Connecticut Yankee

Peter J. Leithart, January 15, 2004

Who is being satirized in Twain's Connecticut Yankee? The Yankee or the court? Overtly, the court, for its superstition, ignorance, filthiness, and so on. But Hank Morgan comes off as equally insular and parochial, and far more of a snob. I wonder if Twain noticed, and if it's deliberate?