5909 samples of this type
“The Open Boat” is a story written by Stephen Crane about a crew on a boat that is sailing through a storm towards a lighthouse. The men courageously try to overcome the waves that at any moment can overturn their boat. Evidently, if that happens, all of them will die...
Greek mythology is an expansive set of fictional folklore that is one of the most prominent cultural influences in Western arts, literature, and other mediums for centuries due to its origin in Ancient Greece often viewed as the cradle of Western civilization. The rich development of the mythological stories and...
Reyna Grande was born on September 7, 1975, in Iguala, Guerrero, Mexico, in difficult social and financial conditions. Today she is a famous author living in the United States and has received numerous awards and prizes for her books and novels. Grande, along with her siblings, grew up in poverty;...
Introduction In works of literature, authors rely on several stylistic devices to convey their message. One of Edgar Allan Poe’s literary devices in “The Cask of Amontillado” is the combination of horror and humor. Poe is a witty author who uses literary elements like point of view, place, and word...
In his story, Daniel Alarcon, raises an important topic and conveys the secret of all immigrants from disadvantaged countries. The author says: “leaving is no problem. It’s exciting actually; in fact, it’s a drug. It’s the staying gone that will kill you. This is the handed-down wisdom of the immigrant.”...
Jesus’ Son, a related collection of short stories named after the lyrics of The Velvet Underground’s song, is often described as one of the most important literary works of Johnson’s generation. It was even included in The New York Times’ Top 25 Best Writings 2006 – a list of the...
Often children respect and honor their parents even after they have passed. In many movies, for instance, Disney movies, a child’s motivation is a result of their parent(s) passing and that becomes their new reason to keep them going. Another example of this is when a child grows up with...
Introduction The Trifle and the Poof are written by Susan Glaspell and Lynn Nottage, respectively. The Trifle was written in 1916, while the Poof was done in 1970. In both plays, the authors depict a culture where women are abused by husbands who later die due to domestic constraints. In...
Irony can be a powerful instrument for a poet aiming to reflect on the current state of humankind. Although some of the most notable poems were written more than two centuries ago, the poets’ deep understanding of culture remains highly insightful. The movement from religion to science always has concerned...
The civilization of Ancient Greece marks one of the most important chapters in the history of the world. This period has provided humanity with an array of important achievements, including the principles of democracy, theater, art, and sciences. These accomplishments have had an immense impact on the development of the...
The Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen created the play A Doll’s House in 1879. The play’s central theme is the position of women in society; contemporaries perceived the drama as a feminism manifesto. However, the problems of A Doll’s House are not limited to the women’s issue: it is about the...
In a society characterized by exponential change and gradually increasing complexity, those who act have greater power, especially those who can find self-determination and persistence to do so. Motivation is among the most valuable commodities, shaped by life experiences and inspiring behaviors to explore something new. In Alfred Lord Tennyson’s...
Plot and Setting In Why I Live at the P.O. by Eudora Welty, a youthful anonymous lady has all the earmarks of investigating the envy and struggle in her family. The setting of the story is the family home in Mississippi at the turn of the 20th century. By bringing...
Introduction Beloved by Toni Morrison is an allegory of emotional and physical trauma caused by slavery. It is illustrated through the story of a black woman haunted by her daughter’s ghost that she murdered to save her from servantry’s fate. The genre used in this novel is called magical realism,...
The Epic of Gilgamesh is an interesting work to analyze on the topic of life and death. It is one of the oldest literary works that have survived to this day, extremely psychological in its essence. This epic is composed of old material, but the old legends were woven into...
Reliance on clear language and direct visual images separated the works of the Imagists and Emily Dickinson from the late Victorian poetry. Instead of the elaborate verse where images served as decorations illustrating the text’s main idea, the exacting visual image articulated with painstaking clarity became the poem’s essence –...
All Souls: A Family Story from Southie, written by Michael Patrick MacDonald, is a sincere memoir published in 1999. The author uses his talent of putting life experiences and feelings into words to describe the place where he used to live in his childhood. The book starts with the author,...
Introduction All ethnic groups, especially in ancient times, had their heroes and iconized characters. In ancient Mesopotamia, such a hero was Gilgamesh- a warlike and wise king bent on immortality. The found tablets with the story of his life can be identified as the first memorial of literary skill. It...
“Let America be America Again” by Langston Hughes is a poem dedicated to the author’s pain about an impossible American dream. The dream of a virtuous republic, which America has not still reached, but achieving this dream is a goal of every generation (Gorski, 2019). The author tells about what...
