Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse

Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse is a psychological novel as it contains a lot of Freudian and Jungian undercurrents in its theme. One finds the hero Harry Haller trying to cope up with the many sides of his personality. In fact, Haller suffers from a dual personality. Throughout the novel, the...

Harry Potter and the Magic at Hogwarts

J.K Rowling is the second richest woman in Britain, owing it all to the transformational force of the Harry Potter series which has turned the publishing industry upside down in the last few years. With the sales figures being extraordinary, the series has almost started a war between America and...

Oscar Wilde’s Satire on Society’s Obsession with Beauty in The Picture of Dorian Gray

Introduction The superficial emphasis on appearance has been a notorious characteristic of society since its emergence. In his novel, “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” Oscar Wilde ridicules the exaggerated focus on appearance in society. Specifically, Wilde introduces subtle hints at the problems caused by the misguided notion of beauty in...

Timeless Themes in T.S. Eliot’s The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

Historical Value of the Poem The poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Eliot has its roots in the upper-class culture of the early twentieth century. The poem portrays the narrator’s anxieties and frailties, social awkwardness and weaknesses, and strong desire for companionship and love. Nevertheless, the...

Economic Inequality in Toni Cade Bambara’s The Lesson

Introduction The short story “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara highlights the problem of income inequality in society. The main idea of the story can be logically understood from the title. The main goal is to show how using a simple real-life example, children can be taught essential issues, including...

Oedipus and the Power of Fate: A Study of Destiny and Free Will in Sophocles’ Tragedy

Introduction Oedipus delves into the continuous philosophical discourse regarding whether human existence is determined by destiny or personal agency. The play follows the story of Oedipus, and the ultimate resolution is the growing tension leading to his tragic downfall. Oedipus is a character who unknowingly brings about a prediction that...

Gender Roles in Glaspell’s “Trifles”: Early 20th Century vs. 21st Century Shifts

Introduction Society has undergone rapid changes that have revolutionized perceptions of gender roles and expectations. Unlike in the 21st century, society was male-dominated during the early 20th century. Consequently, men held superior roles in society, as Susan Glaspell expressed in her play “Trifles.” Gender roles and expectations of women in law...

Character Growth and Emotional Maturity in “Portrait of a Good Father”

Background “Portrait of a Good Father” by Kristiana Kahakauwila introduces a set of unique characters whose interactions represent curious and quite remarkable dynamics. At the centerpiece of these interactions, Sarah struggles to grapple with the loss of her father and is haunted by the memories of her childhood. Though the narrator...

Irony and Unreliable Narration in The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

Introduction Henry James’s novella “The Turn of the Screw” is a masterpiece of psychological complexity and layered narrative, making it a fertile ground for examining irony, particularly the discrepancy between appearance and reality. At its core, the central irony in “The Turn of the Screw” lies in the ambiguity of...

Eugene Gant’s Romantic Quest in Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe

Introduction Eugene Gant’s odyssey in Thomas Wolfe’s “Look Homeward, Angel” is a quintessential Romantic journey, replete with the zeal for personal discovery and the yearning for transcendence that characterizes the American Romantic movement. This bildungsroman, or coming-of-age narrative, mirrors the Romantic ethos through its protagonist’s intense internal struggles, the passionate...

Hamlet’s Point of No Return: The Role of Revenge, the Ghost, and Broken Relationships

Introduction Hamlet, one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies, explores the psychological unraveling of its titular character, Prince Hamlet. Throughout the play, Hamlet faces numerous instances that push him closer to a point of no return. This essay studies the pivotal events in Hamlet’s life and examines the turning points that lead...

Coraline vs. Eily in Gaiman’s Coraline and Conlon-McKenna’s Under the Hawthorn Tree

Introduction Neil Gaiman’s Coraline follows the titular character, an adventurous protagonist who explores a new world. The narrative employs similes to convey themes of finding good in adversity and questioning appearances (Gaiman, 2002). Similarly, Marita Conlon-McKenna’s Under the Hawthorn Tree narrates the story of three courageous siblings, Eily (12 years...

Racism and Social Commentary in Langston Hughes’ Poetry

Arafah, Burhanuddin, and Amir Pattu. “Racial Discrimination Experienced by Black People as Reflected in Langston Hughes’s Poems.” Journal of Language Teaching and Research, vol. 13, no. 2, 2022, pp. 350-356. In this research paper, the main topic under examination is the experience of racial discrimination. Particularly the experience of people...

Social Lessons in Literature: Themes of Resistance, Gender Roles, and Marriage

Introduction While literature is considered a form of art, its content is equally important as it allows the readers an opportunity to experience different emotions and look at life from different perspectives. Furthermore, writers can use the connection established with readers through literature to convey important ideas or provide social...

Sympathy and Imagination in Wordsworth’s and Smith’s Poetry

The Theme of Sympathy in The Old Cumberland Beggar by William Wordsworth Wordsworth’s poem touches on the theme of sympathy through the image of the old beggar. With no wealth and money, this man makes the audience pity and worry about him. The image is intensified when the narrator introduces...

Nature, Knowledge, and Free Will in Shelley’s Frankenstein and Milton’s Paradise Lost

Introduction John Milton’s Paradise Lost and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein are two important literary works that explore how man interacts with his environment. Frankenstein examines man’s quest for knowledge and its effects, whereas Paradise Lost investigates his fall from grace and his endeavor to return to paradise. Both Shelley and Milton...

