{"id":"01KG176GGDTY7XKJQB2BYA3W0Q","cid":"bafkreigf445m5fctj6vpa6ophzvlomuzsnakct773swwn2tjmfn5rmufcm","type":"preface","properties":{"description":"# Preface  \n## Overview  \nThis entity is a preface to the novel [The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Complete](arke:01KG17620ND2Q83R02B18E9MJZ), extracted from the text file [tom_sawyer.txt](arke:01KG0K71QZ8KK7RGEGSNTB5534). It appears in the sequence of front matter following the [Illustrations](arke:01KG176GCSTQFTDCGXJHKRQFRA) section and directly precedes [CHAPTER I](arke:01KG176GDRK7X8GGR8B2DX8VF3). The preface spans lines 461 to 486 of the source file and was processed as part of the [More Classics](arke:01KFXT0KM64XT6K8W52TDEE0YS) collection.\n\n## Context  \nThe preface was authored by Mark Twain and dated Hartford, 1876. It introduces the novel’s semi-autobiographical nature, clarifying that while some adventures are drawn from the author’s own childhood, others come from the experiences of his schoolmates. The characters of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer are explicitly discussed—Huck as a real-life portrait, and Tom as a composite of three boys the author knew. The preface also acknowledges the prevalence of superstitions among children and enslaved people in the American West several decades prior to publication.\n\n## Contents  \nThe preface asserts that although the book is intended for children, it also aims to gently remind adult readers of their own youth—how they thought, spoke, and engaged in imaginative or mischievous endeavors. Twain expresses hope that the narrative will appeal across generations by capturing authentic childhood experiences. The text closes with the attribution “THE AUTHOR” and the place and year of composition: Hartford, 1876.","description_generated_at":"2026-01-28T02:39:06.313Z","description_model":"Qwen/Qwen3-235B-A22B-Instruct-2507","description_title":"Preface","end_line":486,"extracted_at":"2026-01-28T02:33:53.581Z","extracted_by":"structure-extraction-lambda","label":"Preface","source_file":"01KG0K71QZ8KK7RGEGSNTB5534","start_line":461,"text":"PREFACE\r\n\r\n\r\nMost of the adventures recorded in this book really occurred; one or two\r\nwere experiences of my own, the rest those of boys who were schoolmates\r\nof mine. Huck Finn is drawn from life; Tom Sawyer also, but not from an\r\nindividual—he is a combination of the characteristics of three boys whom\r\nI knew, and therefore belongs to the composite order of architecture.\r\n\r\nThe odd superstitions touched upon were all prevalent among children and\r\nslaves in the West at the period of this story—that is to say, thirty or\r\nforty years ago.\r\n\r\nAlthough my book is intended mainly for the entertainment of boys and\r\ngirls, I hope it will not be shunned by men and women on that account,\r\nfor part of my plan has been to try to pleasantly remind adults of what\r\nthey once were themselves, and of how they felt and thought and talked,\r\nand what queer enterprises they sometimes engaged in.\r\n\r\nTHE AUTHOR.\r\n\r\nHARTFORD, 1876.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r","title":"Preface"},"relationships":[{"peer":"01KG17620ND2Q83R02B18E9MJZ","peer_label":"The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Complete","peer_type":"novel","predicate":"in"},{"peer":"01KG0K71QZ8KK7RGEGSNTB5534","peer_label":"tom_sawyer.txt","peer_type":"file","predicate":"extractedFrom"},{"peer":"01KFXT0KM64XT6K8W52TDEE0YS","peer_label":"More Classics","peer_type":"collection","predicate":"collection"},{"peer":"01KG176GCSTQFTDCGXJHKRQFRA","peer_label":"Illustrations","peer_type":"illustrations","predicate":"prev"},{"peer":"01KG176GDRK7X8GGR8B2DX8VF3","peer_label":"CHAPTER I","peer_type":"chapter","predicate":"next"}],"ver":3,"created_at":"2026-01-28T02:33:54.177Z","ts":"2026-01-28T02:39:06.761Z","edited_by":{"method":"manual","user_id":"01KFF5C36SQEVDHC9CBNZZJH9K"}}