Family relations, in particular between parents and children, are often complex and ambiguous. Moreover, the connection established with the mother and with the father also contrasts. Most modern adults were probably closer to mothers who took care of the home well-being, while fathers worked daily for the benefit of the...
The poem “Song of Myself” is an epic work of literature as the poet dedicates it to celebrating himself. An interesting aspect of the poem is its length and its free verse nature. It is divided into fifty-two sections, with each part introducing a slightly new concept about celebrating oneself...
In Speak, the author, Laurie Halse Anderson, illustrates the idea that people can recover after trauma and become stronger. The writer utilizes the first-person point of view to show the path protagonist goes through to her transformation. The first-person point of view is the type of narrative in which events...
The poem “Let America Be America Again” by Langston Hughes is highly controversial and concerns many arguable subjects. One of those subjects is the American Dream, and Hughes says it has changed (191). The author hopes the American Dream will one day become what it once was. Hughes also states...
One of the seminal literary works revealing the theme of historical legacy is The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, written as the memoirs of a dark-skinned American slave. The book proper consists of eleven chapters describing, in chronological order, childhood, the stages of learning to write, the periods...
“The Necklace” is a short narrative by Guy de Maupassant that largely focuses on Mathilde’s life. The story has been used to educate people about the different issues they experience in society. Mathilde is a pretty and charming woman born in a middle-class family. Although Mathilde is adorable, she does...
Regardless of the period the literary text is written, the message it tries to express through black ink is often relative for many decades. An example of this kind of works is the excerpts written by Keats, Yeats, and Orwell. The writers invoke philosophical ideas and provoke readers’ thoughts by...
Introduction The Hours by Michael Cunningham is a novel, which follows and describes a day from three women’s lives. The main characters are Virginia Woolf, Laura Brown, and Clarissa Vaughn. The actions of these women take place during different timelines and locations. Virginia Woolf is an author who is writing...
During the semester, several works were studied. “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker and “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson were exciting pieces of literature. The “Everyday Use” is a short story that highlights the plight of African -Americas who were trying to redefine their social, cultural, and political identity. It mainly...
\Frankenstein’s monster is, perhaps, one of the most sympathetic characters in the pantheon of monsters that have become emblematic of the horror genre. Although modern readers are unlikely to find the novel quite as chilling as their predecessors did, “Frankenstein” raises quite several disturbing themes that still hold relevance for...
Introduction Human society is founded on the fact that luck in life is a goal that everyone wants to achieve. From this perspective, in two dramatic short stories, “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson and “The Rocking-Horse Winner” by D.H. Lawrence, the philosophical conflict between luck and its consequences is clearly...
Since the very genesis of humankind, people have been trying in vain to ease their existence with the beliefs they build around their lives. Some people, in desperate need of support, find salvation in religion and blind trust for the superpowers above. The other ones, having chosen a sophisticated and...
Interpreter of Maladies is included in the collection of short stories of the same name. The plot of the story is built around the trip of the couple Das and their children – Indian immigrants of the second and third generation, who grew up in America – to the Sun...
Abstract Thomas Malory’s book “Le Morte Darthur: The Winchester Manuscript” is about the life and death of King Arthur. Apart from ventures and battles, it depicts the disempowerment of women in King Arthur’s Court, an issue which is not so frequently discussed by scholars in frames of the book “Le...
Introduction Susan Glaspell is a celebrated American writer, and Trifles, a one-act play, is among the many works that she wrote in the early twentieth century. At the time, women in American society were facing various challenges and Glaspell used her literary skills to highlight the same, albeit dramatically. In...
Some of the key questions a first-time reader of William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” would ask involve why a sane person would consider sleeping or speaking with the dead and mete violence to their lover. Specifically, in the present-day society, a reader would refer to cognitive psychology to explain...
Introduction Most talented authors have their own style, which is reflected in the topics, structure, and word choices of the writer. Stephen Jay Gould also has a “voice” in literature, which allows readers to recognize his work from the first lines and attracts most of them. This paper will explore...
In Lynn Nottage’s play Sweat, there are no characters that do not play a vital role in storytelling, even the minor ones. For instance, Jason’s interactions with a parole officer Evan become significant in his development. The author manages to successfully use this character to advance the drama in the...
The text under consideration is The Decameron, written by Giovanni Boccaccio in the middle of the fourteenth century when Europe was affected by one of the most devastating epidemics of the Middle Ages. The exact number of the deceased has not been estimated so far, but some researchers note that...
