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Chapter 6
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Pudd’nhead Wilson, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Science, Race, and Identity
Slavery
Motherhood
Foreignness and Xenophobia
Disguise, Deception, and Masculinity
Summary
Analysis
The reception at Aunt Patsy’s ends, and Judge Driscoll takes Angelo and Luigi for a ride in his buggy, excited to be “the first to display them in public.” After giving the twins a tour of the town, Judge Driscoll decides to introduce them to Wilson so they can see for themselves how intelligent the man is before the rest of the townspeople prejudice them against him. Judge Driscoll, Wilson, and the twins spend a pleasant hour together, and the twins agree with the Judge that Wilson is a man of wit. Wilson is surprised to discover that he has made two new friends. He invites the twins to come by his lodgings in the evening.
This scene continues to explore the townspeople’s xenophobia. While Judge Driscoll and others are welcoming toward Luigi and Angelo—even competing to show them off—they nevertheless don’t view them as equals or even fully human. Wilson, however, is an exception. This moment establishes a connection between him and the twins, which will be an important relationship going forward.
Active
Themes
That night, as Wilson waits for his guests to arrive, he recalls something unusual he’d seen that morning. While looking out his window at dawn, he’d seen a strange young woman in Judge Driscoll’s house, which lies directly across from his own. The woman, who wore a bonnet with a veil, stood in Tom’s bedroom practicing what looked like dance steps and dainty gestures. At noon, Wilson dropped by Judge Driscoll’s house and asked Mrs. Pratt indirect questions that might reveal the identity of the unfamiliar woman, but based on her responses, he concluded she didn’t know anyone had been in the house. Wilson continues to ponder this mystery as he waits for the twins.
Active
Themes
