Study+Questions+and+Essay+Topics

1) After reading Pudd’nhead Wilson, do you think that it shows the affects of “Nature” or “Nurture”?

The author leaves it up to the reader’s interpretation as to which one of the two it shows more of; because there are examples of both. For example, Roxy and others believe that “Tom” could not help who he has become and no matter how he was raised he would still end up being the person that he had become- just because if his black nature. But on the other hand, Twain suggests that it also could be “Nurture” because “Tom” was raised in a rich white household and as a child didn’t have to work for what he wanted. And then coincidentally “Tom” develops a gambling problem, gets in financial problems, and then steals to try and pay his debt back. Supporting the idea of “Nurture” also, is in the end when “Tom”, now known as Chambers, is on trial he is sentenced to life imprisonment, but then is released. He is released because they brought up the point that if Chambers had grown up as a slave, and had been sold down the river years ago like he should have been, then he wouldn’t have even had the opportunity to kill Driscoll.

2) How does “Tom” react when he is told by Roxy about who he really is?

Roxy finally decides to confront “Tom” and tell him who he really is after all this time. He was shocked at first hearing this because he had lived his whole life hating and disrespecting slaves- then finds out that he has hated his own kind all along. “Tom” also felt somewhat guilty because he had spent his childhood- and adulthood- bossing around a rightful white man (“Chambers”) all the while not even acknowledging that they were supposed to be in opposite roles. For about a week “Tom” was second guessed everything in his life that had happened to him, but eventually he returned back to his normal self.

3) Who does David (Pudd’nhead) Wilson see in the Driscoll’s house window, and why were they there? In order to try and pay back his debts from gambling, “Tom” dresses up as a woman- using Roxy’s clothes- and goes to some of the houses in the area steeling valuable things that he then sells to shops. Once he starts running out of places to hit, he decides that he will rob people in his hometown. But in order to make sure that he doesn’t get recognized “Tom” takes some of Roxy’s clothes, dresses as a woman, then steels from people in the town. The reason that David Wilson saw a woman in “Tom’s” room, in Driscoll’s house, was because in order to make sure that they didn’t suspect “Tom” after being the only person who was not robbed, he too went into his room and took stuff to make it look like he was the victim also.

4) What happens to Judge Driscoll towards the end of the book, and how does David Wilson end up figuring out who did this? After “Tom” sells Roxy down the river to bad masters, she escapes and comes to “Tom” and threatens him. She tells him that if he doesn’t buy her back from her masters, then she will tell everyone about his true identity and then he too will be sold down the river. While “Tom” is walking home from talking with Roxy he decides that he will rob his uncle instead of just asking him for the money to get Roxy back. He gets into town that night, enters the judge’s house and sees him asleep with his money sprawled before him. He goes to take the money, but accidentally drops the knife that he has with him, and the Judges awakes; so “Tom” stabs Driscoll, quickly changes into woman’s clothes, and takes the back door outside so no one will see him leaving. David Wilson takes charge of the crime scene, and is on the case. At first they think that it was the twins who had murdered the judge, but one day when “Tom” visits Pudd’nhead to mock his work is when he really figures out who murdered Judge Driscoll. “Tom” had left his finger print on one of the slides that he had looked at, David compared it to the print that was left on the knife and it was a match. He compared it to all of the other fingerprints that he had of “Tom” and figured out his and “Chambers’” real identities.

5) Do you think that the new Chambers got the right punishment for what he did? Do you think it was fair that Tom was freed? Why or why not? I think that it was completely fair that Chambers had to be sold down the river. In a way, I think that for him, it would be worse to get sold down the river than for him to spend a life in prison. I think this because Chambers had spent his whole life hating black people, and not caring about how they were treated and how poor a way of life they had to deal with. So being sold as a slave, I think, teaches him more of a life lesson than if he were to just spend the rest of his life behind bars. Also, I think that it was fair that Tom was freed after he found out who he really was. But I think that it would be hard for him to fit into the society after he had just lived his whole life being “under” everyone else- and then he inherits all of his uncles money and house, and has to start living in that kind of society. That seems like it would be hard for him to accept that way of life, and accept the people associated with that way of life, just because of the way they have treated them all of this time.