Introduction Shakespeare belongs to the most renowned and ever-relevant poets for English, and his works are rich in themes, innovations, and framings. Those familiar with the poet on a superficial level could say that love is Shakespeare’s forte, and they would not be entirely wrong. Poet has many romantic works,...
Several people in the tragedy are guilty of Mercutio and Tybalt’s deaths, including Romeo and these two men themselves. Tybalt is the first to blame since he was an instigator of the fight. If he had correctly understood the reason for Romeo’s presence at the party, he would not have...
Argument The key argument that Michel-Rolph Trouillot sets forward in Silencing the Past: Power and the Production of History is that history in itself is created by historians, while reality is what is produced by events and processes. History represents the human narration of reality that is viewed subjectively from...
Introduction Animal Farm written by George Orwell during World War II is one of the prime examples of an allegorical novel. The images of animals presented in the book personify social vices and attract readers with realism and similarity to history, which are shown openly in the plot. Despite the...
Introduction At the end of the 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer introduced his Canterbury Tales, where several people share their stories about British history, identities, and values. Each tale has a narrator and main characters who make mistakes, develop relationships, and analyze their achievements through the prism of the already established...
Opening the essay with personal experience proves to be an efficient introduction. The author starts the novel with the story of his first favorite sports teams at the age of two or three. He then jumps to the description of his high school games and the first time paying attention...
Introduction The Sweat transitions enormously when Bertha is introduced in the story. Sykes is committed to having her put up with Della as a concubine. Delia is not ready to allow another woman to have the resources she has labored to buy. She resists, and in the event, the two...
The Second World War is usually remembered as a political endeavor intended to promote a specific set of ideals. Personal experiences are often omitted from historical accounts, with many authors focusing on tactical maneuvers and legislative principles. Two books take a different approach when evaluating these events. The first is...
Topic: The Glass Menagerie and its idea of pursuing adventure or sticking to one’s duties. Thesis Statement: The Glass Menagerie suggests that a person should not make a choice between chasing one’s dreams or staying put because it is possible to find the middle ground and do both. Brainstorm: Happiness Comes at...
In the story “My Almighty Grandmother” by Gabriela Roy, the narrator is a six-year-old girl who unwillingly spends time with her grandmother in the summer. Through her eyes, I can see an old lady with failing memory. Also, the story revolves around three women who are separated by belonging to...
Many scientists agree that Ancient Greece is the cradle of European civilization. Its philosophers, scientists, and poets greatly contributed to the development of Greek culture. Modern philosophical thought would be impossible without the works of Aristotle, Plato, and numerous philosophical schools. Dramatic art would have been different if, at one...
Introduction In his book, Bruce Knauft describes the life and culture of the Gebusi, a people living in Papua New Guinea. His anthropological research is deep and covers various aspects of the development of this unique culture. The evaluation of life, religion, social relations, spirituality, and other features of the...
The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri is a novel that demonstrates all the difficulties of adapting a person to a new cultural environment, as well as the search for his or her identity. The older generation has its problems because they need to accustom to the differences of the new culture...
Introduction By “I, too sing America” the author means that he also sings the anthem of America as he is a full-fledged citizen of the country, has the right to be a patriot, and can be proud of his homeland. Hughes “sings” and tries to convey the main idea of...
Art Spiegelman depicts each nationality in his book as a specific animal: Jews as mice, Germans as cats, Poles as pigs. This form of representation shows the absurdity and horror of Nazi ideologies of dividing people into different species. However, the insert Prisoner on Hell Planet differs in style from...
Introduction What We Talk About When We Talk About Love is a concluding story in a self-titled collection of short stories written by Raymond Carver. It sets to explores various notions humans have about love. The title itself suggests that there are different perceptions people can have about this concept,...
The European colonists dominated over the Africans by disempowering them by introducing religious ideas that openly challenged their beliefs from an outside perspective. These white settlers managed to cause conflicts between those who are learned and then plant in those new Christian ideas. They also established a government that harassed...
The poem I chose for this essay is “The Man He Killed” by Thomas Hardy. It was written in 1902, and published at the time of the Second Boer War between the British Empire and combined forces of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State. The poem examines...
In Daniel Wallace’s Big Fish, the main character Edward Bloom is obsessed with water throughout his life. Water is the central theme of the novel, and it symbolizes the abundant life in which there are numerous possibilities of places to explore, challenges to face, people to meet, and ways to...
