Dark Twins

Imposture and Identity in Mark Twain's America

By: Susan Gillman

Write A Review

Paperback | 15 January 1989 | Edition Number 1

At a Glance

Paperback
228 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
22.86 x 15.01 x 1.38

Paperback

$98.95

or 4 interest-free payments of $24.74 with

Aims to ship in 15 to 25 business days

"Many persons have such a horror of being taken in," wrote P. T. Barnum, "that they believe themselves to be a sham and are continually humbugging themselves." Mark Twain enjoyed trading on that horror, as the many confidence men, assumed identities, and disguised characters in his fiction attest. In Dark Twins, Susan Gillman challenges the widely held assumption that Twain's concern with identity is purely biographical and argues that what has been regarded as a problem of individual psychology must be located instead within American society around the turn of the century. Drawing on Twain's whole writing career, but focusing on the controversial late period of social "pessimism" and literary "incoherence," Gillman situates Twain and his work in historical context, demonstrating the complex interplay between his most intimate personal and authorial identity and the public attitudes toward race, gender, and science.

Gillman shows that laws regulating race classification, paternity, and rape cases underwrite Twain's critical exploration of racial and sexual difference in the writings of the 1890s and after, most strikingly in the little-known manuscripts that Gillman calls the "tales of transvestism." The "pseudoscience" of spiritualism and the "science" of psychology provide the cultural vocabularies essential to Twain's fantasy and science fiction writings of his last two decades. Twain stands forth finally as a representative man, not only a child of his culture, but also as one implicated in a continuing American anxiety about freedom, race, and identity.

Shipping

	Standard Shipping	Express Shipping
Metro postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Regional postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Rural postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95

How to return your order

At Booktopia, we offer hassle-free returns in accordance with our returns policy. If you wish to return an item, please get in touch with Booktopia Customer Care.

Additional postage charges may be applicable.

Defective items

If there is a problem with any of the items received for your order then the Booktopia Customer Care team is ready to assist you.

For more info please visit our Help Centre.

You Can Find This Book In

Non-Fiction Literature, Poetry & Plays History & Criticism of Literature Literary Studies of Fiction General Literary Studies Literary Studies from 1800 to 1900 Psychology The Self, Ego, Identity, Personality Philosophy

Acknowledgments
Introduction: Mark Twain in Context
Imposture and the ""Littery Man""
Racial Identity in Pudd'nhead Wilson and Those Extraordinary Twins
Tales of Sexual Identity: Female Fathers and Male Impersonators
The Dream Writings and the Cosmic Consciousness
Dress Reform and Copyright
Abbreviations
Notes
Index
Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

Dark Twins

Imposture and Identity in Mark Twain's America

At a Glance

Paperback

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

More in Psychology

A Wisdom Of Age

An uplifting and inspiring book about the wisdom of older women, from the bestselling author of A Question of Age

Addicted to Anxiety

You Didn't Hear This From Me

Notes on the Art of Gossip

The Polyvagal Theory Workbook For Trauma

Body-Based Activities to Regulate, Rebalance, and Rewire Your Nervous System without Reliving the Trauma

EVERY MAN

Why Violence Against Women is a Men's Issue, and How You Can Make a Difference

Cult Bride

How I Was Brainwashed - and How I Broke Free

Will I Ever Have Sex Again?

A disarmingly honest and funny exploration of sex (and those who aren't having it)

How Emotionally Mature Are You?

A guide to psychological adulthood

Person in Progress

A Roadmap to the Psychology of Your 20s

Think Like a Monk

How to Train Your Mind for Peace and Purpose Everyday

Schema Therapy

A Practitioner's Guide

Explicit Instruction

Effective and Efficient Teaching

DBT Skills Training Manual

2nd Edition

Healing the Fragmented Selves of Trauma Survivors

Overcoming Internal Self-Alienation

Psychological Testing and Assessment

10th Edition

Why We Sleep

The New Science of Sleep and Dreams

The Drama of the Gifted Child

The Search for the True Self, Third Edition

Mind Over Mood

2nd Edition - Change How You Feel by Changing the Way You Think

How Emotions Are Made

The Secret Life of the Brain

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association

7th edition ( APA 7 )

DBT Skills Training Handouts and Worksheets

2nd Edition

The Teenage Girl's Guide to Living Well with ADHD

Improve your Self-Esteem, Self-Care and Self Knowledge

From Strength to Strength

Finding Success, Happiness and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life

Unmasking for Life

A Guide to Embracing your Autism in a Neurotypical World

This product is categorised by