Study Like a Boss
Robert Louis Stevensons Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde has evolved into one of the most acclaimed pieces of literature in modern American society. One aspect of a continual spark of interest with the novel is motion pictures. Various directors through the years have interpreted the book through their own eyes and the following is a … Read more
Why did Zora Neale Hurston choose to move away from the subject of Nanny’s death so quickly in Their Eyes Were Watching God? For one, she did it to refrain from revealing any weaknesses in Janie’s character. The book as a whole seems to empower women, especially Janie, the main character. Portraying Janie in mourning, … Read more
Introduction William Shakespeare effectively uses dramatic irony to intrigue the reader and deepen the impact of the consequences Macbeth ultimately faces. Dramatic Irony Definition: Dramatic Irony is a literary term that defines a situation in the play where the reader knows more than the character does. Thesis: Throughout the play Macbeth, the reader is given the … Read more
In the story A Rose for Emily, William Faulkner, the author talks about a life of a woman and the town she lived in. The story begins just when miss Emily died. The author doesnt tell us much about that time except that many people were interested to see what was in her house. As … Read more
People have a hard time getting what they want; in fact, the things they want can be incompatible with each other. A German physicist named Werner Heisenberg discovered an analogous phenomenon with his uncertainty principle. Studying matter at the atomic level, quantum physics, he realized that the act of measuring affected the object being measured. … Read more
Religion is an important and recurring theme in James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Through his experiences with religion, Stephen Dedalus both matures and progressively becomes more individualistic as he grows. Though reared in a Catholic school, several key events lead Stephen to throw off the yoke of conformity and … Read more
Loyalty to family, community, and the gods is an important quality in the lives of ancient Greek citizens. These qualities are clear demonstrated in The Odyssey through Penelope, Telemakhos, and Odysseus. Penelope shows her loyalty in several ways. She shows loyalty to Odysseus by waiting for his return for twenty long years. She did not … Read more
A common tool of science fiction writers is the use of a character, to whom the reader can relate, placed in an alien setting. This character will represent the reader in this new alien world or society, allowing the reader to form a link between his or her own world and this new one. Because … Read more
The story “Flowers for Algernon”, by Daniel Keyes, that we read in English was about a mentally retarded person, named Charlie who had an operation to increase his intelligence, but the operation was a failure and Charlie is slow again. He wants to move now so society wont ridicule him for being slow again. Daniel … Read more
Voltaire’s Candide is a story about a man who was in search of true happiness and who was in a journey that proves that not all is for the best. He grew up in castle of Westphalia , but was exiled when found kissing the baron’s daughter. That was where his misfortunes began, among them … Read more
In “The Importance of Being Earnest”, Oscar Wilde pairs characters and he also splits his characters into two contrasting groups. Explain how he does this and why. “The Importance of Being Earnest” is a play of childlike innocence and nonsense. In order to present this to the audience Wilde had to be simple, and therefore, … Read more
All scenes of this play take place in the late 1800s home of one of the main characters, Torvald Helmer. Written by Henrik Ibsen, A Dolls House contains many instances of irony. The main characters, Nora and Torvald, are especially involved in this. Many of the examples of irony in this play are types of … Read more
A successful relationship is the Holy Grail in life for most people. We are constantly searching and striving to attain that bond with someone with out fully understanding the components involved in making it happen. In a time of serial monogamy, marriage drive thrus, and quickie divorces, we dont have much incentive to invest that … Read more
At first glance this topic could seem rather irrelevant having in mind that the two works are separated by more than a century. During this lapse of time, humanity has witnessed profound changes at a breath-taking speed. The partly Gothic and partly Romantic world of Mary Shelley is quite different from the reality Gibson predicts. … Read more
The Scarlet Letter, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, contains many profound characters. The townspeople intrigue the reader because they gradually evolve throughout the book, as would any solitary character. In the beginning of the novel, they are generally rigid and judgmental towards Hester, because she has committed adultery. Throughout the novel, they slowly allow Hester and … Read more
Jane does grow in the book Jane Eyre. The theme of the book is Janes continual quest for love. Jane searches for acceptance through the five settings where she lives: Gateshead, Lowood, Thornfield, Moor House and Ferndean. Through these the maturation and self-recognition of Jane becomes traceable. It is not until she runs from Rochester … Read more
From the very beginning of the poem, the character Achilles actions, or lack of actions, have enormous effects upon how the plot unfolds. Starting with the fight with Agamemnon and his withdrawal from the battle, to the death of Patroklos, and finally to the slaying of Hektor, Achilles and his emotions decide the fate of … Read more
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is said to be the source from which all great American literature has stemmed (Smith 127). This is in part attributed to Mark Twain’s ability to use humor and satire, as well as incorporating serious subject matter into his work. Throughout the novel Twain takes on the serious issue of … Read more
Blindly obeying authority often results in disobedience to one’s personal morality. Since rules were established and exist for the common interests of the general population, some would say adhering to the rules is obedient. However, when rules conflict with people’s morals, one has the right, and furthermore the responsibility to disobey. Contrary to popular belief, … Read more
Over the past few months in class we have learned about many aspects of literature. Some examples of them are characterization, setting, style, tone, allegory, theme, and symbolism. I chose to write this essay about the symbolism aspect that is featured in so many great works of literature. Two such stories that we have read … Read more
The story about Young Goodman Brown centers around the allegory of a man pitted against his past and his desires to reach beyond that which his benighted heaven would put before him. The allegory is Christian due to the references in Young Goodman Brown to the devil and Satan; it only seems logical that the … Read more
The novel, Animal Farm, was written by George Orwell and was published in 1946. The story is about a farm in England around the time of the Russian revolution. The animals on Manor Farm are irritated with the way they are being treated, so they start a revolution. The pigs, who were the smartest animals … Read more
Both The Odyssey and the Epic of Gilgamesh are two incredible stories written long ago everyone knows this but what a lot of people don’t is that these two epics share many of the same concepts. Such as the nostro (the Greek term for homecoming), xenis (guest/host relationship), oikos (household), and aganoriss (recognition). In both … Read more
Othello’s character during the play is first shown as a hero of war and a man of great pride and courage. The other main characters in the play all form their own opinions of him and as the play continues, his character begins to deteriorate and become less noble. Chronologically through the play Othello’s character … Read more
As Basil Hallward artfully put the finishing touches on his full-length portrait of an extraordiiiarily beautiful young man, Lord Henr Wotton paid him a call. Lord Henry mucn admired the painting and desired to meet the subject. The artist objected, knowing the poisonous influence of which Lord Henry was capable; young Dorian Gray was his … Read more
My essay deals with banning the novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from high school reading lists, and why this behavior is inappropriate. Specifically, it addresses the following question: Columnist James J. Kilpatrick wrote that Huck Finn is “a fun book for white boys to read… For black children, I have come to realize, it is … Read more
At first glance, Arthur Miller’s play, Death of a Salesman appears to be a simple story of the tragic life of an ordinary man. Through a few flashbacks, it would seem that his whole dreary life is told and that is about it. However, this can not be the case, as we know that Arthur … Read more
In the first three acts of the play Hamlet, King Claudius go through a subtle, but defined change in character. Claudius role in the play begins as the newly corrinated king of Denmark. The former king, King Hamlet, was poisoned by his brother, Claudius, while he was asleep. Claudius, however, made it known to everyone … Read more
Within our society there is an extraordinary want and need for women to be perfect on the outside. There is too much importance and too much anxiety placed on women to surrender to the image of being or becoming a Barbie doll. In the poem “Barbie Doll,” written by Marge Piercy, I see evidence to … Read more
William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night depicts the trials and faults of several characters’ loves. There are many downfalls and unrequited loves, and the story basically ends up in a confusing love triangle. He especially shows the many quirks of Orsino in his quest for winning the true love of Olivia. In this play, the reader can … Read more
Wild, calm, fierce, gentle, damaging, nurturing – nature, such an unpredictable force, can be paralleled with Charlotte Bront’s novel Jane Eyre. Many of Jane Eyre’s characters resemble nature, and many of the novel’s events are supported or foreshadowed by occurrences in nature. Jane Eyre’s main character, Jane, is shown maturing from child to adult. Jane’s … Read more
Beowulf Both Shild Shaving and Beowulf were highly honored during their lives. Both were brave warriors, victorious in many Battles. Shild conquered many people, and many lands. For example, “How Shild made slaves of soldiers from every Land, crowds of captives hed beaten into terror” He also became the king of the Danes. He was … Read more
The exact nature of Dick Diver? s descent throughout the course of Tender is the Night is difficult to discern. It is clear enough that his disintegration is occasioned by Nicole? s burgeoning independence, but why or how her transformation affects him this way is less than obvious. Moreover, it is not at all apparent … Read more