Introduction “God’s Bits of Wood” is a book that was released in 1960 just when Senegal had achieved independence. This probably has a historical significance i.e. a strong theme that stresses on unity is emphasized probably because of its importance by then, specifically so when it come towards building the...
Critical History The ‘Lais of Marie de France’ is an omnibus edition of works by a medieval female writer. The collection consists of twelve narrative poems, among which are Bisclavert, Cheverfoil, and Lanval. Glyn Burgess, who studied her works, notices, that ‘the theme of love is certainly the fundamental preoccupation’...
Introduction The story of the song of Roland is an old one that portrays the struggle between evil and good. This is clearly seen between the Christian franks led by Charlemagne who represents good and Gods will while Muslim Saracens representing pure evil. Main Body In this story, Roland is...
The majority of people view other cultures from the perspective of their own one, which can partially be referred to as ethnocentrism. When it comes to such cultures as the Lebanese one, ethnocentrism is peculiar to almost all the people who regard modern society as equal and non-discriminatory. Sitt Marie...
“…Also Belmonte imposed conditions and insisted that his bulls should not be too large, nor too dangerously armed with horns, and so the element that was necessary to give the sensation of the tragedy was not there, and the public, who wanted three times as much from Belmonte, who was...
Introduction At the end of the nineteenth century, Japanese literature experienced many striking moments. In particular, in the late 60th, it endured the most deplorable declines under the governance of Emperor Meiji. The famous authors were doomed to resort to writing books about formless and meaningless gossips. So far, having...
When it comes to discussing the representations of the past in the works of literature, many critics assume that how authors go about retelling their memories simply reflects the creative subtleties of their psyche. And, it goes without saying, of course, that addressing the subject matter from this perspective would...
Author The author, Joseph John Ellis was born in 1943 and is currently professor at the Mount Holyoke College of History on the Ford Foundation. He wrote the Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation in 2000 and received the Pulitzer Prize in History in 2001 for it. He received his PhD...
Poet Gwendolyn Brooks compresses a lot of meaning in a few short lines, in her poem “We Real Cool”, on page 649 of The Bedford Compact Introduction to Literature. Following a student review of Chapters 18-20, one can appropriately analyze this poem. The author utilizes various poetic devices to get...
“Omnia mutabantur, mutantur, mutabuntur” as the Latin proverb has it. Antiquity has supplied us with perfect food for reflection since ancient literary sources are the treasury of wisdom, just as the sayings that have lived during centuries to supply humanity of the present with eternal wisdom. Everything changes. It is...
The Shakespearean play ‘As You like it’ is an exploration of love and marriage presented in a comic setting. The main characters of the play are active participants in what some might classify as the typical love/hate relationship. The relationship among these characters reflects vastly on the bard’s own feelings...
“Macbeth” is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare in 1605 or 1606 and published in 1628. The story of the play is no figment of the author’s imagination. Macbeth was a real king – a king of Scotland, nephew of Molom II, and ruler of Moray. He married Grunch, granddaughter...
Poetry is a language of feelings. People write poems to express their feelings, emotions, to share their attitude to people, nature lovers, and other items. Poetry is very abstract, symbolical in most cases. Poets try to express what they want with the help of different stylistic devices and means of...
Henrik Ibsen’s play A Doll’s House was an influential and to a certain degree shocking literary work, as it challenged the traditional roles of men and women in society and depicted the poor outcomes of gender discrimination. The major female characters of the play are definitely bold and determined women,...
In contrast to other characters in The Great Gatsby, Nick goes through a number of changes from the beginning to the end of the novel. The entire novel depicts flashbacks made by Nick in revealing a detailed account of the mysteries surrounding Gatsby. Nick is the character who puts together...
Discussion When you encounter the term “stereotype” you will remember an individual, or group of individuals being labeled in a prejudiced way either on the basis of race, ethnicity, or gender. When human beings are exposed to too many stereotypes, they make them eventually internalize and believe and conceive them...
Introduction Aristotle, a well known and generally recognized dramatic tragedies pioneer, highlighted his vision of the true tragic hero which can be analyzed through the work ‘Julius Caesar’ by William Shakespeare. The story is considered to be a masterpiece of the world literature disclosing the era of ambitious political leader...
The book ‘The Complete Pompeii’ by Joanne Berry brings to light the different archeological treasures of the city in terms of its civilization, and antiquities which have been left preserved for us to see. While many a research has been conducted on the city and the lives of the people...
Introduction Tragedy and comedy are the classic genres which became most popular for the elegant audience. The thing is that people are intended to see art examples of vital things terrifying or gratifying a spectator which can be implied in the play that is why the flow of people’s thought...
