Madame Bovary – For Lack of a Better Man

Gustave Flaubert presents one extreme side of human life many would very much rather think does not exist. He presents a tale of sensual symbolism within the life of Charles Bovary. Madame Bovary is the story of Emma Bovary, but within the scope of symbolic meaning, the make-up of Charles is addressed. It is representative … Read more

Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary

This book is definitely a novel. It has all the elements of a true love story. It has a lovesick woman, who has her head filled with notions of a life that will live on happily-ever-after. It is made complete by the death of the heroin. The outside world is a major influence on this … Read more

Macbeth – Scene Analysis

“Glamis thou art, and Cawdor, and shalt be What thou art promised; yet do I fear thy nature, It is too full o’th’milk of human kindness To catch the nearest way. Thou wouldst be great, Art not without ambition, but without The illness should attend it. What thou wouldst highly, That wouldst thou holily; wouldst … Read more

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert

The story starts as we see Charles Bovary entering a new school in the town of Rouen in France. People laugh at him because he isn’t sure what to do and how to act. He is the son of a doting mother and a very strict father. Charles isn’t sure what to do with his … Read more

Symmetry of Narrative in Flauberts Madame Bovary

Over the span of the XIX century, Europes socioeconomic and political reality was transformed by unprecedented changes in technological development.  Urbanization and the emergence of the middle class redefined the social stratification of most European countries.  These dramatic changes did not go unnoticed in art, and particularly in literature.  The idealistic individualism of the romantic … Read more

Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad

The novel “Lord Jim” by Joseph Conrad is a story about a sailor named Jim who has to go through life trying to put a hideous act of cowardice behind him. He has no place to call his own, and it seems as though his history follows him everywhere he goes. This makes it difficult … Read more

Theme of Guilt in Lord Jim

Conrad’s guilt theme in the novel Lord Jim is shown directly through the main character, Jim. “Jim’s spiritual odyssey explores the theme of guilt”(Kuehn 35). Jim is a strong character at heart, but he is overcome by the forces that guilt put on his mind. Jim is a man controlled by his fear. He dreams … Read more

The Irony in Joseph Conrad’s Lord Jim

Lord Jim was written by Joseph Conrad in 1900. Lord Jims tale is a lesson in life. It includes many key literary aspects; the main one, nevertheless, would be irony. With parts of the story exhibiting heroic redemption and others cowardice and shortcomings, it shows the vast conflicts that take place in the story. Lord … Read more

Macbeth And Lord Jim: Compare

Realization of one’s imminent death can drastically change an individual. Knowing that death is imminent can change the way we look at things, and cause us to confess our sins. In Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad and Macbeth by William Shakespeare, the main characters experience this trauma. The instant that Jim jumps from the Patna, … Read more

Long Day’s Journey Into Night: Play Review

It is understandable that so many people in our class did not find the last act of Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night a satisfying one; there is no tidy ending, no goodbye kisses or murder confessions; none of the charaters leave the stage with flowers in their hands or with smiles on their … Read more

Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita

Nabokov’s Lolita is a book that deals with obsessive lust and bloody violence, the real horrors of which are often masked by the beautiful, clever language of the novel. Indeed, Humbert’s early job as a perfume salesman mimics and evokes this masking and sweetening aspect of language. Sudden, horrible death occurs frequently in Lolita, but … Read more

Child Abuse and Lolita – The Movie

Imagine for one moment that you are not yourself any longer. Visualize instead that you are a young girl; old enough to know right from wrong yet still young enough to be terrified by the dark shadows in your room. It is a cool autumn night and your parents have opted to attend a party, … Read more

Lolita: Movie Analysis

Lolita is one of the most unconventional literary classics of the century. Lolita is a twelve-year-old girl, who is desired by the European intellectual Humbert Humbert. As the narrator of the story, Humbert chronicles his abnormal childhood, adolescent experiences, and an adventure in a booming American as a European tourist and pedophile. But it is … Read more

Lolita: Movie Review

How did they ever make a movie out of Lolita? The tagline for Stanley Kubrick’s 1962 film version of Lolita said it all. Films and books “inspire, but may provoke”. They thrill but sometimes offend. And often the same artwork attracts both acclaim and condemnation. In modern times, censorship refers to the examination of media … Read more

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Vladimir Nabokov, one of the 20th century’s greatest writers, is a highly aesthetic writer. Most of his work shows an amazing interest in and talent for language. He deceptively uses language in Lolita to mask and make the forbidden divine. Contextually, Lolita may be viewed as a novel about explicit sexual desire. However, it is … Read more

Like Water for Chocolate: Review

Food equals memory and memory equals immortality. In the recipes we pass down from generation to generation, in the food of our mothers, we reawaken the past, make the present more real, perhaps capture a bit of the future. Food is about history, with handed down recipes such as in Like Water for Chocolate, the … Read more

