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_two ways of seeing a river,_ by mark twain - from life on the mississippi(inner vs outer)

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About.com About Education Grammar & Composition ... Classic Essays By Richard Nordquist Grammar & Composition Expert Ads Twain New Orleans River Cruise River Cruising Grammar Mississippi English Language Grammar Poetry Books Essay Writer Two Ways of Seeing a River, by Mark Twain "All the grace, the beauty, the poetry had gone out of the majestic river!" GRAMMAR & COMPOSITION CATEGORIES Writing Tips: Advice from One Writer to Another Composition: Developing Effective Essays English Grammar Sentence Structures Glossary of Grammatical & Rhetorical Terms Using Words Correctly, Effectively, and Imaginatively Readings and Resources for Writers Composing Sentences VIEW MORE FREE EMAIL NEWSLETTER Let About.com send you the latest from our Grammar & Composition Expert. Your email address here SIGN UP You can optout at any time. Please refer to our privacy policy for contact information. By Ho By Ec By La Ex By So By Pe Sp TODAY'S TOP EDUCAT VIEW MORE IN E Share this Ads 2015 Viking River Cruises vikingrivercruises.com/2015 2for1 Early Booking Discount! Sail with Viking in 2015 Silversea Senior Cruises www.silversea.com/Download_Broch ure More Choices Than Any Luxury Line. The Ultimate Luxury Cruise Vacation Bermuda Cruise Deals bermuda.vacationoutlet.com Unbeatable Deals on Bermuda Cruises from a Port Near You. Book Today! • Twain • New Orleans River Cruise • River Cruising • Grammar • Mississippi Ads Get Coupon Codes Here shoppingsavingshere.shopathome.c om In this excerpt from his autobiographical Life on the Mississippi, American humorist Mark Twain considers what may be lost as well as gained through knowledge and experience. When you have finished reading Twain's thenandnow comparison , visit our Quiz on "Two Ways of Seeing a River." Two Ways of Seeing a River by Mark Twain Now when I had mastered the language of this water and had come to know every trifling feature that bordered the great river as familiarly as I knew the letters of the alphabet, I had made a valuable acquisition. But I had lost something, too. I had lost something which could never be restored to me while I lived. All the grace, the beauty, the poetry had gone out of the majestic river! I still keep in mind a certain wonderful sunset which I witnessed when steamboating was new to me. A broad expanse of the river was turned to blood; in the middle distance the red hue brightened into gold, through which a solitary log came floating, black and conspicuous; in one place a long, slanting mark lay sparkling upon the water; in another the surface was broken by boiling, tumbling rings, that were as manytinted as an opal; where the ruddy flush was faintest, was a smooth spot that was covered with graceful circles and radiating lines, ever so delicately traced; the shore on our left was densely wooded, and the sombre shadow that fell from this forest was broken in one place by a long, ruffled trail that shone like silver; and high above the forest wall a cleanstemmed dead tree waved a single leafy bough that glowed like a flame in the unobstructed splendor that was flowing from the sun. There were graceful curves, reflected images, woody heights, soft distances; and over the whole scene, far and near, the dissolving lights drifted steadily, enriching it, every passing moment, with new marvels of coloring. I stood like one bewitched. I drank it in, in a speechless rapture. The world was new to me, and I had never seen anything like this at home. But as I have said, a day came when I began to cease from noting the glories and the charms which the moon and the sun and the twilight wrought upon the river's face; another day came when I ceased altogether to note them. Then, if that sunset scene had been repeated, I should have looked upon it without rapture, and should have commented upon it, inwardly, in this fashion: "This sun means that we are going to have wind tomorrow; that floating log means that the river is rising, small thanks to it; that slanting mark on the water refers to a bluff reef which is going to kill somebody's steamboat one of these nights, if it keeps on stretching out like that; those tumbling 'boils' show a dissolving bar and a changing channel there; the lines and circles in the slick water over yonder are a warning that that troublesome place is shoaling up dangerously; that silver streak in the shadow of the forest is the 'break' from a new snag, and he has located himself in the very best place he could have found to fish for steamboats; that tall dead tree, with a single living branch, is not going to last long, and then how is a body ever going to get through this blind place at night without the friendly old landmark?" No, the romance and the beauty were all gone from the river. All the value any feature of it had for me now was the amount of usefulness it could furnish toward 1 2 3 5 Ho Ho Br Cl 4 Ho Hi Su 3 W Vi Am 2 Sh Im Re 1 Th St Ev EDUCAT Ho Do Mark Twain (Samuel L. Clemens), 18351910. UP NEXT Mark Twain's Advice to Youth Classic Essays Search...

