Twins

 

It is known that twins can look very similar and yet act so different.  At some point of our lives we wish we could have a twin to help us out.  Various studies have been done over the years on how twins act and how they are molded by their environment or upbringing. 

Mark Twain author of Pudd'nhead Wilson plays with the concept of what a twin is.  In class we discussed he had a grate obsession with twins.  In his short novel we are introduced to a set young boys who are like twins.  Their names are Tom the wealthy heir to the Driscoll's fortune and Chambers who is child born from an enslaved woman  I want to clarify before I proceed that Mark Twain's novel is a satire which means that he over exaggerates different things.  The mother of Chambers who is enslaved by the small fraction of African American blood, raises both children.  Roxy, witnesses a encounter her master has with other slaves and she wants to keep her child safe.  Roxy's solution is to switch the clothing of the babies. 

According to the "one drop" concept that Mark Twain plays with, the real Tom is born of high class blood and in the novel we see that he is the humble one.  Though he became a slave because of Roxy, he takes what live gives him and does not question it.  On the other hand we see that Chambers (the fake Tom) is born of a different blood and with his upbringing is a brat who wants everything his way.  We see what happens when twins switch to try to better one or the other.  We see the darkness of wealth and power take a hold of their heart and lead them to their demise. 

This twin concept is like having a soul in two bodies one is evil and one is good.  So nature has an influence on a person as well as nurture.  In Twain's novel when the a person is born with a dark soul there is nothing changing it.