Technology in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

In the novel, Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, written by Mark Twain in 1889, Twain toys with the idea of time traveling and "magic." In this novel, a 19th century Yankee engineer from Connecticut, Hank Morgan, after a knock on the head, wakes up back in the day of King Arthur in the 6th century. By using his knowledge of modern technology, Hank starts to invent technology in hopes to modernize the past. Hank Morgan firmly believes in using technology to improve the people’s lives in the 6th century. Mr. Morgan sees opportunities to take advantage of people to become an inventor in order to be on King Arthur’s good side so he can essentially exploit the people in the town. For example, Hank sees a monk who bows all day long, without stopping, as a tribute to his religion. Hank hooks up a sewing machine to the monk as he bows all day and as a result he sells clothing to the townspeople informing them they are from the church and are religious souvenirs. Hank also “invents” soap and is praised for his invention and giving the townspeople better personal hygiene. Hank Morgan wanted to advance the technology in the society he woke up in to better lives, however his plans fell short and it never happened.  The abrupt and awful ending to the novel could be proven as a lesson for the 19th century and how dangerously dependent people can become to technology. Twain’s purpose for the novel was to bring light to the idea that technology is beneficial and an advancement to society. This novel also shows that inventions can be used for things other than what the inventor originally intended them to be used for, much like Twain's elastic clasp invention.

 

"Mark Twain and Technology." Mark Twain and Technology. The National Endowment for the Humanities. Web. 5 Dec. 2014. <http://www.webenglishteacher.com/msb/cy/>.

 

"A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court." Goodreads. 1 Jan. 2014. Web. 5 Dec. 2014. <http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6680423-a-connecticut-yankee-in-king-arthur-s-court>.