As the name implies, the major theme of Luck by Samuel Clemens (aka Mark Twain) is just that — Luck! Its main message is that good fortune can result in the most unlikely people achieving greatness. Minor themes are envy and injustice. The clergyman envies Lieutenant General Lord Arthur Scoresby, V.C., K.C.B., etc. for his successes in life… especially on the battlefield where, in reality, he didn’t seem to know back from forwards and right from left. There is also a sense of injustice in that the General appears to show no appreciation for the clergyman’s role in success.
Original Text / PDF (1,776 words)
You have the theme of “Luck” wrong. Yes, Scoresby did have some luck in life, such as being tutored by a teacher and being thrust ahead in rank at an early age, but the bulk of his success came from hard work and taking advantage of opportunities when they appear, opportunities that less-gifted people cannot take advantage of. Do you think he really didn’t know his left from his right or forward from backward. Read the story again, please.
Thank you for taking the time to comment, Kurt. I always appreciate different interpretations of stories and respect yours. For me, however, the theme remains luck. The only “hard work” demonstrated is cramming the answers to questions that the kind instructor/clergyman knows will be in the military exams. With a first person account there is always the danger of getting a biased view. However, although you could be right, there is no evidence that his “blunders” involved taking advantage of opportunities that others could not see. Although not knowing left from right is a known neurological condition, I suspect that in the story it is a figure of speech for mental confusion.