If I recall correctly, his first "date" with Livy was attendance at a Dickens lecture. I'm sure she is the "white" woman to whom he refers, and I also agree that that designation of her is intended as a joke. On Thu, Dec 1, 2011 at 10:17 AM, westbook <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > I think the "white woman" thing was just Twain's way of making a joke. > Tim Champlin > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Ben Wise" <[log in to unmask]> > To: <[log in to unmask]> > Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2011 7:22 PM > Subject: Re: MT & Dickens (& Christmas) > > > >I figure "white" just goes along with "highly respectable" in the > >convention= > > al rhetorical litany of attributes accorded a woman one is proud to have > > in o= > > ne's company, at that declarative time But...who WAS that white woman? > > > > Ben > > > > > > > > On Nov 30, 2011, at 6:02 PM, Harold Bush <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > > >> folks, deep into the Christmas tales of Dickens this week and next; > >> though= > > t > >> I'd treat myself to another look and see how the students like (or > >> dislike= > > ) > >> them. > >> Here's just a few rambling questions, in case any of you are in a > holiday > >> mood and feel like chatting: > >>=20 > >> I wonder how MT thought of Dickens as a novelist? I don't have a copy > of > >> Alan's book handy (sure wish the new edition of MT'sL would appear, are > >> yo= > > u > >> listening Prof. Gribben?). > >>=20 > >> I wonder what he might have thought of those old Christmas tales -- and > >> also, when or if MT ever really wrote much about Christmas, or used it > >> muc= > > h > >> as a setting? > >>=20 > >> I also was interested in this little review MT wrote of his visit to > hear > >> CD read, in NYC, 1868: > >>=20 > >> "He read David Copperfield. He is a bad reader, in one sense -- because > >> he= > > > >> does not enunciate his words sharply and distinctly -- he does not cut > >> the= > > > >> syllables cleanly, and therefore many and many of them fell dead before > >> they reached our part of the house. [I say "our" because I am proud to > >> observe that there was a beautiful young lady with me -- a highly > >> respectable young white woman.]" > >>=20 > >> (from a nice website: charlesdickenspage.com/twain_on_dickens.html; > is > >> this published in a recent edition somewhere? not really sure about > that > >> .= > > > >> . . .) > >>=20 > >> For most of the 60s, evidently, CD read those Christmas tales in public > >> readings. But the thing that really caught my eye: why did he call her > >> a= > > > >> "white" woman? I don't really get the reason for emphasizing that -- as > >> i= > > f > >> he would be with an African American? or am I just missing something > >> with= > > > >> that? > >>=20 > >> Anyway; if anyone has something to say about MT and Christmas, or CD, > >> I'm= > > > >> interested! > >>=20 > >>=20 > >> thanks, --Hal B. > >>=20 > >>=20 > >>=20 > >>=20 > >> --=20 > >> Harold K. Bush, Ph.D > >> Professor of English > >> Saint Louis University > >> St. Louis, MO 63108 > >> 314-977-3616 (w); 314-771-6795 (h) > >> <www.slu.edu/x23809.xml> > -- John H. Davis, Ph.D. Professor of English Department of Language and Literature Chowan University Murfreesboro, North Carolina 27855