The Impact of War and Cultural Clashes in Brian Turner’s What Every Soldier Should Know

Introduction The theme of war has always been one of the central topics in the world literature. Thousands of people have witnessed and participated in numerous military conflicts throughout history. It impacted their mentality, psyche, and lives and led to radical worldview changes. At the same time, the soldiers, who...

Rhetorical Devices in Writing by Orwell, Didion, and Vonnegut

Introduction The art of persuasive writing, a blend of creativity and technique, often relies on rhetorical devices such as pathos, ethos, and logos. George Orwell’s “Why I Write,” Joan Didion’s “On Keeping a Journal,” and Kurt Vonnegut’s “How to Write With Style” exemplify the mastery of these devices to connect...

Postpartum Depression and Its Representation in “The Yellow Wallpaper”

Introduction Mental health problems are a significant consequence of any experience in a person’s life. Postpartum depression is one of the consequences that can develop in women due to the birth of a child. In the story “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, one can find many parallel connections...

Social and Economic Inequality in Toni Cade Bambara’s “The Lesson”

Introduction Imagine a world where a simple trip to the toy store can change a child’s perception of society and class. Toni Cade Bambara’s ‘The Lesson” offers just that: it tells the story of a group of underprivileged children who receive an eye-opening lesson from a well-intentioned but confrontational teacher....

Toni Morrison’s ‘Recitatif’: An Analytical Perspective

To establish their lifetime relationship and demonstrate how their lives have been entwined from a young age, the author opens the novel with Twyla and Roberta as little children. This aids in laying the groundwork for the later-story events. The narrative uses cultural examples to highlight the differences between the...

The Poem “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodor Roethke

The poem My Papa’s Waltz touches on the intricate relationship between a child and a socially irresponsible father. It is difficult to say whether this work was written under the pressure of one’s negative memories or in impulses of inspiration. However, Theodor Roethke conveyed with precise accuracy the image of...

The Blend of Humor and Horror in Poe’s ‘The Cask of Amontillado’

Edgar Allan Poe is a 19th-century writer and poet known for Gothic horror stories. In The Cask of Amontillado, Poe narrates a tale of a nobleman, Montresor, trying to get revenge on his friend Fortunato. The terror of realizing that the reader is witnessing a character walking into a death...

“On the Run: Fugitive Life in an American City” by Alice Goffman

On the Run: Fugitive Life in an American City is a book by Alice Goffman that presents research on a Black neighborhood in Philadelphia. The book is based on stories told by locals, mostly a man named George Taylor, although it is a pseudonym, and the author’s personal experiences. Since...

“A Sand County Almanac” by Aldo Leopold

A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold is a passionate and thoughtful account of nature observations throughout a year. In the very beginning, Leopold lovingly refers to the start of the year’s observations as tempting distractions (1). This love for the natural world is vivid in his descriptions of natural...

Virgil and Protagonist in Dante’s The Divine Comedy

Introduction The Divine Comedy is one of the most brilliant works of the great Italian poet and thinker Dante Alighieri. This is his last work, which reflects the poet’s worldview. The poem consists of three parts: Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise – and describes the state of the soul that has...

“A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner: Character Analysis

A Rose for Emily is a short story written by William Faulkner, the American author famous for their contribution to the gothic genre in the twentieth century. Faulkner’s fiction pictures the realistic episodes reviving the darkest aspects of human personality and relationships between people. Indeed, the main character of A...

Richard Cory by Robinson and Death, Be Not Proud by Donne

The essay will compare two poems, namely “Richard Cory” by Edwin Arlington Robinson and “Death, be not proud” by John Donne. Mays (2019) suggests that poetry varies as much as the individuals who create and interpret themes. Essentially, the theme selected for the analysis is identity position. The poems’ genre...

Dante’s “The Pilgrim” Poem Review

At the start of the poem, Dante is a middle-aged poet who is lost on his path. “I found myself in dark woods, the right road lost” (Alighieri 3). This right road can be considered to represent God’s path of his life, and since he wandered from it, he is...

Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” Story Analysis

Before society, dominated by men, started to acknowledge the importance of treating women equally, females were not perceived as intelligent and worthy creatures in many countries. Indeed, the oppression of females is a vast and horrifying process that was especially active in the 1890s (Özyon 115). This topic is discussed...

Female and Male Gender Roles and Sexualities in Feminist Literature and American Nation

Introduction The last two centuries have been and the last 80 years especially can be called revolutionary for Western and global literature, as the female author’s perspective has finally become one of its thematic and genre mainstreams during these times. It was and continues to be a historical age of...

The Relationship Between Relatives in Sam Shepard’s Play “True West”

The study of literary works can provide valuable insight into how relationships between people are formed. This also implies explanations of the background and circumstances that affect the dynamics of building relationships. This work explores the changing relationship between two brothers in the work Sam Shepard’s “True West.” A rivalry...

Creation Myths of the World by Leeming, D. A.

These two stories possess identical elements, as they present stories regarding the creation of the world and life in it in accordance with different cultures. The theme from the stories that I would like to explore is cooperation in the process of creation. The deity does not perform the act...

A Rose for Emily: The Theme of Tradition

Many people at some stage of their lives and almost all nations at certain points in history encounter the dilemma related to their cultural traditions. On the one hand, it is widely agreed that the new challenges necessitate new solutions that should eventually substitute the older ‘ways’. On the other...

The Importance of Abolishing Slavery in Narrative of the Life of F. Douglass

Introduction Frederick Douglass was and remained to be an influential figure in US history in general and in the history of slavery and abolition in particular. His book entitled Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass, an American Slave. Written by Himself is an invaluable account of documented atrocities faced...

