The Atlantic, originally titled The Atlantic Monthly, is an American magazine created in 1857. Its purpose is to comment on world culture, politics, the economy, and foreign affairs. It initially gained notoriety by focusing on literature, politics, science, and the arts in an America on the brink of civil war. Today, it has become a widely popular editorial magazine that has published the works of historical heroes such as Mark Twain, Martin Luther King Jr., and Theodore Roosevelt.