Song of Solomon is one of the most famous novels by Toni Morrison written in 1977. Milkman Dead III is the main character of the novel who embodies both the positive and negative features of a man. Morrison depicts Milkman in mythic terms. Not only does his story follow a...
Living in a society where each person can achieve success and respect regardless of their origin, gender, or race was a general idea of the American Dream at the beginning of the 20th century. However, the American Dream is slowly fading and becoming more of an illusion after the Depression...
It is difficult to identify as to who was the first feminist in the world and as to when the feminist movements had started, but majority of such movements can be traced during the last two centuries. However, there have been women feminists who have proved their abilities in this...
The ancient Greeks, with their pantheon of gods, had deep religious convictions that reinforced many values we continue to hold sacred today, such as honor and loyalty to family and loved ones. Bravery was typically measured by one’s performance in battle or their ability to stand up to strange mythological...
Faulkner’s Barn Burning is a story reflecting such crucial issues as class conflict and loyalty. The main one is an internal conflict in the mind of the child-protagonist. Despite the conditions in which the character finds himself, he embodies truly noble features, such as sympathy and compassion. He is eager...
Introduction The play A Doll’s House by Henry Ibsen depicts a class conflict and accumulation of wealth, family relations, and the role of marriage. The events reflect the economic and social problems of society and the role of money in the life of the characters. From the very beginning, A...
There are many instances in the novel “Antigone” that shows the relationship of cause and effect. It is particularly important to recognize such causes and effects for they are simply the highlights of the novel itself. Theses causes and effects are what makes up the novel and without them, the...
Born in 1860, Anton Chekhov wrote extensively on the complexities of human nature and the hidden importance of how day-to-day interactions impacts human life (Kirk 43-56). He is famously known for such stories as “The Steppe”, “The Lady with the Dog”, “The Seagull”,” A living Chattel”, and” Uncle Vanya”. Even...
Introduction The epic poem, “The Odyssey” by Homer is a great work of literature that narrates the story of Odysseus as he returns to Ithaca from Troy. Due to the patriarchal nature of the Greek society, the reader observes that the relationship between father and son is a major subject...
Introduction Kate Chopin is an outstanding American author of novels and short stories. She is currently recognized as one of the first feminist writers of the 19th century as in her works, she focuses on women and their controversial position in marriage, and social oppression. For this essay, two works...
It is a common practice in many nations to create things by hand and pass them from generation to generation. Whether these items are used daily or kept closed in a chest as the most precious possessions, they are meant to bear the history of several generations within them. However,...
Introduction Anti-slavery is one of the central aspects of Mark Twain’s iconic novel, “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” Given the years when the novel was written, Twain’s thoughts and beliefs regarding slavery channeled through the book’s main characters were quite revolutionary and ahead of their time. First things first, the writer...
Introduction The book comprised O’Doherty’s famous essays “Notes on the Gallery Space,” “The Eye and the Spectator,” and “Context as Content,” published in 1976 in Artforum magazine. It also includes the article “The Gallery as a Gesture,” published ten years later. In these writings, the author explores the social and...
Billy Collin’s poem The First Dream is clearly an expression of the feeling one has when one tries to explain an abstract experience. In Collin’s case, the abstract experience is a dream. Arguably, people tend to distance themselves from mystery as human beings tend to prefer real-world occurrences that can...
Introduction There are many reasons for people to love or hate Emily Dickinson, but her passion for writing about death can hardly leave any reader indifferent. This author is strong due to her confidence and the desire to find out what happens before and after death and formulate clear emotions...
Some people are like square pegs in the world of round holes, and Willa Sibert Cather eloquently tells a story of one of such individuals in “Paul’s Case: A Study in Temperament.” Paul is a high school student from Pittsburgh who lives with his father and reluctantly tries to conform...
The summary of Olaudah Aquino’s story from free life in his native Africa to slavery in the Americas and acquisition of freedom has revealed that several issues need to be investigated based on the story and history of slavery. Quite clearly, the presence of several texts and historical accounts tend...
Pip’s Feelings the Next Day After He Met Mr. Jaggers Pip’s mood has improved the next morning after he came into possession of the unexpected fortune. However, he feels uncertain about his future and even thinks that something may happen to London before he even has a chance to get...
M. Butterfly is probably one of the most controversial still rather popular works by an American playwright, David Henry Hwang. This story consists of several captivating details and examples with the help of which it is possible to understand the essence of western and eastern women, define the benefits which...