Cry and Compassion in Paton’s Novel “Cry, the Beloved Country”

In “Cry, the Beloved Country,” Alan Paton authored the novel to address the presence of inner conflicts of South African citizens. It entertains and dramatically shows some situations the author wants the citizens to find a remedy. Suffering is evident in many instances where Paton seeks to address South Africa’s...

Hamlet: Shakespeare’s Detective

Written at the turn of the 16th century, The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is the longest and one of the most renowned works by William Shakespeare. Right from the start, the author sets the mood for tragedy with the mysterious death of Hamlet’s father, king of Denmark. The...

Characters of Toni Cade Bambara’s “The Lesson”

The story chosen for analysis is the work of Toni Cade Bambara “The Lesson”. The author’s main argument is that the black population has the highest level of child poverty among all racial groups in the United States. Toni Bambara conveys her point of view through the story of Sylvia...

Crime & Punishment in ”Les Misérables” by Victor Hugo

Introduction There are differing perspectives that influence people’s actions and how they treat others. Some people’s behaviors are influenced immensely by the perceptions of others. Priest vs. the World in the story Les Miserables represents extreme perspectives that explain the behaviors of Jean and Javert, the main characters in the...

Themes of Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby”

Theme I don’t mean that he had traded on his phantom millions, but he had deliberately given Daisy a sense of security; he let her believe that he was a person from much the same stratum as herself—that he was fully able to take care of her. F. Scott Fitzgerald...

The “Homage to My Hips” Poem by Lucille Clifton

In the poem “Homage to My Hips” by Lucille Clifton, the speaker is a woman other ladies dream of becoming. This poetry is the glorification of the female body of an African American woman. It is a consolidation of the idea that every woman is independent and has a right...

“One-Dimensional Man” by Herbert Marcuse

We may distinguish both true and false needs. “False” are those which are superimposed upon the individual by particular social interests in his repression: the needs which perpetuate toil, aggressiveness, misery, and injustice. Their satisfaction might be most gratifying to the individual, but this happiness is not a condition which...

Feminism in “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Gilman

How does this story reflect the challenges put forward by the first wave of feminists? The first wave of feminism refers to the women’s movement against the societal expectations on the role of women in the middle-class and upper-class women in the 18th century to the 20th century. It was...

Literature Studies: “A Rose for Emily” by W. Faulkner

“A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner is a short story that contains many themes, but the story is undoubtedly built on the theme of aging out and decaying. The story tells readers that once the town of Jefferson was one of the nicest towns in the South but lost...

Literature Studies: “The Canterbury Tales” by G. Chaucer

The Canterbury Tales represent Medieval English literature. The work was written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the XIV century. The character of Nun Prioress was depicted by the author in the General Prologue, where he described her with irony and subtle humor. The Canterbury Tales present the stories narrated by the...

Wealth and Illusion in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’

In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald explores the theme of the American Dream. In particular, the author shows the decline of this ideal and people’s disillusionment with it. This novel provides several examples illustrating this thesis. Much attention should be paid to the characters’ cynicism, their desire for sensual pleasures or...

Analysis of “The Death of a Salesman” by A. Miller

The Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller is a play that sheds light on issues several individuals in America experience in their quest for the American Dream. The story’s protagonist, Willy Loman, is caught up in a web of self-denial, contradiction, and desperation. Like many individuals, he envisions living...

Art Creation: Poetry or Prose?

I cannot say decisively that I love poetry more than prose since there are both fantastic poems and exciting novels and short stories that have made a profound effect on my development. Still, there is something unique about poetic lines: they can reflect a lengthy idea within only a few...

The Role of Gender in Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”

In Charlotte Gilman’s short story The Yellow Wallpaper, one of the characters is Jennie, who is directly influenced by the gender norms and expectations of the time. This story, like the story of this hero, holistically talks about how gender stereotypes and society’s expectations negatively affect the mental health of...

Reflection on the “I, Too” Poem by Langston Hughes

Introduction Langston Hughes’ poem “I, Too” is a stirring portrayal of the African American experience in the United States, highlighting the struggle for equal treatment and dignity in the face of pervasive racism and discrimination. The poem speaks to the resilience and strength of those who have been marginalized, and...

The “Alias Grace” Novel by Margaret Atwood

Introduction Alias Grace is a historical, narrative approach to exploring themes of cruelty and redemption within the context of class distinctions and gender norms, particularly within the 1820s-1860s Canada. In Alias Grace, Margaret Atwood takes the audience back to a time when women were not seen as human beings; they...

Discrimination in Charlotte’s Web Book by White

Charlotte’s Web, written by E.B. White, is a children’s book and is often seen as an innocent story of a piglet named Wilbur, who made friends with a spider named Charlotte. However, when analyzing the story closer, one can see that it transcends a simple narration and illustrates discrimination, which...

Scavenger Hunt: Steinbeck’s Life and Literature

Steinbeck was a US writer and the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature winner. Born in 1902 in Salinas, California, his family immigrated to the US in 1858 from Germany, England, and Ireland (Pratt). The author’s mother was a former teacher who encouraged his love of reading and writing, while his...

The Great Gatsby: Illusions in Human Existence

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is often analyzed from the point of view of opposing dreams and reality, the spiritual and material world, and the inconsistency of the genre diversity of the novel. The Great Gatsby is usually viewed as a characteristic novel for its era, the main...

