Pudd'nhead Wilson (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. A Mississippi River Satire of Switched Infants, Racial Identity, Slavery, and Courtroom MysteryBy Mark Twain
Length7h 30m
About this audiobook
Pudd'nhead Wilson is one of Mark Twain's most unsettling late works, a novel that begins in the comic register of a Mississippi River town and gradually darkens into a forensic examination of race, identity, slavery, and social performance. Its plot turns on an infant exchange between a white child and a child legally defined as enslaved, exposing the absurd brutality of racial classification in the antebellum South. Blending satire, melodrama, detective fiction, and courtroom drama, Twain situates the book within post-Reconstruction literary debates about heredity, law, and moral responsibility. Twain, born Samuel Langhorne Clemens in Missouri in 1835, drew deeply on the landscapes, speech, and contradictions of the slaveholding border South. By the 1890s, he had become increasingly skeptical of American progress and more caustic in his criticism of social hypocrisy. His experience as a humorist, journalist, and observer of human folly shaped the novel's sharp irony and its distrust of received categories. This book is highly recommended for readers interested in American realism, racial history, and the darker edge of Twain's genius. It rewards close reading as both gripping narrative and profound social indictment.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- An Author Biography reveals milestones in the author's life, illuminating the personal insights behind the text.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 4.0 (31.5K)
Includes Goodreads, Amazon
GenreLiterary Classics, Humor
Length7 hrs 30 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateApr 3, 2018
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Pudd'nhead Wilson (Annotated)
2Introduction
3Synopsis
4Historical Context
5Author Biography
Show all chaptersShow less
6Pudd'nhead Wilson
7Chapter 1. Pudd'nhead Wins His Name
8Chapter 2. Driscoll Spares His Slaves
9Chapter 3. Roxy Plays a Shrewd Trick
10Chapter 4. The Ways of the Changelings
11Chapter 5. The Twins Thrill Dawson's Landing
12Chapter 6. Swimming in Glory
13Chapter 7. The Unknown Nymph
14Chapter 8. Marse Tom Tramples His Chance
15Chapter 9. Tom Practices Sycophancy
16Chapter 10. The Nymph Revealed
17Chapter 11. Pudd'nhead's Thrilling Discovery
18Chapter 12. The Shame of Judge Driscoll
19Chapter 13. Tom Stares at Ruin
20Chapter 14. Roxana Insists Upon Reform
21Chapter 15. The Robber Robbed
22Chapter 16. Sold Down the River
23Chapter 17. The Judge Utters Dire Prophesy
24Chapter 18. Roxana Commands
25Chapter 19. The Prophesy Realized
26Chapter 20. The Murderer Chuckles
27Chapter 21. Doom
28Conclusion
29Analysis
30Reflection
31Memorable Quotes
Die schönsten Kinderbücher der WeltMark Twain, Johanna Spyri, Frances Hodgson Burnett, Selma Lagerlöf, Waldemar Bonsels, Lewis Carroll, Else Ury, Charles Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, Gerdt von Bassewitz, Robert Louis Stevenson, David Friedrich Weinland, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Emmy von Rhoden, Agnes Sapper, Jack London286h 46m4.7 (12)$1 · $0.00
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry FinnMark Twain19h 15m4.1 (20.4K)$0.99 · $0.00
El príncipe y el mendigoMark Twain7h 48m4.1 (162.6K)$0.99 · $0.00
Sämtliche RomaneMark Twain108h 40m4.6 (33)$2 · $0.00
Las aventuras de Tom Sawyer (texto completo, con índice activo)Mark Twain8h 23m4.2 (2.3K)$4.99 · $0.00