The Agamemnon Agamemnon, one of Aeschylus’ greatest work, is a classic Greek Tragedy. This play shows the extension of a curse that was on the house of Atreus. The time setting for this play is the end of the Trojan War, and King Agamemnon’s come back. The play entails the...
Introduction Wiesel’s book Night can be regarded as a story of dehumanization and lost hopes. However, it is also a story of affection and desire to remain a human in inhumane conditions. There are different themes in the book, but the father-son relationship is one of the central and most...
While reading the critical response on Ha Jin’s short story Saboteur, I’ve realized that the critic Nicola McAllister has a low opinion of the Chinese government and knows nothing about the policy of China. On the other hand, he is just ignorant of the historical changes that took place in...
Introduction Coetzee’s “Disgrace” is a reflection of the extent to which brutality and sexual violence characterized the famous South African era of apartheid. This novel features David Lurie as the central character whose negative perceptions of women, racist attitudes, and cases associating him with rape depict the level of moral...
Introduction There is growing recognition today of the importance of cultural differences in many spheres of life, including health care. Anne Fadiman wrote a nonfiction book entitled The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, which is the story of a young Hmong girl named Lia Lee who had epilepsy....
Introduction “Brave New World” is a dystopian (or utopian, depending on the reader’s view) science fiction novel that was written by Aldous Huxley and published in 1932 (Atwood par. 2). In this novel, Huxley displays a future based on consumerism, free sex, and drug addiction, which has an unyielding resemblance...
Introduction Housekeeping is a novel written by Marilynne Robinson and first published in 1980. It is a story of two orphan girls who decide to break away from the static and sleepy existence within a remote town in Idaho, and are met with a dangerous lack of understanding from fellow...
Introduction Sonnet 43 by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, which is also called by its opening line How do I love thee, is a prominent example of English poetry. This sonnet reveals the selfless and pure love of the poetess to her husband. Despite all difficulties on her life journey, despite a...
Empathy in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep: Essay Introduction Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, a sci-fi genre novel, was created by the fantastic mind of Philip K. Dick between 1966 and 1968 and published in 1968. Later, it became an inspiration to the popular 1982 movie adaptation “Blade...
The mastery of a writer can make the readers sympathize for the characters’ destinies and their overcoming many difficulties in life according to the writer’s intentions but in spite of the traditional opinions and prevalent public’s visions. Blanche DuBois is the main character of Tennessee Williams’ play A Streetcar Named...
Symbolizing animals is an old practice that persists in modern literature. However, making the symbols too obvious is not considered professional. For example, attributing archetypal feline qualities to a woman or parallelizing cats and witchcraft is considered cheap (Hannah 4). Thus, we can configure that labeling a dog with the...
Gail Godwin’s The Watcher at the Gate offers a personal reflection on the myriad manifestation of the critical voice, a voice that typically blocks any and all creative endeavor before the implementation stage. Godwin’s essay recounts the effect of the critical voice on novelists specifically, however her “watcher” refers to...
Introduction Madame Bovary is the novel written by the outstanding French author Gustave Flaubert. The novel is considered to be one of the masterpieces of the world literature and one of the most famous works of its author. The novel is interesting for its rich plot telling about the fortune...
The wife in “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” dismisses authorities’ criticism on women but also goes ahead to state and refute her own words which make her appear to be contradicting herself and going against her own conviction. For instance, she is eager to know from her husband to be,...
Introduction Night is a captivating piece of literal work that is the brainchild of Elie Wiesel, which gives a personal account of his experiences in the Nazi concentration camps at Buchenwald and Auschwitz, at the sunset of the Second World War, and the apex of the holocaust in 1945. He...
Introduction The relationship between Eliezer and his father demonstrates parent-child and peer-like relationships. Initially the father plays the role of a father, who provides for his family, but afterwards, he develops a peer-like relationship in the camp with his son. The roles reverse later when the father becomes frail and...
There are a lot of things that people genuinely fear, but the most dreadful situation of all for any human being disregarding age, frame of mind and even gender is definitely the fear of loneliness – being a social animal, a man has cultivated the dominance of social standards and...
One of the great things about William Shakespeare’s plays is that he was usually able to offer insight into the psychology of his characters. The dramatic play King Lear is no exception. Intended to be performed before an Elizabethan audience, the main action of the game follows the path of...
Introduction Literature is a unique form of art that addresses issues vital to societies and outlines values characteristic of a particular period in time. Authors create memorable characters, making them bearers of certain ideas and assigning them various features necessary for understanding the central messages. Thus, “Rip Van Winkle” by...