Exploring Idealized Love in Marie de France’s Poems

Introduction Marie de France was a poet from the Early Middle Ages best known for her lays, or narrative poems written in Old French. These lays address a wide range of subjects, from courtly love to morality to societal conventions. The novels frequently feature romanticized types of love, in which...

Hamlet’s BlackBerry: Building a Good Life in the Digital Age by William Powers

The book focuses on contemporary communication problems, considering the philosophical and historical context. The central problem of this work is the excessive use of communications by people in the modern world and the dynamics associated with this problem. Powers uses observations and statistics relevant to the modern world combined with...

Perez’ What Home Is Poem vs. Walk’s The Flowers Story

When poetry and prose are compared, it is sometimes difficult to find common ground in tone, theme, and syntax. However, for Ashley Hope Perez’s “What Home Is” and Alice Walk’s “The Flowers,” which are a poem and short story, respectively, the connection can be built in terms of these three...

Flannery O’Connor’s Masterpiece: ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find’ Analyzed

Flannery O’Connor’s 1955 short tale, A Good Man is Hard to Find, highlights the seemingly random events with far-reaching implications that people encounter. The story, though narrated in the third person, takes the perspective of the character simply referred to as “The Grandmother.” From this angle, O’Connor presents the topic...

The “Into the Wild” Book by Jon Krakauer

Introduction The protagonist appears before the readers as “standing in the snow beside the road, thumb raised high, shivering in the gray Alaska dawn;” he is already a survivalist for the audience (Krakauer, 1997, p. 1). One of the most important themes that Into the Wild represent is survival. After...

“Fences” by August Wilson: Play Analysis

Family relationships are commonly discussed in many literary works to demonstrate different visions of this topic. Fences is one of such stories where the life of an African American family is thoroughly described, addressing the specific living conditions of Americans in the middle of the 20th century. August Wilson, the...

“L’Abbé Sonnet” by Shakespeare Review

L’Abbé Sonnet 1 poem argues for the relationship between procreation and the speaker’s obsession with beauty. “From fairest creature we desire increase… Feed’s thy light’s flame with self-substantial fuel” (Shakespeare 1). The lines in the poem are unforgettable because they question the impacts of the man’s beauty and his unwillingness...

Iago in Shakespeare’s Othello Play

Iago is the traitor and perhaps the most significant character in the play “Othello” by William Shakespeare. He is a man with a sinister plan of deception and death and loses focus of what he was formerly: a genuinely good husband and strong soldier. Necessity compels him to act and...

“Where My Characters Come From” by Haruki Murakami

Introduction Murakami, in his article “Where My Characters Come From,” gives an overview of how he chooses the characters in his novel and what motivates the choices of characters (2). Murakami’s purpose is to explain how he develops his characters over time in his writing career and how the characters’...

Two Spirit in “Johnny Appleseed” Book by Whitehead

Introduction Johnny Appleseed is a novel written by Joshua Whitehead exploring the theme of sexuality and the indigenous nature of people. He writes about a young man named Johny, who is seen yearning to get back to the city for the burial of his stepfather. After some time, Johny becomes...

Themes in “The Bluest Eye” Novel by Toni Morrison

The novel by Toni Morrison The Bluest Eye shows how racial oppression has a devastating effect on African Americans through the image of madness. The main character was a victim of racism, and in an effort to conform to the ideals of the beauty of white people, she began to...

Quitting Decision in John Updike’s “A&P” Story

John Updike’s short story “A & P” describes an episode from Sammy’s life: the teenager working in the counter shop and thinking about the way adult people live. The text is a concise description of life in American suburbia, and the images the author uses reflect the conduct shared by...

The Writing Technique of “Vision” in Elizabeth Bishop’s Poetry

Elizabeth Bishop’s poetry remains rather controversial to many modern literary critics. Many consider her an outstanding poet that is attentive to detail, while others believe that the author’s lack of much literary production makes it difficult to analyze her poetry. It is also criticized that Bishop had no personal experience...

The Myths of Kali and Callisto: Treatment of Women

In the myths of Kali and Callisto, women are bound by a set of laws in order to be valued. Callisto is fooled and attacked by Zeus, who poses himself as Artemis to entice the vowed maiden into his arms (Callisto in Greek Mythology). Kali sobs because her honor has...

Comparison of Poems by Gwendolyn Brooks

Gwendolyn Brooks represents one of the most prominent African American poetic voices of the 20th century. Her works reflect the complexity of the sociocultural environment of the mid-20th-century American community, particularly, the Civil Rights movement and the associated struggles of African American people (Hayes, 2019). Although “We Real Cool,” Sadie...

Role of Women in “The Things They Carried”

Introduction Tim O’Brien, an American author, wrote “The Things They Carried,” a collection of interrelated short stories about a squad of American soldiers engaged in combat in the Vietnam War. Tim goes in-depth on the women’s experiences in Vietnam and how they influenced the soldiers. Women were right there at...

Legacy of Love: Elie Wiesel’s Exploration of Father-Son Ties

Elie Wiesel’s memoir Night presents one of the most prominent works of Holocaust literature, which captures the author’s experience in Nazi concentration camps. One of the central themes in the Night is the development of the relationship between Eliezer and his father. Moreover, the father’s role as a caregiver in...

Coming of Age: Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber by Hemingway

Coming of age has been quite a common topic in literature. Surprisingly, it does not always happen to a person during adolescence. For some individuals, maturity comes in their later adult years after a certain event, whether it is marriage or parenthood. However, in the wake of such situations, others...

