Character Clues
Character Analysis
Actions
Hank disguises his actions as magic, but in truth he's just making use of plain old engineering principles. If we're ever in doubt, he usually breaks his process down for us—just consider how he pretty much gives us step-by-step instructions for how to blow up Merlin's tower. On the other hand, the knights of Arthur's court don't do much of anything besides challenge each other to duels. They lack a solid backstory for their foibles, instead covering up their failings with outrageous tall tales that Hank sees right through. Any accomplishments come only with the help of Hank's inventions, such as when Launcelot saves the king by riding to the rescue on a bicycle.
Clothing
Hank doesn't care for the fancy clothes. He prefers to wear lightweight clothing that he can move around in easily—most notably during his duel with Sir Sagramor, where he floats like a butterfly and stings like a guy with the only hand gun in the whole wide world. His clothes also help him stand out from everyone else; he dresses so unusually that Sir Kay comes up with a seriously ridiculous story to explain it—"garb that was a work of enchantment, and intended to make the wearer secure from hurt by human hands" (4.2). Ah yes, good explanation, Sir Kay.
On the other hand, wearing armor drives Hank up the wall. It's clunky and heavy and he has to plod along in it… just like all the stupid knights he's trying to enlighten. He gets out of it as quickly as possible, another sign that he refuses to let his environment alter him in any way… and another reminder that the knights pretty much just go with the flow around them.
Social Status
Class defines everyone in Arthur's world: great if you're a nobleman, but not so much if you're a peasant. The underclass are uniformly covered in filth:
[…] brawny men, with long, coarse, uncombed hair that hung down over their faces and made them look like animals. They and the women, as a rule, wore a coarse tow-linen robe that came well below the knee, and a rude sort of sandal, and many wore an iron collar. (1.2.2)
Those iron collars aren't a fashion statement—they're indicative that someone is enslaved. And yet the peasants are also pretty uniformly depicted as humble and grateful for any kindness shown to them. In contrast to the arrogance we see from the nobles, the peasantry is sort of elevated morally this way.
The nobles, by contrast, wear colorful clothes and speak in haughty, arrogant tones—"a great company of men dressed in such various and splendid colors that it hurt one's eyes to look at them" (2.6.2). Needless to say, it's very easy to keep score whenever anyone new shows up.
Speech and Dialogue
Again, the way the people talk here says a lot about who they are. Hank speaks in modern terms, is very brief, and focuses on clarity. The other characters stuff a lot of methinks and yea verilys, which obscures meaning and makes them harder to understand. Besides putting us in Hank's corner, it also emphasizes his practicality and efficiency; conversely, it makes the medieval folks look like self-important windbags, which goes along with Twain's humorous intentions.