What makes a man, nurture or nature?

Mark Twain attempts to answer this question in his novel-turned-play Pudd'nhead Wilson, the story of two children switched at birth: one white but raised as black, the other black but passed as white.

The story, which takes place in a fictionalized city on the banks of the Mississippi, is narrated by title character Pudd’nhead Wilson, a misunderstood northerner who has trouble establishing himself in his new community after his dry humor leads locals to believe that he’s an idiot.

“There are several riddles happening at once,” said Harrison Lampert, who plays Puddn’head. “It takes a while to get to the bottom of it all, but it’s a very interesting story from beginning to end.”

Despite what the community thinks, Puddn’head is the only character in the play with insight into the true identity of Driscoll, a spoiled aristocrat, who was raised as a white man, and Tom, the true heir of the Driscoll estate who was raised in slavery.  

There is some language in the play that some may find offensive, Harrison warns. But, it’s hard to discuss the lives of Americans at the turn of the century without having to face the harsh realities of racism.

“Enjoy what it is. Allow yourself to be open to it,” said Harrison, a junior theater major. “There are some uncomfortable issues related to race, but there’s more to this story than what you see happening on the surface.”  

Directed by professor Douglas Wager,  Temple Theater’s premiere of Charles Smith’s free adaptation of Mark Twain’s Pudd’nHead Wilson runs through Feb. 19.

Temple English professor James Salazar will join Wager in a pre-show discussion of Pudd'nhead Wilson at 6:15 on Thursday, Feb. 16. Salazar will discuss Mark Twain’s legacy and the issue of race and identity.