The Golden Book of World's Greatest Mysteries – 60+ Whodunit Tales & Detective StoriesMark Twain, Edgar Allan Poe, Guy de Maupassant, Thomas Hardy, William Archer, Brander Matthews, Ambrose Bierce, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Wilkie Collins, E. F. Benson, M. R. James, E. T. A. Hoffmann, Anton Chekhov, Anna Katherine Green, W. F. Harvey, Fitz-James O'Brien, Katherine Rickford, Pliny the Younger, Helena Blavatsky, A. Conan Doyle, Villiers Adam, C. Moffett, F. Marryat, Théopile Gautier, L. Hearn, C. B. Fernando, R. L. Stevenson, T. W. Hanshew, Sir R. Anderson, R. A. Cram, Joseph L. French48h 44m4.0 (18)$0.99 · $0.00
The Ultimate Western CollectionMark Twain, James Fenimore Cooper, Max Brand, James Oliver Curwood, B. M. Bower, Zane Grey, Jackson Gregory, Jack London, William MacLeod Raine, William Patterson White, Rex Beach, Emerson Hough, Will Lillibridge, Andy Adams, Bret Harte, Owen Wister, Washington Irving, Willa Cather, O. Henry, Grace Livingston Hill, Charles King, Charles Alden Seltzer, Stephen Crane, Dane Coolidge, Marah Ellis Ryan, Francis William Sullivan, Frederic Homer Balch, Frederic Remington, Robert W. Chambers, Forrestine C. Hooker, James B. Hendryx, Frank H. Spearman, J. Allan Dunn, Ann S. Stephens, Robert E. Howard, Clarence E. Mulford, R.M. Ballantyne, Charles Siringo, Isabel E. Ostrander, Frederic Logan Paxson1013h 32m4.3 (130)$0.99 · $0.00
The Complete Novels of Mark Twain (Illustrated) (Annotated)Mark Twain154h 22m4.5 (4.3K)$2 · $0.00
Tom Sawyer als Detektiv (Von Huck Finn erzählt) (Kommentiert)Mark Twain4h 3m3.7 (7.8K)$1 · $0.00
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn (Illustrated Edition) (Annotated)Mark Twain20h 26m4.4 (7.5K)$2 · $0.00
On Masturbation: "Some Thoughts on the Science of Onanism" (Annotated)Mark Twain1h 49m3.8 (604)$2 · $0.00
Tom Sawyer & Huck Finn – The Great American Adventure (Illustrated) (Annotated)Mark Twain35h 5m4.4 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
The Complete Speeches of Mark Twain (Annotated)Mark Twain8h 29m4.3 (23)$2 · $0.00
The Mysterious Stranger (Annotated)Mark Twain5h 41m$2 · $0.00
Die Abenteuer des Huckleberry Finn (Kommentiert)Mark Twain12h 44m$1 · $0.00
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (Illustrated) (Annotated)Mark Twain9h 33m4.2 (48.4K)$2 · $0.00
Time Voyage - Boxed Set (Annotated)Mark Twain, Ayn Rand, Andre Norton, H. Beam Piper, Lester Del Rey, Frederik Pohl, Fritz Leiber, Philip K. Dick, August Derleth, H. G. Wells53h 21m$2 · $0.00
Meisterwerke der englischen Satire (Kommentiert)Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, Jerome Klapka Jerome, Jonathan Swift, Oscar Wilde, William Makepeace Thackeray, Jane Austen, Tobias Smollett, G. K. Chesterton, Lewis Carroll, Sinclair Lewis183h 50m$2 · $0.00
Die Tom Sawyer & Huck Finn Abenteuerreihe (Buch 1-4) (Kommentiert)Mark Twain27h 9m4.4 (121)$1.50 · $0.00
Braving the TruthRachel Held Evans11h 31m4.7 (359)$29 · $0.00
Richard Wagamese SelectedRichard Wagamese3h 14m4.6 (594)$15
The Old Man and the Sea (Annotated)Ernest Hemingway4h 27m4.6 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
Twelfth Night (The Unabridged Play) + The Classic Biography (Annotated)William Shakespeare, Sidney Lee16h 38m4.6 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
Henry V (The Play, Historical Background and Analysis of the Character in the Play)William Shakespeare, William Hazlitt8h 40m4.6 (1.3K)$1 · $0.00
Pathways to LightPrakash Amte7h 6m4.6 (1.3K)$8
These Vital SignsSayed Tabatabai3h 20m4.7 (215)$18 · $0.00
H. P. LOVECRAFT Ultimate Collection: Novellas, Short Stories, Poetry & Essays (Annotated)H. P. Lovecraft12h 28m4.6 (2.3K)$2 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust15h 54m4.5 (10.6K)$2 · $0.00
