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Goldsmith's Friend Abroad Again
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86 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 4, 2002
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About the author
Mark Twain
9,048 books18.8k followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Faulkner calling him "the father of American literature." His novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), with the latter often called the "Great American Novel." Twain also wrote A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) and Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894), and co-wrote The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (1873) with Charles Dudley Warner.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Faulkner calling him "the father of American literature." His novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), with the latter often called the "Great American Novel." Twain also wrote A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) and Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894), and co-wrote The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (1873) with Charles Dudley Warner.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 30, 2017
It’s not unheard of to see the patently absurd question asked, “when did we lose our innocence?” After reading Mark Twain’s Goldsmith’s Friend Abroad Again we can at least narrow that elusive date down to sometime before 1870 when he wrote this short story.
Twain had a genius for using humor and subtlety to appeal to our better natures. In this case he presents a series of letters from an enthusiastic Chinese immigrant to America, writing to his friend back home about his excitement in starting a new life in the land which practices the ideals they have heard of and greatly admire, that all men are created equal. We can’t help but route for this idealistic champion of American values. When he is met with prejudice and anti-immigrant violence we are on his side. We are shocked that a Chinese immigrant is not allowed to give testimony on his own behalf in court. That is one issue that Twain was concerned with, and is so effective in advocating against, persuasively presenting it in this dramatically sympathetic form. The American policemen are drawn in such rough terms that we don’t feel defensive of them but instead demand that our system be represented and implemented by those who to whom these ideas really matter.
The relevance to the politics of 2017 continues as Twain’s ruffians explain their opposition and hatred toward certain immigrants who “come from the devils own country to take the bread out of dacent people’s mouths and put down the wages for work whin it was all a Christian could do to kape body and sowl together as it was.”
Our hero, Ah Song Hi, sees in court that, “A culprit’s nationality made for or against him in this court...negroes were promptly punished, when was there was the slightest preponderance of testimony against them; but Chinamen were punished always apparently.”
Twain goes further by bringing out the difficulty in uniting supporters of justice who are suffering from oppression. “misery and hardship do not make their victims gentle or charitable toward each other.”
Once again Mark Twain appeals to our conscience, goading us to get up, stand up and fight for the ideals America is founded on and spelled out in our Bill of Rights. Ah Song Hi is counting on “the gallant hatred if oppression which is part of the very flesh and blood of every American (to) be stirred to it’s utmost”.
Twain had a genius for using humor and subtlety to appeal to our better natures. In this case he presents a series of letters from an enthusiastic Chinese immigrant to America, writing to his friend back home about his excitement in starting a new life in the land which practices the ideals they have heard of and greatly admire, that all men are created equal. We can’t help but route for this idealistic champion of American values. When he is met with prejudice and anti-immigrant violence we are on his side. We are shocked that a Chinese immigrant is not allowed to give testimony on his own behalf in court. That is one issue that Twain was concerned with, and is so effective in advocating against, persuasively presenting it in this dramatically sympathetic form. The American policemen are drawn in such rough terms that we don’t feel defensive of them but instead demand that our system be represented and implemented by those who to whom these ideas really matter.
The relevance to the politics of 2017 continues as Twain’s ruffians explain their opposition and hatred toward certain immigrants who “come from the devils own country to take the bread out of dacent people’s mouths and put down the wages for work whin it was all a Christian could do to kape body and sowl together as it was.”
Our hero, Ah Song Hi, sees in court that, “A culprit’s nationality made for or against him in this court...negroes were promptly punished, when was there was the slightest preponderance of testimony against them; but Chinamen were punished always apparently.”
Twain goes further by bringing out the difficulty in uniting supporters of justice who are suffering from oppression. “misery and hardship do not make their victims gentle or charitable toward each other.”
Once again Mark Twain appeals to our conscience, goading us to get up, stand up and fight for the ideals America is founded on and spelled out in our Bill of Rights. Ah Song Hi is counting on “the gallant hatred if oppression which is part of the very flesh and blood of every American (to) be stirred to it’s utmost”.
August 3, 2019
But, but .. America is a melting pot, a land of freedom and equality. Right. Course it is.
August 9, 2016
This is a second short story I read of his. Even though I may not agree with the intention with which it was written and the satire behind it, I must say his writing is beautiful.
I won't go deep into the subject, but one thing I never understand is why the whole world including some/most of the Americans expect that any one that migrates to America should be welcomed with open arms and treated as one of them or as equals. For other countries it doesn't seem to apply as much as it does to America. Probably its success is its curse. Just ask around, you'll see the very same people who love to hate it dream of migrating and settling there for life.
In my opinion - equality and fairness, I may sound pessimistic but that is what I understand from history science and nature, is never going to be 100%. Their are social hierarchies based on race, religion, intelligence, beauty, financial status etc, in the society and they'll remain until the end of world. You don't even see the morals most people expect in countries populated with homogeneous race, and expecting the world from just one country and blaming it for few shortcomings, which happen on a large scale in every other country and absolutely go unnoticed, is just monumental stupidity and ignorance.
I won't go deep into the subject, but one thing I never understand is why the whole world including some/most of the Americans expect that any one that migrates to America should be welcomed with open arms and treated as one of them or as equals. For other countries it doesn't seem to apply as much as it does to America. Probably its success is its curse. Just ask around, you'll see the very same people who love to hate it dream of migrating and settling there for life.
In my opinion - equality and fairness, I may sound pessimistic but that is what I understand from history science and nature, is never going to be 100%. Their are social hierarchies based on race, religion, intelligence, beauty, financial status etc, in the society and they'll remain until the end of world. You don't even see the morals most people expect in countries populated with homogeneous race, and expecting the world from just one country and blaming it for few shortcomings, which happen on a large scale in every other country and absolutely go unnoticed, is just monumental stupidity and ignorance.
July 12, 2012
In Goldsmith’s Friend Abroad Again by Mark Twain even his hometown humor can’t mask the horror and injustice that Chinese immigrants experienced in the United States in the second half of the nineteenth century. Like European immigrants, the Asians that came to U.S. shores hoped for a better way of life. The greatness of this relatively new nation served as a magnet for humanity from all over the world. All these new settlers were impressed with the declarations of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. This book is a collection of letters written from one of these Chinese immigrants to a friend in China. The first letters were full of hope and joy but were soon shaded with injustices. I have no doubt that Twain’s representations of these times are factually correct and because of this I, as an American, am ashamed. It is a wonderful novella about a painful subject.
March 5, 2020
3.5/5
December 5, 2018
Vicious parody of "American Ideals." A chinaman saves all his money for a year and a half, is forced to put his wife and children into dubious custody, and boards a ship for California. He pays $2 for a "certificate" and when he gets ashore, he pays the entire sum or what he has ($10) for a useless smallpox vaccination. Then he gets mauled by a dog set on him by "Americans." He is thrown in jail and at his trial, finds that Chinamen are universally convicted.
Very sad, yet strangely current argument against immigrants.
Very sad, yet strangely current argument against immigrants.
February 4, 2018
Such an honest view of the abuse of immigrants is rare and heartbreaking.
July 21, 2020
Factual fiction.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews