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The Inspiration for Pudd'nhead Wilson

While reading Mark Twain's Pudd'nhead Wilson, one might hazard a guess that the author's inspiration for his novel was the injustice of racism. Indeed, it is one of the central themes of the book, if not the single main theme. But according to Anne Wigger, in her longwindedly-titled article "The Source of Fingerprint Material in Mark Twain's Pudd'nhead Wilson and Those Extraordinary Twins," there is evidence shown that Twain was originally inspired for the plot of the novel by the new practice of fingerprinting. He met a man who called himself Cheiro, who introduced Twain to the art of palmistry and the science of fingerprinting. Twain was absolutely fascinated with it; Cheiro sent him a book he had written on the subject, and Twain wrote him back thanking him ("I don't know how you could have done me a greater favor, and I shall devour it" [Wigger 518]) and signing his letter with his fingerprints. The part that intrigued Twain the most was the fact that every single person on the planet has a unique set of fingerprints, even identical twins. This sole fact inspired the plot of switching the two infant boys at the beginning of Pudd'nhead Wilson. It's interesting how sometimes the strangest of things can inspire us!

SOURCES

Twain, Mark. Pudd'nhead Wilson. New York: New America Library, 1964.

Wigger, Anne P. "The Source of Fingerprint Material in Mark Twain's Pudd'nhead Wilson and Those Extraordinary Twins." American Literature 28 (1957): 517-520. MLA International Bibliography. 16 Apr. 2008. Keyword: Mark Twain. [link]