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  • About.com AboutEducation Grammar&Composition ... ClassicEssays

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    Ads Twain NewOrleansRiverCruise RiverCruising Grammar Mississippi EnglishLanguageGrammar PoetryBooks EssayWriter

    Two Ways of Seeing a River, by Mark Twain"Allthegrace,thebeauty,thepoetryhadgoneoutofthemajesticriver!"

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    om

    InthisexcerptfromhisautobiographicalLifeontheMississippi,AmericanhumoristMarkTwainconsiderswhatmaybelostaswellasgainedthroughknowledgeandexperience.

    WhenyouhavefinishedreadingTwain'sthenandnowcomparison,visitourQuizon"TwoWaysofSeeingaRiver."

    TwoWaysofSeeingaRiver

    byMarkTwain

    NowwhenIhadmasteredthelanguageofthiswaterandhadcometoknoweverytriflingfeaturethatborderedthegreatriverasfamiliarlyasIknewthelettersofthealphabet,Ihadmadeavaluableacquisition.ButIhadlostsomething,too.IhadlostsomethingwhichcouldneverberestoredtomewhileIlived.Allthegrace,thebeauty,thepoetryhadgoneoutofthemajesticriver!IstillkeepinmindacertainwonderfulsunsetwhichIwitnessedwhensteamboatingwasnewtome.Abroadexpanseoftheriverwasturnedtobloodinthemiddledistancetheredhuebrightenedintogold,throughwhichasolitarylogcamefloating,blackandconspicuousinoneplacealong,slantingmarklaysparklinguponthewaterinanotherthesurfacewasbrokenbyboiling,tumblingrings,thatwereasmanytintedasanopalwheretheruddyflushwasfaintest,wasasmoothspotthatwascoveredwithgracefulcirclesandradiatinglines,eversodelicatelytracedtheshoreonourleftwasdenselywooded,andthesombreshadowthatfellfromthisforestwasbrokeninoneplacebyalong,ruffledtrailthatshonelikesilverandhighabovetheforestwallacleanstemmeddeadtreewavedasingleleafyboughthatglowedlikeaflameintheunobstructedsplendorthatwasflowingfromthesun.Thereweregracefulcurves,reflectedimages,woodyheights,softdistancesandoverthewholescene,farandnear,thedissolvinglightsdriftedsteadily,enrichingit,everypassingmoment,withnewmarvelsofcoloring.

    Istoodlikeonebewitched.Idrankitin,inaspeechlessrapture.Theworldwasnewtome,andIhadneverseenanythinglikethisathome.ButasIhavesaid,adaycamewhenIbegantoceasefromnotingthegloriesandthecharmswhichthemoonandthesunandthetwilightwroughtupontheriver'sfaceanotherdaycamewhenIceasedaltogethertonotethem.Then,ifthatsunsetscenehadbeenrepeated,Ishouldhavelookeduponitwithoutrapture,andshouldhavecommenteduponit,inwardly,inthisfashion:"Thissunmeansthatwearegoingtohavewindtomorrowthatfloatinglogmeansthattheriverisrising,smallthankstoitthatslantingmarkonthewaterreferstoabluffreefwhichisgoingtokillsomebody'ssteamboatoneofthesenights,ifitkeepsonstretchingoutlikethatthosetumbling'boils'showadissolvingbarandachangingchanneltherethelinesandcirclesintheslickwateroveryonderareawarningthatthattroublesomeplaceisshoalingupdangerouslythatsilverstreakintheshadow

    oftheforestisthe'break'fromanewsnag,andhehaslocatedhimselfintheverybestplacehecouldhavefoundtofishforsteamboatsthattalldeadtree,withasinglelivingbranch,isnotgoingtolastlong,andthenhowisabodyevergoingtogetthroughthisblindplaceatnightwithoutthefriendlyoldlandmark?"

    No,theromanceandthebeautywereallgonefromtheriver.Allthevalueanyfeatureofithadformenowwastheamountof

    usefulnessitcouldfurnishtoward

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    usefulnessitcouldfurnishtowardcompassingthesafepilotingofasteamboat.Sincethosedays,Ihavepitieddoctorsfrommyheart.Whatdoesthelovelyflushinabeauty'scheekmeantoadoctorbuta"break"thatripplesabovesomedeadlydisease?Arenotallhervisiblecharmssownthickwithwhataretohimthesignsandsymbolsofhiddendecay?Doesheeverseeherbeautyatall,ordoesn'thesimplyview

    herprofessionally,andcommentuponherunwholesomeconditionalltohimself?Anddoesn'thesometimeswonderwhetherhehasgainedmostorlostmostbylearninghistrade?

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