Radical Feminism in Like Water for Chocolate

There are many different definitions of feminism. Some people regard feminism as the idea that women deserve the same amount of respect that men deserve. There are the other schools of feminist thought that hold women superior to men. Yet another believes that the gender roles controlling women are artificially created and not innate knowledge, … Read more

Like Water for Chocolate – Movie vs Book

Laura Esquirels, Like Water for Chocolate, is a modern day Romeo and Juliet filled with mouthwatering recipes. It has become a valued part of American literature. The novel became so popular that it was developed into a film, becoming a success in both America and Mexico. Alfonso Arau directs the film. After reading the novel … Read more

Like Water for Chocolate Book Report: Traditions

Does your family have any traditions? Do you eat certain foods for certain holidays? Traditional values and family are important in many cultures, but they seem to play an especially important role to Mexicans (Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia). One of the most important parts of their culture is food. Much of Mexicans daily routines and traditions … Read more

Les Miserables Themes

Les Miserables is a story, a very long story, which has been categorized as a classic. The story is about 1200 pages long. It is an epic saga, which covers about three decades in the early 1800’s of France. The film is about the fugitive, Jean Valjean, following his release from jail after doing nineteen … Read more

Society in “Les Miserables”

In Les Miserables, Victor Hugo portrays human nature in a neutral state. Humans are born with neither good nor bad instincts, but rather society affects our actions and thoughts. Hugo portrays the neutral state of mind through Jean Valjean and Cosette. The two extremes of good and evil are represented through Thnardier and the bishop. … Read more

Les Miserables: Short Review

In his novel, Les Miserables, author Victor Hugo makes a strong statement about society being the cause for evil in man. Les Miserables is based on a poor man, Jean Valjean, who was arrested for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his sister’s starving baby. Valjean is sentenced to 20 years for his crime, … Read more

Les Miserables: Review

Jean Valjean spent 19 years in prison for stealing a loaf of bread. He made several attempts of escape and never made it but finally released.  His imprisonment hinders his chances of refuge for the night as shown at Digne where he is repeatedly refused shelter until he arrives at Monseigneur Myriel’s Jean Valjean spent 19 … Read more

Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Book Report

Lady Chatterley’s Lover, written by DH. Lawrence was first published in 1928. The novel follows around the protagonist of the story, Lady Constance Chatterley. The story is about how this woman, who is trapped in a loveless and almost sterile marriage, finds emotional and physical love with the games keeper of her husbands estate. As … Read more

Sue and Arabella in Jude the Obscure

Thomas Hardy’s diary contains an entry that explains how he will show the world something it needs to be shown in a story about a poor, struggling young man who has to deal with ultimate failure (Howe 132). This brief description of a story has turned into Hardy’s phenomenal Jude the Obscure. Jude is emotionally … Read more

Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy: Review

In Hardy’s Jude the Obscure, Hardy shows his views on religion and commitment to the Church which were said to have declined in the latter years of his life. (Ingham, xxvii) Throughout the book Hardy displays his feeling that religion is something that people use in order to satisfy themselves by giving their lives’ meaning. … Read more

Joseph Andrews by ‎Henry Fielding: Review

In Fielding’s Joseph Andrews you see a variety of characters. They range from the shallow, vain and proud characters like Lady Booby and Mrs. Slipslop to the innocent, sincere, and virtuous like Joseph and Fanny. The presence of Lady Booby, and all of the people like her that are portrayed in the same selfish and … Read more

Ivanhoe: Book Report

Ivanhoe is set in approximately twelfth century England during the time of feudal Europe, the crusades, Richard the Lion Hearted, and Robin Hood. Chivalry is still a major force in England, as is Christianity. The story refers more exactly to a period towards the end of the reign of Richard I, when his return from … Read more

Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell

In the Pacific there is an island shaped like a big fish sunning itself in the sea. Around it, blue dolphins swim, otters play, and sea elephant and birds abound. A young Indian girl lives and waits for her people to return for her, from the land to the east. Karana with her long black … Read more

The Hunchback Of Notre Dame: The Evil in Notre Dame

In The Hunchback of Notre Dame, there are many interesting characters, However, I think Claude Frollo is a good one to talk about. In the book Claude is a priest who sees a beautiful girl and thinks unpure thoughts about her. Since he is a priest he feels he has to do something about these … Read more

Hunchback of Notre Dame – Theme

“Love is a universal language.” This popular quote from many movies and literary works describes the importance of love, and how there are no limits or barriers when dealing with love. Many people cannot even help whether or not they fall in love. There are many types of love and they need not be between … Read more