Dec 27, 2009

The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg | Critical Overview

‘‘The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg’’ received mixed reviews when it first appeared in Harper's Monthly and later in the collection The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg and Other Stories and Sketches. Despite the range of critical estimations of the story, the magazine version of the story enjoyed a wide audience and earned Twain about $2000. Many commentators detected a movement away from Twain's trademark humor and light-hearted satire toward a moralizing didactic tone. A reviewer for Living Age states: "Mark Twain at his best is as good in his own...