Sketches New and Old, Part 6. — Background and Themes

The Voice of the Undertaker

The undertaker's monologue in the opening sketch is a masterclass in vernacular characterization. Twain renders his speech with phonetic spelling ('ca,'m,' 'sp'iled,' 'druther') and a rhythm that mimics oral storytelling. The undertaker's admiration for the corpse's 'clear head' and 'hunk of brains' is both absurd and affectionate. He describes the deceased's brain fever as 'a-raging in one place' while the rest of the pile 'didn't know anything about it,' comparing it to an 'Injun Insurrection in Arizona' that doesn't affect the Atlantic States. This simile, drawn from contemporary events, grounds the humor in a specific American context. The undertaker's repeated use of 'corpse said' turns the dead man into an active participant in his own burial, subverting the expected passivity of the deceased.

Satirical Encounters with Bureaucracy

In 'The Facts Concerning the Recent Resignation,' the narrator poses as a clerk of the Senate Committee on Conchology and visits various cabinet secretaries. Each encounter follows a pattern: the narrator offers unsolicited advice, the official grows angry, and the narrator is dismissed or arrested. The humor lies in the narrator's deadpan delivery and the officials' overreactions. For instance, when the Secretary of War is told to fight Indians with 'soap and education' because they are 'more deadly in the long run,' the absurd logic mirrors Twain's critique of paternalistic policies. The narrator's insistence on being treated 'with the respect due to my office'—a made-up office—highlights the absurdity of bureaucratic hierarchy. The Secretary of the Treasury's report is criticized for lacking 'poetry, no sentiment, no heroes, no plot, no pictures,' as if it were a novel. Twain lampoons both the officials' pomposity and the narrator's naive self-importance.

Recurring Motifs: Death and Domesticity

Death appears repeatedly in this collection, but Twain treats it with irreverent familiarity. In 'The Undertaker's Chat,' the corpse is 'perfectly satisfied' as long as he is 'planted before he sp'iled.' The undertaker finds 'satisfaction in buryin' a man like that,' as if the deceased were a discerning customer. This motif recurs in other sketches: in 'Concerning Chambermaids,' the narrator's complaints about hotel service are couched in mock-serious terms, and in 'About Barbers,' the barber's ineptitude is described with the same deadpan exaggeration. Twain's dialogue often involves characters who are oblivious to their own absurdity, whether they are corpses, clerks, or barbers. The domestic sphere is also a target: in 'Aurelia's Unfortunate Young Man,' a series of increasingly ridiculous misfortunes befall a suitor, each reported with straight-faced gravity. Twain's humor relies on the contrast between the triviality of the subject and the solemnity of the tone.

Diction and Dialect as Comic Tools

Twain's use of dialect is not merely decorative; it is central to his comic effect. The undertaker's speech is peppered with colloquialisms ('gaily thing,' 'natty burial-case,' 'flummery') and malapropisms that reveal character. The narrator in 'The Facts Concerning the Recent Resignation' adopts a formal, bureaucratic tone that clashes with his absurd proposals. Twain also employs repetition for comic effect: the undertaker repeatedly calls the corpse 'a brick,' and the narrator insists on his title as 'clerk of the Senate Committee on Conchology.' The word 'Conchology' itself—the study of shells—is a punchline, suggesting the narrator's expertise is as hollow as a seashell. Twain's dialogue often includes interruptions and non sequiturs, as when the Secretary of the Treasury asks 'What will you have?' and the narrator replies 'Rum punch.' These linguistic surprises keep the reader off-balance and heighten the satire.

Readers approaching 'Sketches New and Old, Part 6' should listen for the cadence of Twain's dialogue and the way his characters' voices reveal their foibles. The sketches reward attention to detail: a single line, such as the corpse's request to be 'pint him for the tomb,' can encapsulate an entire worldview. Twain's humor is not gentle; it is pointed and often dark, but it never loses its human touch. These pieces are best enjoyed as performances, read aloud to appreciate the full effect of Twain's vernacular artistry.

There’s a strange comfort in Twain’s deadpan, even when the corpse is running the show. It makes me think of quieter afternoons with the old leatherbound volumes, and how a certain restlessness finds its answer in that slow, knowing grin. I keep The Ne’er-Do-Well — Reading Companion nearby now, just for that same feeling of company.