78 pages 2 hours read

Mark Twain

Life on the Mississippi

Nonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 1883

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Important Quotes

Quotation Mark Icon

“The Mississippi is well worth reading about. It is not a commonplace river, but on the contrary is in all ways remarkable. Considering the Missouri, its main branch, it is the longest river in the world—four thousand three hundred miles.”


(Chapter I, Page 1)

This sentence encapsulates Twain’s approach to the Mississippi River by highlighting how exceptional the river is; the Mississippi River surpasses the grandeur of many worldwide attractions, despite its initial view as a “commonplace” American river.

Quotation Mark Icon

“The world and the books are so accustomed to use, and over-use, the word 'new' in connection with our country, that we early get and permanently retain the impression that there is nothing old about it.”


(Chapter I, Page 3)

Twain conjectures that the reason America is never viewed as old or as having any noteworthy history is because the word “new” is always used to describe America, to the point of overuse.

Quotation Mark Icon

“It always happens that when a man seizes upon a neglected and important idea, people inflamed with the same notion crop up all around. It happened so in this instance.”


(Chapter I, Page 5)

Twain observes that once a person comes up with an idea that is seemingly original, many more will suddenly arise with the very same idea. In the case of the Mississippi, many people decided to explore it and see what riches it held.

Related Titles

By Mark Twain

Plot Summary

logo

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

Mark Twain

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

Mark Twain

Study Guide

logo

A True Story

Mark Twain

A True Story

Mark Twain

Plot Summary

logo

Letters from the Earth

Mark Twain

Letters from the Earth

Mark Twain

Study Guide

logo

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Mark Twain

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Mark Twain

Study Guide

logo

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Mark Twain

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Mark Twain

Plot Summary

logo

The Autobiography of Mark Twain

Mark Twain

The Autobiography of Mark Twain

Mark Twain

Study Guide

logo

The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County

Mark Twain

The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County

Mark Twain

Study Guide

logo

The Gilded Age

Mark Twain, Charles Dudley Warner

The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today

Mark Twain, Charles Dudley Warner

Study Guide

logo

The Innocents Abroad

Mark Twain

The Innocents Abroad

Mark Twain

Study Guide

logo

The Invalid's Story

Mark Twain

The Invalid's Story

Mark Twain

Plot Summary

logo

The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg

Mark Twain

The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg

Mark Twain

Study Guide

logo

The Mysterious Stranger

Mark Twain

The Mysterious Stranger

Mark Twain

Study Guide

logo

The Prince and the Pauper

Mark Twain

The Prince and the Pauper

Mark Twain

STUDY + TEACHING GUIDE

logo

Pudd'nhead Wilson

Mark Twain

The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson

Mark Twain

Study Guide

logo

The War Prayer

Mark Twain

The War Prayer

Mark Twain