Literary Devices in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Essay Example

The author of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Mark Twain was born close to 200 years ago. Some people may be wondering if an author born that long ago still be relevant today. Nevertheless, 200 years later, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is still an exhilarating read. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is an epic tale, because the author uses several literary elements to make the book thoroughly enjoyable. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain, is a fantastic book, some of the literary elements he uses are conflict, characterization, and imagery.

Twain uses conflict to make The Adventures of Tom Sawyer a fantastic book. He uses conflict to both keep the reader engaged and to show action. Conflict keeps the audience engaged in the graveyard scene when Huck and Tom are witnesses to a murder. A pice from the text that supports this is, “I’ve got a score to settle with you doctor. Joe saw his chance and drove the knife to the hilt in the young man's chest . . . Tom and Huck flew on and on, toward the village, speechless with horror” (69). Conflict is implemented in this passage to keep people engaged when Joe gets extreme with the doctor. “I’ve got a score to settle with you” shows that there is a history between the doctor and Joe. This quote also foreshadows that something is about to happen so the reader has to keep going. The act of murder witnessed by Huck and Tom also keeps the audience engaged. They are hiding and watching as Joe “drove the knife to the hilt in the young man's chest.” The buildup to this moment has been put in place by Twain so that when he kills the doctor the action gripping. This traumatizes the boys and they go running to the village “speechless with horror.” Conflict also shows action when the boys sneak into their funeral and cause a scene. Twain writes, “Tom in the lead, Joe Harper next, and Huck, a ruin of rags in the rear . . . They had been hid in the gallery listening to their own funeral . . . One hundred voices sang joyously” (117). Conflict is used to show action because everyone in the town thinks the boys are dead. Nonetheless, the boys astonish everyone when they wander out with “Tom in the lead, Joe next, and Huck in the rear.” The entire town erupts with joy to see the boys safe. They had just casually walked out from the back of the church and everyone is shocked. This makes the reader want to know what will happen next and keeps them engaged. They had just been in the back of the church, “in the gallery listening to their own funeral.” No wonder the town is in shock when they appear. The town was so excited the people sang, “One hundred voices sang joyously.” The people are beyond joy to see the lost boys return. The audience can visualize all of these events unfolding and it keeps them involved in the story. For these reasons, conflict is brilliantly used to show action and to keep the reader involved, making it an enjoyable read.

Mark Twain utilizes characterization to show what the characters are actually like and to help the reader connect to them better which improves the book. Twain uses characterization to show that Tom is a good person when he testified against Joe in the courtroom. Twain states, “Thomas Sawyer, where were you on the 17th of June at midnight?. . . Tom got a little of his strength back and put enough of it into his voice to say, “In the graveyard!” . . . Muff Potter fell, Joe jumped with the knife and stabbed him!” (149). This passage sheds new light on Tom showing that even though most of the town sees him as a troublemaker, he has courage. The judge asked him “where were you on the 17th of June?” Tom chose to tell everyone that Joe was the real killer putting himself at risk rather than letting Joe go free. This shows Tom has bravery and is willing to do what is right. It also helps the audience identify with how scared he is to tell an entire crowd of people what happened. Many readers can put themselves in the situation of the choice between what is right and what is easy. In the text, Tom “Put enough of his voice in it to say “In the graveyard!” This took some heart because now everyone knows that he was out of bed and in the graveyard with Huck. It also puts his life at risk because now Joe is after him. Tom says, “Joe jumped with the knife and stabbed him.” Everyone thought Muff Potter did the crime and so his testifying helped the reader understand Tom seeing that he wants to do the right thing. This helps the audience to understand Tom and it makes reading about him more enjoyable. Another example of characterization is when it is seen that Tom cares for other people when he and Becky are trapped in the cave together. This is shown in the text when the author says, “Oh, how could I sleep!” “I’m glad you slept Becky, you'll feel rested now” . . . Tom took out some cake from the picnic he divided it, giving most to Becky and nibbling on the rest” (194). It is seen here that Tom cares for Becky and her well-being. Tom stays awake hoping to hear someone coming to rescue them while he lets Becky rest. When she wakes up she says to him “Oh how could I sleep!” Tom, who cares deeply for her, responds to this by saying that he is happy she slept. “I’m glad you slept, you'll feel rested now.” Tom is not upset she left him to watch but he is cheerful that she got to rest. This shows a very different  Tom than the one that can be seen earlier in the book who only cares about himself. Later, when they are both hungry and Tom has some cake he gives “most to Becky” so she won't be hungry. This was a selfless act making sure that Becky was fed even if it meant he was still hungry. This strengthens the fact that Tom is good in his heart and an interesting character. It also helps the reader empathize with him. By using characterization Mark Twain shines a new light on Tom showing what he is truly like and making the reader want to know more about him. 

Mark Twain uses imagery to great effect to make the reader feel like they are actually in the scene furthering the reading experience. Imagery is used to great effect when Twain describes the island to which Tom, Joe, and Huck run away to. The island is described like this, “Three miles below St. Petersburg, at a point where the Mississippi was a mile wide, there lay a long narrow, wooded island, with a shallow bar . . . Beaded dewdrops covered the leaves and the trees swayed majestically in the breeze” (95). This description can help the reader picture as if they were really on the island with him. It can be envisioned exactly where this island is. The reader can see the image in their minds of the “long narrow island” sitting in the river that was “a mile wide”. It can help the reader see the island so they can keep it in their minds for the rest of the chapter. People can just see the blue waters with the vibrant green island on the water. The reader can then see the interior of the island. The “beaded dewdrops” and the “trees swaying in the breeze.” This text helps people see what the boys are experiencing as they pretend to be pirates on the island. As they explore and play in the forest a picture of what they are immersed in is imprinted into your brain. Imagery is also used when Tom is laying down in the forest pretending that it's Sherwood forest. This helps the audience to feel like they are there and spending a lazy summer day with him. "The sun was up so high when I woke that I judged it was after eight o'clock. I laid there in the grass and the cool shade thinking about things, and feeling rested and rather comfortable and satisfied . . . There were freckled places on the ground where the light sifted down through the leaves” (60). Mark Twain uses imagery in this scene to put the picture in your mind of the forest. The audience can just find themselves there with Tom on a lazy summer day. “I laid there in the grass and cool shade thinking about things” Everyone can see themselves on a long summer day that felt like it would go on forever. He is just there “thinking about things” just thinking his life over. The reader can visualize him laying down in the forest sitting there in the grass. The audience sees in their minds “the light sifted down through the leaves.” The reader can just picture it and it makes the reader feel immersed in the book. Twain utilizes imagery to make the reader feel like they are there and to help the book seem more interesting. The imagery is one of the reasons why The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a stunning book.

The novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain, is a wondrous work. Some of the reasons it is so excellent are that he uses conflict, characterization, and imagery. Twain uses conflict in the scene in the graveyard with the murder of the doctor and in the funeral scene to show action and to keep the reader engaged. He implements characterization at the trial of Muff Potter and in the cave scene to help people identify with Tom. Finally, he shows imagery on the island and in the forest to make the reader feel like they are in the scene. So to summarize, yes, an author born 200 years ago can write a novel that is still revered in the modern day.