Gregg Camfield wrote on March 27 in part:
> I agree that it would be fascinating to discuss the differences between
> Mark TWain studies in Germany and the U.S. . . .
> Ines's question, couched in lucid English, is
> worth discussion, and makes me wonder about other differences in
> interpretive traditions.  What did the citizens of the former Soviet
> Union see in Twain that his works were very popular (at least among
> scholars)?  What do Japanese scholars see?

Gregg's question gives me a chance to bring up something of interest to me.

Seven Seas Books of  Berlin, Germany (East) published _Your Personal Mark
Twain_ in 1960 and _King Leopold's Soliloquy_ in 1961.  Both were
reprinted in New York by International Publishers.

From the _Soliloquy_ Introduction:
"[T]he man who made millions laugh was an angry man because he was a seeing
man . . . he sided with the Filipinos who were butchered by the U. S.
Army; with the Chinese massacred by the troops of Russia's Czar and
Germany's Kaiser, Britain's King and America's President; with the
Negroes lynched by church-going, God-fearing white Southern hypocrites;
and with the workers bled and exploited everywhere.  He hit, and he hit
hard; nor did he cringe when the stuff started flying.

"He would have been invaluable for us today, for our fight.  We could use
Mark Twain's pen.

"In fact, we do use it--now" (11-12).

The International Publishers boasts a list of authors including Marx,
Engels, Castro, and Ho Chi Minh.  Also W.E.B. DuBois.

The _Soliloquy_ is a faithful reprint; and _Your Personal M.T._'s 36
selections contain nonpolitical (?) sketches like "The Awful German
Language" and "Eve's Diary" along with "The War Prayer," "We Are
Americanizing Europe" and "In Defense of General Funston."

I enjoyed both books. My question, finally, is what was the reception in
East Germany or other communist countries to this view of Twain.

Now the apology:
I apologize to the Forum members for the earlier double post on _Yankee_
and to Gregg for misspelling his name in both posts.

larry marshburne              [log in to unmask]