"To the Person Sitting in Darkness" by Mark Twain is a biting, satirical essay that throws a harsh light on American imperialism during the early 1900s. Using sarcasm as his main weapon, Twain attacks the dishonesty of Western nations who claimed to be spreading "civilization" while actually invading and taking advantage of other countries. He shows the huge gap between what these countries said they stood for—like love and justice—and what they actually did, which was often violent and unfair, particularly in places like the Philippines. Twain's writing forces readers to question whether these "civilizing missions" were truly good or just a way for powerful countries to control others, revealing the dark truths behind their actions and making us wonder about the real reasons for their conquests.
To the Person Sitting in Darkness
By Mark Twain
Witness the brutal irony of a world where so-called saviors bring darkness instead of light through conquest and deceit.
Summary
About the AuthorSamuel Langhorne Clemens, known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Faulkner calling him "the father of American literature." Twain's novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), with the latter often called the "Great American Novel." He also wrote A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) and Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894) and cowrote The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (1873) with Charles Dudley Warner.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Faulkner calling him "the father of American literature." Twain's novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), with the latter often called the "Great American Novel." He also wrote A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) and Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894) and cowrote The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (1873) with Charles Dudley Warner.
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