The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copyrighted by BookRags, Inc.
Benjamin Penhallow Shillaber (12 July 1814-25 November 1890), journalist and humorist, left his Portsmouth, New Hampshire, home to become a printer's helper in Boston. He joined the Boston Post and in 1847 catapulted to literary fame by his creation, "Mrs. Partington." The forte of this widow lady was poetry--bad poetry--and her prose was sprinkled with numerous malapropisms. The "Mrs. Partington" sketches appeared in newspapers and magazines, including his own short-lived comic weekly, the Carpet Bag (1852), and "her" first book appeared in 1854 as The Life and Sayings of Mrs. Partington (New York: J. C. Derby), quickly selling 30,000 copies. In subsequent years Shillaber edited magazines, wrote juveniles, and published his own humorous verse. He died in Chelsea, Massachusetts. Mark Twain, whose first published sketch appeared in the Carpet Bag, is thought to have been influenced by the "Mrs. Partington" character in writing Tom Sawyer.