Many tragic heroes had honor which was either their downfall or their positive trait. In Shakespeares Henry IV Part 1, Hotspur, a hot tempered traitor, makes honor his first priority for him and his family . Although the king praised him, he led a rebellion against him. In Julius Caesar Brutus, a honor driven conspirator, … Read more
The book called Song of Solomon, by Toni Morrison, deals with many real life issues, most of which are illustrated by the relationships between different family members. One archetypal relationship that Morrison includes in her book is the father:son relationship. Although it is obvious that Morrison does talk about this topic, it is not so … Read more
The tragedy of Richard III lies in the progressive isolation of its protagonist. Discuss. From the very opening of the play when Richard III enters solus, the protagonist’s isolation is made clear. Richard’s isolation progresses as he separates himself from the other characters and breaks the natural bonds between Man and nature through his efforts … Read more
The created patch-work language of Nadsat in the novel, A Clockwork Orange, satirizes the social classes and gang life of Anthony Burgess’s futuristic society. The most prominent of these tools being his use of a completely new language and the depiction of family life from the eyes of a fifteen year old English hoodlum. Burgess … Read more
A novel, which has gained literary recognition worldwide, scrutiny to the point of censorship and has established a following among adolescents, The Catcher in the Rye is in its entirety a unique connotation of the preservation of innocence and the pursuit of compassion. With certain elegance the writer J. D. Salinger, substantiates the growth and … Read more
Throughout the Mark Twain (a. k. a. Samuel Clemens) novel, The Adventures of HuckleBerry Finn, a plain and striking point of view is expressed by the author. His point of view is that of a cynic; he looks upon civilized man as a merciless, cowardly, hypocritical savage, without want of change, nor ability to effect … Read more
Throughout the book Pearl either says or does things that are not typical of a girl of her age. After Hester talks to Chillingworth, Pearl is asked if she knows why Hester wears the scarlet letter. Pearl replies, It is for the same reason that the minister keeps his hand over his heart. I do … Read more
Le Colonel Chabert exhibits the relationship between strong and weak characters. The degree of strength within a character reflects how well the character survives in society. In society, weak characters often have no identity, profession or rank. Stronger characters have power to succeed from inner confidence, motivation and ambition. Any drastic changes brought to the … Read more
In the novel Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck decides to reject civilization. At the end of the story Aunt Sally wants to civilize him, but he refuses. He says “I reckon I got to light out for the territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally, she’s going to adopt me civilize me, and … Read more
There are many different themes expressed in Mary Shellys Frankenstein. They vary with each reader but basically never change. These themes deal with the education that each character posses, the relationships formed or not formed in the novel, and the responsibility for ones own actions. This novel even with the age still has ideas that … Read more
In the novel, To the Lighthouse, Virginia Woolf illustrates the character of Mr. Ramsay, a husband and father of eight children. As a husband, he degrades and mentally abuses his wife, Mrs. Ramsay, and as a father, he disparages and psychologically injures his children. Yet, Mr. Ramsay has another side — a second dimension. He … Read more
An epic hero is the central hero of an epic, a long, narrative poem about the deeds of gods or heroes. He possesses qualities superior to those of most men, yet remains recognizably human. These heroes have a tragic flaw. This is what makes them a hero instead of a god. Gods are perfect. Odysseus … Read more
“Palm Wine” is a story of an anthropologist named Bertrand that traveled to Senegal on a graduate fellowship to collect proverbs from its people (McKnight 35). The miscommunication, lack of understanding, and appreciation for the people of Senegal caused alienation between them and Bertrand. I believe that if Bertrand went to Senegal with an absorbent … Read more
It is curious to note the role of women in Shakespearean literature. Many critics have lambasted the female characters in his plays as two-dimensional and unrealistic portrayals of subservient women. Others have asserted that the roles of women in his plays were prominent for the time and culture that he lived in. That such contrasting … Read more
Part One of the novel shows two men, Henry and Bill, struggling to bring the corpse of Lord Alfred back to civilization. It is a time of famine, and they are low on food; also, they have little ammunition. Thus, they are in a desperate situation because they are being pursued by a pack of … Read more
In Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper,” a nervous wife, an overprotective husband, and a large, dank room covered in musty wallpaper all play important parts in driving the wife insane. The husband’s smothering attention, combined with the isolated environment, incites the nervous nature of the wife, causing her to plunge into insanity to the … Read more
A very brief background of Crime and Punishment is in order before I begin my discourse. The novel was written in the late 1860’s. The main characters are lower middle class, on the brink of poverty, and most show the Russian affection for drink. A young, schooled Russian idealist named Rodion Raskolnikov has been expelled … Read more