The “Candide” Work by Voltaire: A Close Analysis

The actions of Candide can be explained by underlying aspects of his devotion to Pangloss. Although not apparent in the story, this essay will demonstrate that what Pangloss tells Candide shapes his worldview and behavior. When Candide first meets Pangloss, he stays with his German uncle; it could be said...

American West in “Sleeping the Alamo” by James Crisp

Introduction The study of historical events is of particular value for understanding such aspects as the formation of society, the influence of the past on the present, and awareness of the experience of ancestors. However, almost any historical event is accompanied by a sufficiently large number of fiction and myths...

“The Sage from Galilee” Book by Flusser & Notley

Summary “The Sage from Galilee: Rediscovering Jesus’ Genius” is biographical literature by David Flusser and Steven Notley. The book was first published in the 20th century and edited later in 2007 as a fourth edition. Currently, the book’s price ranges from $ 18.00 to $ 19.66. The volume explores the...

Alienation in the Works of Hemingway and Faulkner

The themes of loneliness and alienation are shared among all writers of the Lost Generation. The desire to find a home and return to everyday life after the war influenced the styles of Hemingway and Faulkner. Similar life experiences encourage writers to depict events in dark tones, full of ambiguity...

David McCullough’s “Wright Brothers”

Introduction Wright Brothers is a book written by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner David McCullough and published in 2015. This work does not only present the detailed biographies of two of the most well-known inventors in history. It also examines the influences that were present in their lives and that led...

Symbolism in Petals on the Wind by V. C. Andrews

In Petals on the Wind, the second novel of V. C. Andrews’s trilogy, the story dwells on the life of Chris, Cathy, and Carrie after they manage to escape the attic and move to Florida. However, while at some point, everyone is convinced that going back to the place of...

Themes in “The Kite Runner” by Hosseini, Khaled

The Kite Runner raises a range of topics and themes that have sociological importance and exemplify the pillars of power imbalances. In particular, the author thoroughly incorporates some divisive worldview- and ethnicity-related factors in the storyline. Some themes of interest include ethnic prejudice and religious devotion used as an excuse...

Violence Against Women in “Where Are You Going…” by Oates

Annotated Bibliography Burn, Stephen J. “The Gender of the Neuronovel: Joyce Carol Oates and the Double Brain.” European Journal of American Studies, vol. 16, 2021, pp. 12-32. At the beginning of the formation of D. K. Oates’s writing style, social and political views fell at a time of increasing social...

The Twelve Labors of Hercules in Mythology

Mythology is a big part of the culture of many nations and countries. It contains much wisdom and knowledge about the past, even though it is hundred percent fictional. Ancient Greek and Roman mythologies share many similarities but are not entirely the same. However, they both tell the story of...

Satire and Deception in Literature

Satire In literature, content creators use a lot of art to present their ideas in a specific way they desire. The ideas vary, thus necessitating more than one style to present their information to a targeted audience. Many themes can be depicted in the presentation, with many of them meant...

Why Didn’t More Women Embrace the Beat Generation?

The Beat Generation A group of American writers and poets known as the Beat Generation lived during the post-World War II period. Stability, wealth, and prosperity were the key virtues of the post-war US, but the beatniks resented the peaceful lifestyle of people. The Americans aspired to enter a good...

Selfishness and Individualism in O’Connor’s “A Good Man…”

Introduction “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is a Southern gothic narrative that reflects the realities of the American South in the 20th century. According to the literary theory of cultural studies, the author’s background significantly affects their writing, and “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is a...

The Story “The Good Earth” by Pearl S. Buck

Pearl S. Buck’s story The Good Earth raised several significant problems in China. Exploitation, a desire for riches, family troubles, and contempt for elder Chinese culture are among the conflicts that the protagonists confront throughout the novel (Gupta 90). Wang Lung faces several challenges as he attempts to escape poverty....

“To Live in the Borderlands Means You” by Anzaldúa

To Live in The Borderlands is an eight-stanza poem published in a 1987 semi-autobiographical book Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza by Gloria Anzaldua. The work investigates the meaning of mixed heritage and its implications on one’s self-identification. The author explores her understanding of being a multi-ethnic and multi-lingual individual through...

Afghan Women in Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns

Those who read The Kite Runner expected from the author another inspiring story about male friendship but received a heartbreaking novel about the women of Afghanistan. Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns was first published in 2007 and immediately received positive feedback (Dhakal 229). The story represents the period from...

The Play “The Importance of Being Earnest” by Oscar Wilde

The Importance of Being Earnest is a drama written by Oscar Wilde to address critical societal matters through the use of comedy. The author presents a humorous approach to cultural criticism using the comic elements of paradox and puns. The play consists of epigrams that expose characters’ perspectives on love,...

Analysis of The Odyssey and Its Impact

Homer’s Odyssey gives readers a heroic narrative about a protagonist on his quest to home from war. The protagonist Odysseus is far from flawless, and the reader explores his personality while he faces various opponents and his stupidity. The epic delves into themes of fate, revenge, humanity, and ferocious powers....

Moral and Religious Obligations in Socrates’ “Antigone”

In Antigone, as in our culture today, there is always a conflict between our values and religious obligations. What we think and what we are taught to do are not always coordinated, which can lead to conflict, particularly when others hold conflicting views. Religious obligations, on the other hand, are...

Isolation, Patriarchy, Materialism, and Mental Illness in “The Yellow Wallpaper”

Introduction “The Yellow Wallpaper” is arguably the most famous short story by the American author and feminist Charlotte Perkins Gilman. In a concise narrative evolving in a deliberately confined setting, the author paints a frightening picture of a slow descent into madness facilitated by the internalized misconceptions of mental health...

Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” Critical Analysis

The Story of an Hour by American author Kate Chopin is a feminist literary classic. The story, which was first published in 1894, depicts Louise Mallard’s conflicted reaction to learning of her husband’s death. From there on, the protagonist experiences complex and contradictory feelings on the matter, most of which...

“With the Old Breed” Lessons for Modern Marine Corps

Introduction The memoir book With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa, written by Marine Eugene Sledge, reveals some details of the Pacific Theater during World War II. As part of the Marine Corps, the author survived heavy battles, suffered the loss of comrades, and made his conclusions about the...

Building Blocks of “The Odyssey” by Homer

Introduction In Homer’s writing, morality is coded as a guarantee of a secure world. Strangers are viewed as harmless or dangerous, and when the residents see them, they should prepare for uncertainty if they do not handle them with wisdom. Homer’s depiction of Odysseus is an embodiment of a self-assured...

Chinua Achebe’s Life, Igbo Culture, and Things Fall Apart

Introduction All literary works are created within a specific historical era characterized by distinct beliefs, cultures, and experiences, which shape the artists’ story, perspective, and style. Published in 1958, Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart (TFA) mirrors the everyday socio-cultural context of the Igbo people as they struggled with the complexities...

Erich Maria Remarque’s ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ – Anti-War Classic

Introduction “All Quiet on the Western Front” is an opposition book set throughout World Conflict I that draws on Remarque’s own experiences in the war to portray the era’s more considerable disenchantment. William Pfeiler is a critique who thinks that this novel is a world sensation (Pfeiler). The book is...

Discussion of “Atonement” by McEwan

“Atonement” by McEwan is an amazing in its sincerity chronicle of lost time, which is led by a teenage girl, in her bizarre and childishly cruel way, overestimating and rethinking the events of adult life. Having witnessed the rape, she interprets it in her own way – and sets in...

Queer Trauma and Queer Textuality: Research Analysis

Annotated Bibliography Michael, Olga. “Queer Trauma, Paternal Loss, and Graphic Healing in Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic.” Arts of Healing: Cultural Narratives of Trauma, 2020, pp. 187-195. The article discusses how through the loss of her father, the main character of “Fun Home” manages to accept her personality...

“Unleash the Power of Storytelling” by Biesenbach

In his book “Unleash the Power of Storytelling,” Rob Biesenbach presents the readers with the importance of good storytelling and its implications in the wider world. This practical guide, as the author himself refers to it, introduces the reader to the idea of storytelling as a tool for communication both...

Achilles Life as a Son, Friend, and Warrior

Introduction Achilles enjoys a legendary status in Greek mythology due to his bravery on the battlefield. His ancestry played a significant role in his development into one of the most powerful soldiers of the Trojan War. He possessed extra toughness and invulnerability alongside his demigod status since his parents were...

Analysis of Candide by Voltaire

The monumental shifts in human nature – in the nature of the main character, primarily – in Candide start with the real historical event of the Lisbon earthquake, which took place on November 1, 1755. From there, the old controversy of the German philosopher Gottfried Leibniz flared back to life....

Literary Analysis of “A&P” Story by John Updike

The short story A&P is centered around the main character named Sammy, who is displeased with his current life, including his job and the people around him. As a teenager, he realizes that he wants a more adventurous life because he is living in a highly conservative and quiet town...

Book Recommendation System (Content-Based & Collaborative Filtering)

Abstract The enormous variety of digital content encourages providers to engage users and consumers on their services. They use different recommendation systems in order to meet their customers’ expectations and preferences. Such methods direct clients according to their needs and requirements by analyzing vast information databases, such as prevalence, popularity,...

Carver’s “Neighbors” and Diaz’s “The Money” Stories

Fiction authors utilize numerous tools and methods to catch readers’ attention. They can choose among different tones, use few or many characters, discuss real or imaginary settings, and others. However, such authors are only expected to preserve a single requirement that relates to ensuring that readers can absorb the intended...

O’Connor’s “Revelation” and “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” Comparison

Introduction Flannery O’Connor’s short stories, titled “Revelation” and “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” were written at different points in the woman’s life, but they still display a number of similarities in their narrative core, messaging, and themes. These two pieces have a lot in common while also possessing...

Rebellion on the Animal Farm: Need to Rise Against Pigs

Rising against unjust oppression is a duty of any righteous resident of the farm. The current conditions in which the animals reside are unacceptable, as the animals in power openly ignore others’ needs and desires. The farm’s resources are occupied by the pigs alone, and they attempt to define truth...

Analysis of T. S Elliot’s “The Waste Land” Versus Langston Hughes’ Poetry

Introduction Literature serves as a mirror of society, capturing events in a fictionalized form; the purpose of literature is to inform, educate, and connect people. It enables individuals to express their emotions and thoughts; this catharsis improves individuals. Reading literature allows people to connect personally and discover meaning in life....

Picturebooks: Charlotte Huck’s Children’s Literature

The current paper constitutes a summary of the chapter titled “Picturebooks” Charlotte Huck’s Children’s Literature: A Brief Guide. The book was written by Barbara Kiefer and Cynthia Tyson in collaboration with Bettie Parsons Barger, Denise Davila, Lisa Patrick, and Erin Reilly-Sanders. The third edition of the book was published in...

