A Trip to Mark Twain's Former Residence

On July the 10th Yale University Summer Session arrange for us to visit the former residence of Mark Twain. Mark Twain is a very famous American writer, ever since I was little, I had read the Chinese version of his The Adventure of Tom Sawyer. And when I went to college, I knew Mark Twain actually shaped the American Literature. But on that day I learned a lot more about Mark Twain.

I am not going to write about Mark Twain’s life experience, everyone can find  those information on the internet.  I want to mention two things that I never would have known if not for the trip to Mark Twain’s former residence. The first thing is how Mark Twain had loved this house he himself had built. After the house was built, Mark Twain said, “It is a home - & the word never had so much meaning before.” According to the tour guide, Mark Twain and his family enjoyed what the author would later call the happiest and most productive years of his life in their Hartford home.

Another thing I learned from the trip is the relationship between Mark Twain and China. I had never thought that Mark Twain had had anything to do with China. But from the pictures displayed in the Mark Twain Museum, I learned that Mark Twain not only supported the cooperation between America and China (Qing Dynasty), but also opposed  American and European imperialism in China. Another thing is that Mark Twain had actually provided support for the Chinese Educational Mission, a Qing Dynasty Project based in Hartford.