The Prince and the Pauper

In Mark Twains timeless satiric farce two youths swap clothes and lifestyles. They are of similar ages. They have similar appearances. In actuality there is just one distinction between them: Edward Tudor is the heir to the English throne while Tom Canty is a child of the London slums. When a chance encounter results in a switch of roles—with the poor caught up in the pomp and foolishness of the royal court and the prince roaming horrified through the lower depths of sixteenth-century English society—it becomes apparent just how minimal this distinction actually is. Mark Twain created a stinging critique of societal unfairness and hypocrisy out of the concept of switched identities as well as an unstoppable comedy with a mood of high-spirited play.