Literary Devices in The Prince and the Pauper
Symbolism, Imagery, Allegory
Setting
It all started out well enough. When King Henry VIII ascended the throne, and he was actually popular. He was smart, good at sports, tall, and even a patron of the arts. Henry VIII's early rule was...
Narrator Point of View
We wouldn't blame you if you thought that this was a third person narrator. Most of the time The Prince And The Pauper is told in a way that is virtually indistinguishable from third person. It see...
Genre
We're sure that someone out there believes that The Prince and the Pauper is the true story behind a massive conspiracy and cover-up by the Tudor family, but we're gonna be real with you: it's defi...
Tone
Kids in Mark Twain's day must have been really smart. Of course, we could be wrong, but we don't remember finding 16th-century English very entertaining when we were kids, and we're not sure if we...
Writing Style
So, did you believe they were reading a novel from the 16th century? If so, Mark Twain did a pretty good job, since he was born over 200 years after the events in this novel.Twain mixes his modern,...
What's Up With the Title?
We wish that we had something really deep and insightful to tell you, but the title of The Prince and the Pauper is about as simple as you probably imagined it was. There's no secret meaning. No me...
What's Up With the Epigraph?
The quality of mercy... is twice bless'd;It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes; 'Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes The thron-ed monarch better than his crown.This quote from The...
What's Up With the Ending?
"What dost thou know of suffering and oppression? I and my people know, but not thou." The reign of Edward VI was a singularly merciful one for those harsh times. Now that we are taking leave...
Tough-o-Meter
We'll admit five is pretty high for a kids' book, but kids during Mark Twain's day must have been pretty smart to enjoy The Prince and the Pauper. Maybe it was something in the water.The ideas and...
Plot Analysis
Two of a KindTom and Edward are born. One is rich, and one is poor. The rich one is the Prince of Wales, and the poor one only dreams of one day even seeing a real-life prince. That's about all you...
Booker's Seven Basic Plots Analysis
When Tom and Edward, Prince of Wales, meet they decide to swap roles. But then everything goes terribly wrong: the royal court believes that Tom is the real prince who has gone mad;. Tom's family b...
Three-Act Plot Analysis
We meet Tom and Edward, two boys who somehow were born with identical appearances despite coming from different social circumstances and families. Tom has always dreamed of meeting the prince, and...
Trivia
Not everyone is lucky enough to read The Prince and the Pauper in school; some people just dream of the chance. It might not be the first thing that popped into your mind, but after spending life o...
Steaminess Rating
Okay, there's no steaminess here—like, not even a hint, folks—but there's way more violence than you'd expect from a book for kids. Gentle Baptist women being burned at the stake? A guy whose e...
Allusions
Tom O' Bedlam (4.27) Gog and Magog (11.5) Leigh Hunt, The Town (16.3) The English Rogue (17.22) The Bible (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob) (20.16) Hume, England (30.6) The Tower of London (2.7)Anne Askew (2...