Introduction “Sea Defences” is an emotional short story written by Hilary Taylor in 2018 that explores the themes of loss, mental disorders, love, and the impermanence of life. Through a highly descriptive and emotionally evocative narrative style, Taylor paints a vivid picture of the protagonist’s struggle to cope with the...
Introduction Being a vivid example of a gothic short story, Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado“ portrays death from the perspective of the main character’s fascination with immolation for revenge. The short story shows two characters, a narrator named Montresor and a man named Fortunato, whom the main character...
Introduction Greek literature is sometimes said to reflect Greek society’s values, beliefs, and conventions. In these circumstances, women, the family, and the oikos constitute a sizable portion of these beliefs, customs, and values. Ancient Greek dramas present a particular view of women’s roles in society, family, and oikos. While Antigone depicts...
The Foundation of Friendship Lynn Nottage’s Sweat is an outstanding example of modern drama where different social themes intersect. One of the critical aspects of the story is the friendship between the main characters. The division of the play into two acts reflects how cold relationships between previously close friends...
Introduction Adrienne Rich, an American feminist and poet, is renowned for her creative manipulation of language and emphasis on social and political matters. In her poem “Diving into the Wreck,” Rich utilizes powerful symbolism to examine identity problems, a quest for knowledge, and history. The poem was published in 1973...
Introduction In each person’s life, there are events about which they, in consequence, reflect in the future—the various obstacles that had to be overcome or the happy moments that were important to remember. This essay will review the memories of Charlie, the protagonist of The Perks of Being a Wallflower. His...
Introduction William Shakespeare, the preeminent playwright of the English language, crafted tragedies that resonate with audiences centuries after their conception. Among these, “King Lear” stands out as a profound exploration of human folly and the consequences of egotism. Central to this play is the destructive nature of vanity, encapsulated in...
Introduction In the vast ocean of literature, certain books possess the power to shape minds, stimulate critical thinking, and offer profound insights into the human condition. Teenage years are formative, often characterized by a quest for identity and world understanding. During this time, literature can serve as a beacon, guiding...
Introduction Geoffrey Chaucer’s portrayal of gender roles in The Wife of Bath’s Tale differs significantly from other sources from that period. The author puts women in charge of judging men’s actions throughout the text. While the story begins with sexual assault that is later dismissed, it contains elements that present...
Introduction The role of the narrator is significant for a story, as the way this role is executed can either make or break a narration. There are various narrators, and one in Jazz is rather unique. The story employs first-person peripheral narration, which creates a sense of first-hand witness recalling...
Introduction Traditional myths represent, express, and explore the notion of the people about themselves in their essential qualities and specifics. As a result, the study of myth is crucial to understanding particular communities and human society. The legends of Utanapishtim, Manu, Noah, and Nuh’s Ark are examples of flood myths...
Introduction Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” and John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” scrutinize man’s relationship with divinity but tackle the subject matter from divergent angles. While Shelley highlights the hazards of human beings attempting to play God by exemplifying the character of Victor Frankenstein, Milton argues that humanity’s defiance towards divinity is the...
Introduction A Clean, Well-Lighted Place is a powerful short story written by Ernest Hemingway that evokes a lot of melancholic thoughts in the reader. Many readers of Hemingway are familiar with his talent for creating short but emotionally rich stories with deep meaning. The themes and ideas Hemingway explores through...
The satire of “A Modest Proposal” stems significantly from the vast disparity between the speaker’s calm and reasonable voice and the evident obnoxiousness of his proposal. The poor’s young infants are raised as livestock, butchered, and given to the wealthy, who devoured them as a delightful treat. Swift uses irony...
Introduction Jane Austen is one of the most famous writers of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. The novels of this brilliant author have had an incredible impact on the development of culture, have been adapted many times, and have inspired generations of writers. Jane Austen has written such...
“La Belle Dame sans Merci” is a ballad written by the English poet John Keats in 1819. The work “La Belle Dame sans Merci” is called one of the English classic poems. Ballad is an example of John Keats’ preoccupation with the concept of death and love themes. The poem...
Character is what you are in the dark. Dwight Lyman Moody Quotations from literary works can sometimes touch the soul more than a whole book or a story can do. Hence, some of them contain the author’s thoughts about a particular problem or convey a worldview. The quote under study...
Introduction Charlotte Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper is a haunting first-person narrative that tells a story of a twenty-six-year-old woman who is suffering with postpartum depression. The storyline is relatively simple: a nameless woman is put in an attic of an isolated country mansion by her physician husband to help her...
