Mark Twain is certainly a master of the use of hyperbole
and understatement, and in this short essay, he makes extensive use of both of these
techniques both for humour and to underline his point. Even the most cursory review of
this essay reveals the presence of plenty of examples of both of these literary
techniques, and so let us have a look at the beginning of the first paragraph to
identify some examples.
Fifty years ago, when I was a boy of fifteen and
helping to inhabit a Missourian village on the banks of the Mississippi, I had a friend
whose society was very dear to me because I was forbidden by my mother to partake of
it.
A great example of
understatement could be considered to be the description of a friend, "whose society was
very dear to me because I was forbidden by my mother to partake of it." The bathetic
element in this sentence adds great humour to this phrase, as we are led to believe this
friend is "dear" to Twain for more noble and laudable reasons than that which
follows.
You might like to consider the following example
of hyperbole as Twain continues to establish his
point:
I am
persuaded that a coldly-thought-out and independent verdict upon a fashion in clothes,
or manners, or literature, or politics, or religion, or any other matter that is
projected into the field of our notice and interest, is a most rare thing -- if it has
indeed ever existed.
The end
comment, that raises doubts as to whether logical formulations have ever existed in the
history of man clearly indicates that this is an exaggeration for effect, deliberately
trying to provoke his readers with this statement. This is of course Twain's typical
style.
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