Roughing It

From Open Encyclopedia

Roughing It is semi-non-fiction travel literature written by American author Mark Twain. It was published in 1872 and follows the 6-year adventures of young Mark Twain in the "Wild West" between 1861-1867. The novel tells of Twain's adventures that actually occurred prior to Twain's pleasure cruise relayed in Innocents Abroad but was written and published afterwards as a companion novel. Twain consulted his brother's diary to refresh his memory and borrowed heavily from his active imagination for many stories in the novel. Roughing It illustrates many of Twain's pre-fame adventures such as gold and silver prospecting, real-estate speculation, and his beginnings as a writer. As you read, you see the beginning of Twain's rough hewn humor. This humor would be a staple of his writing into his later books such as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and the Tom Sawyer novels.