Benjamin Mao

Pd.6
4/11/14
A Presidential Candidate Analysis
U.S President Barack Obama once asked, Do we participate in a politics of cynicism or
a politics of hope? The politics of the last 50 years have changed the political landscape to the
point that it no longer matters what a candidate does or say he will do; rather, its about smearing
the reputation of the opposition. Mark Twain certainly wouldnt be shocked at the current
direction the American political system is heading, for in his 1879 satirical piece, A Presidential
Candidate, he criticizes the need of the candidates to attack each others reputation instead of
focusing on their own redeeming qualities, by entering the race and portraying himself as the
only candidate worthy of votes. Twain achieves his goal through the utilization of diction and
irony.
Twain employs diction to expose the shamefulness of attacking other candidates because
the lack of confidence in ones self. In the first paragraph, he writes about the need to, Own up
to all the wickedness I have done in order to avoid the discovering of any dark and deadly deed
that I have secreted. Taking responsibility for an action is something that candidates are
supposed to do after they land in hot water and only as a last resort to prevent their campaign
from collapsing. First, the candidates deny all the allegations against them. Here, Twain takes the
initiative and freely divulges all of his rumored misdeeds before they can be used against him,
thus saving himself from embarrassment later. Attacking his reputation would only make the
other candidates seem desperate because Twain is seen as an honest man in the eyes of the voters.
Aside from criticizing attacks on character, Twain also highlights the need to emphasize ones
own redeeming qualities and the lack thereof in the American political system.
Benjamin Mao
Pd.6
4/11/14
Twain utilizes irony to highlight the need for redeeming qualities by portraying himself
as a typical American politician. In the second paragraph, Twain admits to having, Treed a
rheumatic grandfather of mine in the winter of 1850 and that he would, do it again if I ever had
another grandfather. Here, Twain is seen as heartless, exactly the quality that politicians dont
want to be portrayed as. Who would run his grandfather up a tree, keep him there all night while
shooting him in the legs and then boast about doing it again? Twain implies that all candidates
ultimately work only for themselves and not for the benefit of others. In paragraph 3, Twain
acknowledges that he ran away during the battle of Gettysburg, not to pray like Washington as
his friends suggest him say, but to run away like a coward. He also claims that he wants my
country saved, but I prefer someone else save it. Politicians are portrayed as cowards who force
their campaigns to do all the dirty work for them while they reap the benefits of victory. Twain
also pokes fun at the notion of military generals running for President, blasting them for not
knowing what its like to sacrifice lives to save the country. By adding a personal touch to the
race for President, Mark Twain hopes to reform the election process so that it can produce a
President that actually serves the will of the citizens.
Modern politics is war of smear campaigns with the campaign able to produce the most
outrageous attacks often the winner. Attacking the other candidate has become so common that a
party can run for President on a platform of just attacking their opponents. At the same time,
with the rise of smearing comes a decrease in redeeming traits, especially the trait of honesty
because no candidate can claim that they were honest about their opponents lack of redeeming
traits. Hopefully, Mark Twains satirical piece can begin to reform the system enough so that
Americans can pick a President who can actually represent them and not one that is the lesser of
the two evils.
Benjamin Mao
Pd.6
4/11/14