One complete century after Mark Twain died, one of his wishes while on his deathbed has finally been fulfilled: as an autobiography that is filled with revelations and outspoken dialogue that he spent the last ten years of his life writing is set to be published.
Best known as the creator of Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer as well as some of the most common catchphrases in the English language, left 5,000 pages of unedited memoirs, along with handwritten notes that he did not want the memoirs to be published until a century after his death.
The time has now passed and the University of California Berkley has unearthed the manuscript from a vault and plans to release the first volume of the autobiography. Containing roughly half a million words, the complete autobiography will be released in a trilogy set to unveil the life of the most famous American novelist.
Scholars are divided in regards to why Twain wanted the manuscript kept hidden for so long, with some believing he wanted to feel free to offer his take on politics and religion while others believe that the time lag prevented him from worrying about potentially offending his friends.
However, regardless of his reasons, his decision has ensured that he will maintain his celebrity status throughout the 21st century, with a bit of his memoir said to detail his affair with Isabel Van Kleek Lyon.
Historian Laura Trombley stated that many people like to glorify Twain’s mannerisms, but in his manuscript he is quite graphic and does not refrain from using words such as ‘slut’ which will potentially change many people’s impressions of him.
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