An Accident of Births

By day, London was a sight to see, with gay banners waving from every balcony and housetop, and splendid pageants marching along. By night, it was again a sight to see, with its great bonfires at every corner, and its troops of revellers making merry around them. There was no talk in all England but of the new baby, Edward Tudor, Prince of Wales, who lay lapped in silks and satins, unconscious of all this fuss, and not knowing that great lords and ladies were tending him and watching over him — and not caring, either. But there was no talk about the other baby, Tom Canty, lapped in his poor rags, except among the family of paupers whom he had just come to trouble with his presence.

From ‘The Prince and the Pauper’ (1881), by Mark Twain (1835-1910).

Précis
England had welcomed her new prince with processions and street parties by day and by night, and within the palace the infant prince had been unceasingly cosseted and fussed over. What a contrast it was to Tom Canty in his parents’ hut, wrote Twain, wrapped in rags, unnoticed by the public and begrudged by his family.
Questions for Critics

1. What is the author aiming to achieve in writing this?

2. Note any words, devices or turns of phrase that strike you. How do they help the author communicate his ideas more effectively?

3. What impression does this passage make on you? How might you put that impression into words?

Based on The English Critic (1939) by NL Clay, drawing on The New Criticism: A Lecture Delivered at Columbia University, March 9, 1910, by J. E. Spingarn, Professor of Comparative Literature in Columbia University, USA.

Sevens

Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.

How was Tom Canty treated by his family and neighbours?

Suggestion

With neglect, and also as a nuisance.

Jigsaws

Express the ideas below in a single sentence, using different words as much as possible. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.

Tom was born. His neighbours took no interest. To his parents he was a nuisance.

See if you can include one or more of these words in your answer.

IFather. IIImpression. IIITrouble.

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