Responses to Essays of Baker, Schreiner, and Hughes

Response to “The Art of Eating Spaghetti” By Russell Baker “The Art of Eating Spaghetti” demonstrates the essential rule for creating any art, namely, a sincere desire to express oneself. The narrator shows that a simple and most conventional task of writing an essay as homework can produce an effect...

Writer William Cuthbert Faulkner’s Biography

William Cuthbert Faulker was an American writer born in New Albany, Mississippi, on September 25, 1897, and died on July 6, 1962. His parents were Maud Butler Faulkner and Murry Falkner, who lived in a small Mississippian village (Khelifa 2). Faulker or Falker as his original name was named after...

A Variety of Themes in “Candide” by Voltaire

Introduction According to historical accounts, Voltaire wrote Candide around the year 1758. At that point, Europe lived in the fallout of the 1755 earthquake and tsunami that devastated Portugal. In art and philosophy of the time, the concept of optimism prevailed, implying that God remains benevolent to humanity. While working...

Womanhood in Piercy’s “Barbie Doll” vs. Kincaid’s “Girl”

For the American feminist movement, the 1970s was a time of utmost importance in many ways. According to McBean (2018), even though the Women’s Liberation Movement started in the 1960s, it gained traction in the public sphere in the next decade. This contributed to the appearance of mainstream feminist fiction...

Review of “The Yellow Wallpaper” Story

The point of view in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” is an important element, which allows a reader to have a full and complete understanding of the inner being of the main character. The key reason is manifested in the fact that the central literary elements revolve around the...

Analysis of the Superman Character in a Comic Book

Superman is a monumental character in the DC Comics universe. He may or may not like it, but it is impossible to deny his contribution to world culture and influence on generations of readers and viewers alike. Superman has had a significant impact on popular culture and is a role...

The Box Man by Kobo Abe: A Short-Form Analysis

Passage “The seaside smell of rain is quite like a dog’s breath. The place is not all that suitable as a rain shelter, for the drizzle is directionless as if expelled from an atomizer. The bridge girders are too high. This entire location is unsuitable. Everything—being at a place like...

“A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor: Literary Analysis

Introduction A Good Man Is Hard to Find was first published in 1953 after Flannery O’Connor’s permanent migration to Andalusia, her mother’s dairy farm, and displayed several characteristics typical of the author’s style. Constrained, in many ways, by her sickness, the author had to take advantage of various resources available...

Tecumseh’s Historical Speech and Sherman Alexie’s Poems: Comparative Analysis

Comparing Tecumseh’s warlike uplifting speech with the poems of contemporary poet Sherman Alexie, one can find seemingly archetypal elements of the representation of the peoples of the Native Americans. Analysis and consistent comparison of these texts allows us to observe the deconstruction of the epic image of the Native American....

The Setting Role in American Short Stories

Introduction Writers employ setting aspects to help them create worlds and establish the limits of the possible and impossible within a story. While both phrases explain elements of a universe, the latter stresses that the world being described is unfamiliar to the reader. Worldbuilding is, therefore, most closely connected with...

Oroonoko as a Hero: Analysis of Novel

Oroonoko; or, The Royal Slave. A True History by Aphra Behn is considered to be one of the first English novels – it was published in 1688 when the genre was only beginning to emerge. The story’s protagonist is Prince Oroonoko – an African king’s grandson who possesses all the...

Discrimination Against Women in Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale”

Description of the issue The issue of discrimination among women continues to influence the experience of females in the modern world. Mainly, society continues to depend on prejudices that concern the role of women in society. Coffey demonstrates that this part of the population suffers from inequality in India because...

The Works of Li Qingzhao

In imperial China, Li Qingzhao is the only female poet known to all admirers of traditional Chinese poetry. At that time, there were other poetesses, but their work was known only to narrow circles of specialists, and Qingzhao’s lyric poetry has remained recognized for many centuries, is still quoted, and...

Making Obesity Fat: Crip Estrangement in Shakespeare’s Henry Iv

In the article by Best (2019) in the scene “play extempore” of Henry IV part I, the author, Shakespeare through deconstruction makes obesity fat. Shakespeare in the play put a crippled character to assume the role of a fat person. In the scene, “play extempore,” Prince Henry is supposed to...

Imagination vs. Control in The Yellow Wallpaper

“…the color is repellant, almost revolting; a smouldering unclean yellow, strangely faded by the slow-turning sunlight… This wallpaper has a kind of sub pattern in a different shade, a particularly irritating one, for you can only see it in certain lights, and not clearly then. But in the places where...

Identity in McBride’s “The Color of Water”

Introduction Looking for a place to fit in and have an identity is a ubiquitous quest. Self-identity correlates with the individual or self: essentially what makes us human. Most people find belonging and comprehension of the self within societies of culture, race, or religion while others find it hard to...

The Poem “Odyssey” by Homer: Episode with Cyclops

Introduction One of the most known adventures of Odysseus is the encounter with cyclops and, more specifically, Polyphemus, and this episode serves as a turning point in the narrative. It is critical for understanding the consequent events as they happen under the influence of evil powers, which postpone the hero’s...

Help for Kya in Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

Where the Crawdads Sing is a modern novel created by Delia Owens in 2018. The author narrates the story of a girl who has to learn how to live independently at a very young age. At the beginning of the story, she lived in a rundown shack in the marshlands...

Language as a Tool in John Updike’s “A&P”

Thesis John Updike uses language as far more than a narrational or beautifying tool in his short story “A&P”; instead, he employs linguistic tools such as metaphors and colloquialism to enrich his characters and provide a riveting analysis of the many social trends at war in 1960s America. Introduction John...

