-twain","tag-mark-twain-and-little-satan","tag-mysterious-stranger","tag-n-c-wyeth","tag-no-44","tag-s-tucker","tag-schoolhouse-hill","tag-the-chronicle-of-young-satan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6030","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6030"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6030\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7447,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6030\/revisions\/7447"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6030"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6030"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6030"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}