American author and humorist Mark Twain (1835-1910) wrote the following essay near the
end of his life, around 1900, although the passage was not published until 1923, thirteen
years after his death. Read the passage carefully. Then, in a well-organized essay, analyze
the rhetorical strategies Twain uses to establish his position on the nature of
patriotism.
It is agreed, in this country, that if a man can arrange his religion so that it perfectly satisfies
his conscience, it is not incumbent upon him to care whether the arrangement is satisfactory
to any one else or not.
In Austria and some other countries this is not the case. There the State arranges a man's
religion for him, he has no voice in it himself.
Patriotism is merely a religion -- love of country, worship of country, devotion to the
country's flag and honor and welfare.
In absolute monarchies it is furnished from the Throne, cut and dried, to the subject; in
England and America it is furnished, cut and dried, to the citizen by the politician and the
newspaper.
The newspaper-and-politician-manufactured Patriot often gags in private over his dose; but
he takes it, and keeps it on his stomach the best he can. Blessed are the meek.
Sometimes, in the beginning of an insane and shabby political upheaval, he is strongly
moved to revolt, but he doesn't do it -- he knows better. He knows that his maker would find
it out -- the maker of his Patriotism, the windy and incoherent six-dollar sub-editor of his
village newspaper -- and would bray out in print and call him a Traitor. And how dreadful that
would be. It makes him tuck his tail between his legs and shiver. We all know -- the reader
knows it quite well -- that two or three years ago nine-tenths of the human tails in England
and America performed just that act. Which is to say, nine-tenths of the Patriots in England
and America turned Traitor to keep from being called Traitor. Isn't it true? You know it to be
true. Isn't it curious?
Yet it was not a thing to be very seriously ashamed of. A man can seldom -- very, very
seldom -- fight a winning fight against his training; the odds are too heavy. For many a year
-- perhaps always -- the training of the two nations had been dead against independence in
political thought, persistently inhospitable toward Patriotism manufactured on a man's own
premises, Patriotism reasoned out in the man's own head and fire-assayed and tested and
proved in his own conscience. The resulting Patriotism was a shop-worn product procured at
second hand. The Patriot did not know just how or when or where he got his opinions,
neither did he care, so long as he was with what seemed the majority -- which was the main
thing, the safe thing, the comfortable thing. Does the reader believe he knows three men
who have actual reasons for their pattern of Patriotism -- and can furnish them? Let him not
examine, unless he wants to be disappointed. He will be likely to find that his men got their
Patriotism at the public trough, and had no hand in their preparation themselves.
Training does wonderful things. It moved the people of this country to oppose the Mexican
This study source was downloaded by 100000850872992 from CourseHero.com on 04-03-2023 13:02:33 GMT -05:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/88602728/0706-AP-Practice-Essay-10docx/
end of his life, around 1900, although the passage was not published until 1923, thirteen
years after his death. Read the passage carefully. Then, in a well-organized essay, analyze
the rhetorical strategies Twain uses to establish his position on the nature of
patriotism.
It is agreed, in this country, that if a man can arrange his religion so that it perfectly satisfies
his conscience, it is not incumbent upon him to care whether the arrangement is satisfactory
to any one else or not.
In Austria and some other countries this is not the case. There the State arranges a man's
religion for him, he has no voice in it himself.
Patriotism is merely a religion -- love of country, worship of country, devotion to the
country's flag and honor and welfare.
In absolute monarchies it is furnished from the Throne, cut and dried, to the subject; in
England and America it is furnished, cut and dried, to the citizen by the politician and the
newspaper.
The newspaper-and-politician-manufactured Patriot often gags in private over his dose; but
he takes it, and keeps it on his stomach the best he can. Blessed are the meek.
Sometimes, in the beginning of an insane and shabby political upheaval, he is strongly
moved to revolt, but he doesn't do it -- he knows better. He knows that his maker would find
it out -- the maker of his Patriotism, the windy and incoherent six-dollar sub-editor of his
village newspaper -- and would bray out in print and call him a Traitor. And how dreadful that
would be. It makes him tuck his tail between his legs and shiver. We all know -- the reader
knows it quite well -- that two or three years ago nine-tenths of the human tails in England
and America performed just that act. Which is to say, nine-tenths of the Patriots in England
and America turned Traitor to keep from being called Traitor. Isn't it true? You know it to be
true. Isn't it curious?
Yet it was not a thing to be very seriously ashamed of. A man can seldom -- very, very
seldom -- fight a winning fight against his training; the odds are too heavy. For many a year
-- perhaps always -- the training of the two nations had been dead against independence in
political thought, persistently inhospitable toward Patriotism manufactured on a man's own
premises, Patriotism reasoned out in the man's own head and fire-assayed and tested and
proved in his own conscience. The resulting Patriotism was a shop-worn product procured at
second hand. The Patriot did not know just how or when or where he got his opinions,
neither did he care, so long as he was with what seemed the majority -- which was the main
thing, the safe thing, the comfortable thing. Does the reader believe he knows three men
who have actual reasons for their pattern of Patriotism -- and can furnish them? Let him not
examine, unless he wants to be disappointed. He will be likely to find that his men got their
Patriotism at the public trough, and had no hand in their preparation themselves.
Training does wonderful things. It moved the people of this country to oppose the Mexican
This study source was downloaded by 100000850872992 from CourseHero.com on 04-03-2023 13:02:33 GMT -05:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/88602728/0706-AP-Practice-Essay-10docx/
