English 11 Honors

Period 4

Siena Schickel
11/27/11
Summary of Anchor Book for Novel Research

Title: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Author: Mark Twain
Genre: Novel
Setting: Time- ~1845 (pre Civil War)

Place- St. Petersburg, Missouri

Significance of the setting:

Tom Sawyer lives in a time when pirating and robbery were romantic fairy tales, and
slavery was still at large. Many of Tom's adventures involved boyhood fantasies that derived
from social satires that Mark Twain brought from his earlier works.
Characters with a description of each (put in page numbers):
Major:
Tom Sawyer: Tom is the protagonist of the novel, and the center of most of the storyline. His
adventures often include getting into and out of trouble with his friends Joe Harper and
Huckleberry Finn. Despite all of his mischief-making, he has a strong moral conscience,
especially seen when he visits Aunt Polly while pirating and when he takes care of Becky
while lost in the cave. When his aunt finds out that he lied about his prophetic dream, she
becomes angry that he lies to her, but he says, "Auntie, I wish I hadn't done it- but I didn't
think... I know now it was mean, but I didn't mean to be mean" (pg 172).
Huckleberry Finn: Huck Finn is the son of the town drunk, and therefore has the freedom that
many of the schoolboys could only dream of. Although he becomes a pirate with both Tom
Sawyer and Joe Harper, Joe falls into the backdrop as Tom and Huck continue in more
dangerous adventures. Huck is extremely superstitious, talking to Tom about superstitions
about removing warts on pages 64-65.
Aunt Polly: Tom's aunt raised Tom since his parents are mysteriously absent, and acts as his
guardian. She really loves Tom, which is why she can never bring herself to really discipline
him, and all she wants from her adoptive son is to know that he cares for her in return. She
gives up hope a little after she finds out about the false dream, though, saying, "Tom, Tom, I
would be the thankfulest soul in this world if I could believe you ever had as good a thought
as that, but you know you never did- and I know it, Tom" (pg 172). Later she even says, "It's
a good lie... I won't let it grieve me... I could forgive the boy, now, if he'd committed a
million sins!" (pg 174).
Becky Thatcher: Tom falls in love with Becky after she moves to St. Petersburg, and the two
have a complicated time together, starting with being engaged, moving towards angry
jealousy, then ending in really caring for each other after their experience in the cave. "Tom
kissed her, with a choking sensation in his throat, and made a show of being confident of
finding the searchers or an escape from the cave" (pg 271).
Minor: (What particular influence do these characters wield?) Put in page numbers.
Sid: Although he is Tom's half-brother, Sid is the exact opposite of Tom. While Tom has good
intentions on the inside and displays his infamous side wherever he goes, Sid is seen as the
goody-two-shoes, when in reality, he will do anything to get Tom in trouble and take
revenge. "Tom turned in without the added vexation of prayers, and Sid made mental note of
the omission" (pg 36).

English 11 Honors
Period 4

Siena Schickel
11/27/11

Joe Harper: Joe is almost a mirror image of Tom, but is slightly less adventurous, as seen in his
early homesickness seen on page 145, when he says, "Oh, boys, let's give it up. I want to go
home. It's so lonesome." Throughout the story, he is replaced as Tom's bosom friend by
Huckleberry Finn.
Mary: Tom's half-sister is good all around- she has good intentions and everyone knows that
she is a sweetheart. She is not mentioned much during the story, but acts as a model sibling.
Injun Joe: Joe is the main villain of the novel, and is the cause of many of Tom's adventures.
First, the boys see him murder Dr. Robinson in the graveyard, then they see him lie in court
to blame Muff Potter for the murder, and finally, they see him digging up the buried treasure.
Joe is extremely violent, and is constantly driven by the need for revenge. His troubles might
originate from the fact that he's half Native American, which was looked down upon in those
times.
Muff Potter: One of the town drunks, Muff's bad habit gets him into loads of trouble. When
Injun Joe murders Dr. Robinson, Joe takes advantage of Muff's drunkenness to blame him on
the murder, and Muff racks Tom's guilty coincidence when he and Huck provide him with
food and gifts while in jail. Tom stands up in court for Muff's sake, but regrets it later when
he realizes how mad Injun Joe must be.
Dr. Robinson: The young doctor is killed by Injun Joe, and the only purpose he serves in the
story is that his murder was witnessed by Tom and Huck.
Mr. Sprague: He is the minister of the town church.
The Widow Douglas: Douglas is a kind-hearted woman who takes care of the local boys,
including Huck, and always has ice cream for the children who stop by. After Tom and Huck
get the treasure, Douglas takes Huck in like a son and tries to start civilizing him.
Judge Thatcher: The judge is Becky's father, and caretaker of St. Petersburg. He makes the
decisions a current-day mayor would make, and cares about the children of the town. He
likes Tom when he finds out how much he did for Becky when they were lost in the cave.
Mr. Dobbins: When Becky sneaks through the drawers of her teacher to find the rumored book,
she looks through Mr. Dobbins' desk. Mr. Dobbins is a school master who would rather be a
doctor, which is why he keeps a book of anatomy in his desk.
Mr. Jones: The Welshman who helps Huck Finn find Injun Joe and chase him away from the
Widow Douglas' house also takes care of him when the episode is over.
Amy Lawrence: Before he loved Becky, Tom was in love with Amy, but she soon left the
picture when Becky came into town. Tom uses her as an object of jealously later when he and
Becky have parted ways temporarily.
Mr. Walters: Mr. Walters is the school superintendent of Tom's school who gives Tom a bible in
religious class, even though he never earned it. This is in order to impress Judge Thatcher,
who is well-respected and a figure of adoration.
Alfred Temple: At the beginning of the novel, Alfred challenges Tom to a fight, which Tom
wins by "licking him."
Major Plot Points (with page numbers) What literary techniques develop the plot?:
Tom starts out with innocent adventures, but as the story goes on, he faces more danger
and peril, all the while showing more and more that he is really a good boy with better
intentions than some realize. Some of the key adventures he encounters is his pirating on the
island with Huck Finn and Joe Harper, facing Injun Joe every corner he turns, and getting
lost in the cave with Becky Thatcher. Mark Twain is excellent at characterization, because he

English 11 Honors
Period 4

Siena Schickel
11/27/11

uses each character as an example of a part of society. He wrote The Adventures of Tom
Sawyer as a milder satire piece to please a broader crowd, and therefore had to use very
precise characterization. Tom is a consistent boy, always getting into trouble and always
having good intentions. Setting also plays a large role in the story, because the environment
in which the boys grew up provided them with many venues that helped their curiosity and
troublesome ways grow.
What is the theme of this work?
One of the main themes in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is coming of age, or becoming
mature. Tom faces many adventures and perils, but they all lead up to his social and moral
maturity, with the treasure at the end symbolizing the end of their journey to manhood.