My Rating - 9/10
So I
took up another classic, this time ‘The Prince and the Pauper’ by Mark Twain.
Now, who hasn’t heard this story, albeit its abridged version if not the
original. This has achieved the status of folklore. It has been adapted into almost
every language possible. However, when I finally took out the time to read the
original, I realized that the subtleties of the story were lost in those
abridged versions and translations (as is the case in every abridged and
translated story).
The
story tells the well-known tale of how two doppelgangers, one a prince and the
other a pauper, met once and their roles got exchanged. The pauper, named Tom
Canty, belonging to the poorest parts of London, had desires of seeing a prince
once. His dreams got fulfilled when he saw the Prince of Wales, then Prince
Edward VI of England. The prince took the pauper boy into his palace, being of
a kind heart, and asked of him how his life was. On learning that although his
life was hard, Tom had friends with whom he could play in the mud and the
streams and the rain, the prince yearned for such a carefree life. He wished
that for only a little bit he could play in the mud and could let go of all the
controls in his life. Hence, he asked Tom to exchange clothes with him. It was
then that the two boys realized that they were splitting images of each other. Thus
attired in the tattered rags of the poor boy, the prince ran outside the palace
and got his way back barred by the palace guards, who failed to recognize him.
Thus
began the life of agony for both the boys. Tom failed to understand the rules
of the palace assumed to be known by him, and was hence the Prince of Wales was
decreed to have gone mad, but recovering. Prince Edward, on the other hand,
faced the hardships of a poor life and the abuses meted out by Tom’s father,
and had a tough time as well. They both learned to adapt, and found loyal
friends at unexpected places. In the meanwhile, the then King of England,
Edward’s father, King Henry VIII, died, and Tom was declared the King of
England. Despite all their troubles and misadventures, the real King returned
on the day of the coronation and finally proved himself to be the real King.
Everything fell back in place and all the wrongdoers were punished in the end.
The
story, though a children’s tale, has significance as a historical fiction as
well. Many of the references made in the story are based on real historical
events. The laws of the land as described were true at that time in England. So
not only does this story tell a strange and warm tale, but also provides a
glimpse into the life of the Brits at that time. Another significance of this story
is that it puts in a different light the characters known in history as only
cruel and compassionless. King Henry VIII was a tyrant, and his tyranny has
well been described in this book. However, he was also a doting father, and the
prince’s emotions on the event of the death of his father were well portrayed.
At the same time, Tom did not feel anything at the death of his assumed father.
The story thus portrays the characters from different angles, their good and
bad characteristics put forward with equal importance. This is one of those
qualities of Mark Twain that make him an amazing author. He describes
characters, without trying to classify them as good or bad. After all, all
human beings have some good and some bad in them.
I
loved the book. It is a short read, and the story picks up its pace pretty
early. Also, as the events start unfolding, one gets hooked onto the story and
cannot put the book down until it gets over. I would recommend this one to
everyone, the very young and the very old, alike.
Comments
Post a Comment