Lessons in TruthH. Emilie3h 50m4.6 (1.4K)$4.70 · $0.00
TORAH - Bilingual Edition: English/Hebrew (Annotated)Max Margolis, JPS28h 26m4.6 (1K)$2 · $0.00
The Poetic EddaJackson Crawford6h 24m4.5 (19.8K)$17
Betty Crocker picture cooky bookBetty Crocker, Inc. General Mills2h 13m4.5 (6.5K)$1 · $0.00
The Complete Tales of Beatrix PotterBeatrix Potter3h 36m4.5 (75K)$3 · $0.00
Anne of Green GablesL. M. Montgomery11h 1m4.5 (1.2M)$2.30 · $0.00
EssaysGeorge Orwell25h 11m4.5 (2.7K)$25
Crime and Punishment (The Unabridged Garnett Translation) (Annotated)Fyodor Dostoevsky24h 25m4.5 (15.4K)$0.99 · $0.00
The North American IndianEdward S. Curtis, Frederick Webb Hodge6h4.5 (1.2K)$2 · $0.00
Survival at StakePoorva Joshipura9h 44m4.7 (136)$29 · $0.00
The Picture of Dorian Gray: The Uncensored 13 Chapter Version + The Revised 20 Chapter Version (Annotated)Oscar Wilde16h 12m4.5 (2.8K)$0.99 · $0.00
Woman UninterruptedBrodie Kane7h 1m4.6 (562)$24 · $0.00
1984 & Animal Farm (Annotated)George Orwell15h 54m4.5 (220.8K)$1.99 · $0.00
Kingsblood Royal (Annotated)Sinclair Lewis14h 42m4.6 (264)$2 · $0.00
Hot Cowgirl Sh*tLacie Evans2h 15m4.7 (103)$15
This Is Going to HurtAdam Kay5h 47m4.4 (444.7K)$24 · $0.00
You Will Get Through This NightDaniel Howell6h 56m4.4 (11.8K)$24 · $0.00
Northanger Abbey (Annotated)Jane Austen10h 7m4.5 (1.6K)$2 · $0.00
My Dear HamiltonStephanie Dray, Laura Kamoie23h 7m4.4 (63.6K)$46 · $0.00
THE SCREWTAPE LETTERS & SCREWTAPE PROPOSES A TOAST (Annotated)C. S. Lewis5h 6m4.4 (471K)$2 · $0.00
Jungle UpNick Pirog10h 8m4.4 (3.1K)$20
The 13½ Lives of Captain BluebearWalter Moers16h 10m4.4 (34.3K)$28
Damon Runyon OmnibusDamon Runyon27h4.5 (242)$2 · $0.00
WotchaKev Saunders14h 41m5.0 (18)$8 · $0.00
BufferingHannah Hart5h 55m4.4 (12.4K)$24 · $0.00
The Office BFFsJenna Fischer, Angela Kinsey8h 26m4.3 (45.4K)$26 · $0.00
The Collected Stories of Dorothy ParkerDorothy Parker8h 36m4.3 (13.6K)$1 · $0.00
LambChristopher Moore15h 22m4.3 (211.3K)$33 · $0.00
#IMomSoHardKristin Hensley, Jen Smedley7h 19m4.3 (7.3K)$24 · $0.00
Mixed PlateJo Koy8h 18m4.3 (7.1K)$26 · $0.00
Over the TopJonathan Van Ness5h 50m4.3 (87.3K)$24 · $0.00
You may also like
The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead WilsonMark Twain5h 17m3.9 (25.5K)$1 · $0.00
A Shilling for CandlesJosephine Tey8h 28m4.0 (13.7K)$1 · $0.00
The Widow Lerouge (Annotated)Émile Gaboriau14h 53m3.9 (2K)$0.99 · $0.00
The Case of the Missing WillAgatha Christie20m3.6 (2.5K)$2 · $0.00
The Corpse of St. James'sJeanne M. Dams9h 10m4.1 (2.1K)$20
The Tragedy of Pudd’nhead WilsonMark Twain5h 18m3.9 (43.7K)Free
Mr Campion and OthersMargery Allingham11h 52m3.9 (1.2K)$1 · $0.00
Arsène Lupin vs. Herlock Sholmes (Annotated)Maurice Leblanc9h 7m4.4 (1.1K)$0.99 · $0.00
The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead WilsonMark Twain5h 35m3.9 (38.7K)$2.30
The Complete Stories of Anton Chekhov, Vol. 1Anton Chekhov7h 42m4.2 (453)$17
Chambers of DeathPriscilla Royal8h 31m4.0 (702)$17
Hidden IdentityAdam Carpenter6h 41m4.1 (346)$5.50 · $0.00
Our Mutual FriendCharles Dickens35h 43m4.2 (41.8K)$2 · $0.00
British Murder Mysteries - The Josephine Tey CollectionJosephine Tey66h 52m4.4 (371)$2 · $0.00
Damage ControlJ. A. Jance10h 22m4.1 (10K)$29 · $0.00
Deadly Duo (Annotated)Margery Allingham8h 9m4.0 (818)$2 · $0.00
Lost BirdsAnne Hillerman9h 49m4.2 (8.9K)$29 · $0.00
Ghastly GadgetsMildred Abbott7h 20m4.6 (809)$17
Library of the World's Best Mystery and Detective StoriesVarious11h 8m3.4 (175)$2.30
Death at the Excelsior And Other StoriesP. G. Wodehouse4h 19m3.8 (450)$2.30