
Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven
by Mark Twain
'Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven ' Summary
Much of the story's description is given by the character Sandy McWilliams, a cranberry farmer who is very experienced in the ways of Heaven. Sandy gives Stormfield, a newcomer, the description in the form of a conversational question-and-answer session. The Heaven described by him is similar to the conventional Christian Heaven, but includes a larger version of all the locations on Earth, as well as of everywhere in the universe (which mention of, albeit as a backdrop, is the last science fiction element). All sentient life-forms travel to Heaven, often through interplanetary or interstellar space, and land at a particular gate (which are without number), which is reserved for people from that originating planet. Each newcomer must then give his name and planet of origin to a gatekeeper, who sends him in to Heaven. Once inside, the being spends eternity living as they think fit, usually according to its true (sometimes undiscovered) talent. According to one of the characters, a cobbler who "has the soul of a poet in him won't have to make shoes here," implying that he would instead turn to poetry and achieve perfection in it. On special occasions a procession of the greatest people in history is formed; on this particular occasion this includes Buddha, William Shakespeare, Homer, Muhammed, Daniel, Ezekiel, and Jeremiah plus several otherwise unknown people whose talents far exceeded those of the world's pivotal figures, but who were never famous on Earth.
As Stormfield proceeds through Heaven he learns that the conventional image of angels as winged, white-robed figures bearing haloes, harps, and palm leaves is a mere illusion generated for the benefit of humans, who mistake "figurative language" for accurate description (the wings are part of their uniforms, and not functionally wings); that all of Heaven's denizens choose their ages, thus aligning themselves with the time of life at which they were most content; that anything desired is awarded to its seeker, if it does not violate any prohibition; that the prohibitions themselves are different from those envisioned on Earth; that each of the Earth-like regions of Heaven includes every human being who has ever lived on it; that families are not always together forever, because of decisions made by those who have died first; that white-skinned people are a minority in Heaven; that kings are not kings in Heaven (Charles II is a comedian while Henry VI has a religious book-stand), etc.
Book Details
Language
EnglishOriginal Language
EnglishPublished In
1907Genre/Category
Tags/Keywords
Author

Mark Twain
United States
Twain was fascinated with science and scientific inquiry. He developed a close and lasting friendship with Nikola Tesla, and the two spent much time together in Tesla's laboratory. Twain patented thre...
More on Mark TwainDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books

The Wit and Humor of America, Vol 02 by Marshall Pinckney Wilder
The Wit and Humor of America is a 10 volume series. In this, the second volume, 44 short stories and poems have been gathered from 31 authors. This vo...

Tales of Terror and Mystery by Arthur Conan Doyle
Though Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is best known for his detective stories, he also wrote other short stories which are masterpieces of mystery and suspens...

Alonso Fitz and Other Stories by Mark Twain
A collection of Twain short stories including: The Loves Of Alonzo Fitz Clarence And Rosannah Ethelton On The Decay Of The Art Of Lying About Magnanim...

The King of Schnorrers by Israel Zangwill
Manasseh da Costa, protagonist of this hilarious novel, is a schnorrer (beggar) who lives on the charitable contributions of the Jews of late 18th-cen...

Doctor Grimshawe’s Secret by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Dr. Grimshawe is a spider-cultivating eccentric. The central secret of the book is an all-encompassing spiders web. The central character is loosely b...

The Exemplary Novels of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Originally compiled by Cervantes himself in 1613 as a collection of "exemplary" stories, this translated version from 1881 brings these stories to the...

Lanagan Amateur Detective by Edward H. Hurlbut
In the quaint town of Lanagan, where secrets whisper through the rustling leaves and every cobblestone holds a story, a reluctant amateur detective em...

The Dark Other by Stanley G. Weinbaum
"The Dark Other" by Stanley G. Weinbaum is a captivating exploration of the supernatural and the enigmatic forces that dwell in the shadows of the hum...

Rootabaga Stories by Carl Sandburg
Rootabaga Stories is a children's book of interrelated short stories by Carl Sandburg. The whimsical, sometimes melancholy stories, which often use no...

The Tale of a Tank, and Other Yarns by Harold Ashton
Harold Ashton was the War Correspondent of The Daily News during the First World War and reported extensively on the British army’s involvement in the...
Reviews for Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven
No reviews posted or approved, yet...