The Novel “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker

There are many books which tell about the struggles of protagonists and how they manage to overcome them, attaining a better life for themselves or the people around them. Yet, not many of them show how the personal problems of the main character reflect the overall historical context of the...

Credibility Analysis of “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight“

Background Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is one of the most well-known examples of the classic Medieval Arthurian romances. While the poem’s author is unknown, historians and literary scholars have speculated that it was written by the same Gawain-poet who wrote other narrative poems, including Pearl, Cleanness, and Patience,...

Power and Agency in the Works of Octavia Butler

Introduction Literature is a great device to explore a variety of themes, ideas, and theories, as it allows people to exercise the creative freedom of expression. Writing is a medium that allows individuals to channel their ideals, beliefs into words, inspire others, and relay messages they consider to be important....

“My Life as a Muslim in a West’s Grey Zone” by Lalami

In “My life as a Muslim in a West’s Grey Zone”, Laila Lalami discusses the treatment of Muslims not involved in terrorist organizations in the West. She explains that Muslims who do not support the actions of ISIS are referred to as a grey zone. However, the attitude towards this...

Nguyen Du’s The Tale of Kieu: Revolution in Transition

Introduction The Tale of Kieu by Nguyen Du involves a famous Vietnamese story of a young girl attempting to correct her past life mistakes through continuing adversity in her life. The Vietnamese girl, by the name Kieu, is peddled into prostitution and unceasingly gets cheated by men in the context...

Home, Journey, and Identity in Children’s Books

The genre of children’s books might appear to be rather unsophisticated and plain to the uninitiated. However, on closer inspection, the world of children’s literature will reveal that it has no boundaries for imagination and, therefore, can stretch across the themes and subgenres hat no other type of literature can....

Edgar Allan Poe’s “Wuthering Heights”

The narrator wanted to take revenge with impunity, also making sure that it would be recognized as revenge, otherwise, there would be no point in it. The retaliation could go unpunished if it was portrayed as an accident, but, in this case, Fortunato would not understand the meaning of the...

Mother-Son Conflict in Toole’s “A Confederacy of Dunces”

Introduction John Kennedy Toole’s novel A Confederacy of Dunces unveils diverse issues people encounter in their lives. These problems include but are not confined to relationships with others, ways to fit in the community, and attempts to realize oneself and satisfy one’s needs. At that, family issues, or rather the...

An Ideal Hero in the “Beowulf” Old English Poem

A hero is believed to be an individual of great strength, courage, and fortitude, or one of the central protagonists in a literary or cultural work, including a movie or video game. Facing overwhelming adversities, the leader uses creative abilities, valor, or power in order to overcome them. Hero and...

Poems Comparison and Contrast: “Divorce” and “The Sick Rose”

Poems are recognized as one of the earliest literature forms that have significantly influenced the field of communication. Since pre-colonial times poems have been used to bring people together, warn, encourage and inform. One of the essential features of poems is their form and structure. While some poems lack a...

Poem “Next to of Course God America I”

“Next to of course god America i” is one of the greatest poems in the history of America, and every reader always defines different meanings of the story, making it multifaced and mesmerizing. It is important to read the poem several times to understand its main essence, get a different...

Haruki Murakami’s “What I Talk About When I Talk About Running”

As a writer, Haruki Murakami’s 2009 book, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, has been an eye-opener for me. Reading this book in this setting has given me a deeper appreciation of the power that comes from experience, even if I have always been strong at telling...

Bartleby, the Scrivener by Herman Melville

Bartleby, the scrivener, gives an idea into the broken life of Bartleby, which depicts changes in his career affected and ultimately influenced his emotional stand. The author clearly uses symbolism to reflect the mental state that burdens Bartleby in the Lawyer’s office. Bartleby holds signs of depression at work, which...

Parenting Philosophy in “Where the Wild Things Are”

The book is about a young boy called Max who is unruly, and at the opening of the book, he is running around the house wearing a wolf-suit. He is carrying a large hammer, runs around making mischief, and later chases the dog around with a fork. The mother shouts...

Njal’s Saga: Gunnar Hámundarson of Hlíðarendi

Introduction Njal’s saga is one of the most iconic works of literature from medieval Iceland. The story was written in the thirteenth century by an unknown author with a 9th – 10th century setting in the Icelandic Commonwealth. The story features many characters ranging from Njáll Þorgeirsson, a wise lawyer,...

Analysis of the Book “Rose for Emily”

In a “Rose for Emily” (1970), Faulkner addresses the topics of obsession and unwillingness to accept the natural changes that come with the time. The main character of the story, Emily Grierson, is a very reserved person who lives a secret life. People in town judge her and watch her...

Romeo and Juliet Play by William Shakespeare

The playbook titled Romeo and Juliet is my favourite, and William Shakespeare is the author of this romantic narrative which later ended tragically. The story is so exciting and after reading it, I was interested in watching its movie on the big theatre screen. This essay will first evaluate the...

“The Handmaid’s Tale” Fanfiction by Margaret Atwood

Introduction This paper is a fanfiction of the Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. It explores a different story that the novel could have written about when Ofglen and her underground resistance movement are introduced into the account. The Meeting When Offred met Ofglen, she would not have expected that she...

Racial Inferiority and Blacks Empowerment in Brooks’ Poem “Primer for Blacks”

Introduction Poetry is an art that many individuals use to pass information. From politics to liberation movements and racial awareness rallies, poetry enables communication that conveys crucial messages to the public. Poetry can influence decision-making among people as it can give the truth to the public and also manipulates some...