A Connecticut Yankee in King Aruthur's Court

TRAVEL BACK IN TIME WITH MARK TWAIN’S CLASSIC NOVEL

Written by Mark Twain in 1889, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court tells the story of Hank Morgan, the quintessential self-reliant New Englander, a 19th-century engineer from Connecticut.

After a severe blow to the head, Hank awakens to find himself inexplicably transported back in time and space to early medieval England during the reign of King Arthur. After a bit of confusion and his capture by one of King Arthur’s knights, Hank realizes where he is and uses his technological knowledge to fool people into believing that he is a powerful magician. He becomes a rival of Merlin, who appears to be a fraud next to him, and gains the trust of King Arthur.

Hank tries to make people’s lives better by attempting to modernize the past. He is disgusted at the way the Barons treat the common people and tries to implement democratic ideas and reforms but is unable to change things and prevent the death of King Arthur.

Twain wrote the book as a caricature of the romantic notions of chivalry and a satire of servitude and sovereignty. He celebrates plain and simple ingenuity as well as democratic values. Through this story where the past and present collide, Twain exposes the fragility of both utopias, destroying the myth of the romantic ideal as well as his own era’s faith in scientific and social progress.

“You can’t depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus”