This novel was written in 1873 by both Twain and Warner. The common name given to that area of time was the Gilded Age which came from the title of their book. They got the title from Shakespeare's King John from 1595. This is the quote that they found the title in. "To gild refined gold, to paint the lily... is wasteful and ridiculous excess." They thought that this was major characteristics of this time period, excess and waste. They did not call it the Golden Age because it was no worthy of being full gold but only having a thin layer. This book as had more then 100 editions from the original piece published in 1873.
This is how the book came to be. Twain and Warner were neighbors according to Twain's biography. Their wife challenged them to write a better book then they have read. The first 11 chapters were said to be written by Twain followed by 12 chapters written by Warner. They are not sure who the remaining chapters are written by but they are only written by one of them. The only exception was the concluding chapters. They started the book in February were finished by April. The Critics like the humor of the piece but thought Twain's and Warner's stories didn't fit together just right.
The story was about two different stories of people trying to get money by selling land. Twain's part of the story was about a family by the name of Hawkins. They are unable to sell their land even with having an adopted daughter as a lobbyist in DC. Warner's part was about two upper-class men which are trying to get money from land but in a different way. The theme of this story was the hope of getting rich through land belief extends civilization.
The book does not cover some of the things the Gilded Age is now know for. Such as corporations, political machines, and industrialization. They think this is not included because the book was written at the early state of the era.
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