Introduction In literature, conflict is an artistic technique that entails a struggle between two antagonistic characters. Dramatic conflict is a driving force that produces the story’s content and determines flow direction. Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” demonstrates how dramatic conflict aids in developing the plot of the story. In a narrative...
Alexander Pope is considered one of the greatest English poets and an outstanding poet of the early 18th century. He is best known for his satirical and discursive poems. In England, at the time of Alexander’s birth, there were still quite strict laws against Catholics. They could not hold public...
José Olivarez discusses his family, music and poetry, and race and identity. As a child of immigrant parents, the poet describes himself as white-presenting and an outsider to white culture. He says, “as a Mexican family, my family always had more in common with black families” (“José Olivarez”). The poet...
Introduction Shirley Jackson wrote a work that became a precedent for the entire world community. The Lottery’s story caused outrage worldwide, mainly affecting small towns in America. The report describes the ugly side of small-town life during the annual event. Shirley Jackson’s story shows many sins committed by humankind for...
Introduction The tale of Jack Finney’s The Love Letter was written in 1959 and became an excellent basis for a touching film that will not leave anyone indifferent. The book describes the love story of a young man Johnny and an adult woman Helen. This short romance means that Johnny...
Introduction Wars have taken many lives of people and have inspired poets to write about the battlefields. Louis Simpson’s “The Battle” and Stephen Crane’s “War is Kind” describes how the war has affected people’s lives. “War is Kind” ironically describes the violent actions and indifference towards human resources. Likewise, “The...
Introduction The historical fiction novel One Crazy Summer, written by Williams-Garcia, touches upon the topics of racial discrimination in America. The author provides the readers with the opportunity to learn about changing social times and how people in different states of America experienced racism. The novel also discusses the Black...
Introduction Clarissa is an epistolary novel that was written by Samuel Richardson and published in 1748. The work revolves around two main characters that are Clarissa Harlowe and Robert Lovelace. Clarissa is a virtuous character who reveals the human principles in her from the family pressure concerning marriage to Mr....
Considering the core themes of A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, the following research question has been formulated: “What were the norms and expectations pertaining to gender in nineteenth-century Norway?” The question is essential to explore as the play is set to expose the limited roles of women during the...
Fight Club – The Novel Describe the Narrator’s life before Tyler The narrator’s life before he meets Tyler is characterized with chronic insomnia which has been disturbing him for a while. His condition becomes a problem at his Work place where he works as a product recall specialist and prompts...
Introduction The book Children of the New World by Djebar is an insightful source of information regarding the social position of women in Algeria. Importantly, the impact of female activism on the setting in the country has been unrecognized and underappreciated. The book exhibits the efforts and sacrifices made by...
Kazuko’s attitude toward the American people during and after her relocation. Kazuko Itoi is the authentic (Japanese) name of the writer Monica Sone, who was born in the United States to Japanese parents, first-generation immigrants. As the story progresses, this balance of the two components of her personality periodically changes...
Over time, gender parity and women’s roles have changed from conservative views to family set-ups a modern woman would consider patriarchal. Various literary pieces describe how women with a modern worldview challenged traditional gender attitudes and belies including Medea speech by Euripides and the play A Doll’s House by Isben....
The Song of Roland is a tale of many themes. There are conflicts of fear and courage, loyalty and betrayal, honor and disgrace. Masculinity is a concept that Turold, author of The Song of Roland, puts into each of these topics. The story is about Rolland, one of the warriors...
Introduction Two German brothers, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, penned the Cinderella tale in 1812 that showcases success despite life’s obstacles. The tale points out how parents should be a symbol of protection to their children, but this is contrary to the tale’s significant happenings that depict negligence. The parent stays...
Introduction “A Rose for Emily,” written by William Faulkner, and “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor are two short stories that illustrate the complex relationship between the past and the present. Namely, common topics highlighted in both literature pieces are the time and location setting and...
In “A&P,” John Updike uses Sammy’s point of view on the new generation of women to develop his new wisdom on change over tradition. Sammy, the narrator, gives us an insight into how he perceived three girls walking into a grocery store in bathing suits during the sixties. John Updike...
The dark romanticism that characterized nineteenth-century New England writers is an integral part of classic horror literature. Typical representatives of this genre include such writers as Nathaniel Hawthorne and Edgar Alan Poe. The demonization of man and the predominance of psychological horror over the supernatural must be considered as the...
