Study Like a Boss
Although The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne was written in the mid-1800s, its themes and ideas are still a part of society today. The 19th century was a time of change, just as this, the millennium, is a time of great change. Hawthornes ideas about science, beauty, and life still play a major part in our … Read more
The Grapes of Wrath is a novel by John Steinbeck that exposes the desperate conditions under which the migratory farm families of America during the 1930’s live under. The novel tells of one families migration west to California through the great economic depression of the 1930’s. The Joad family had to abandon their home and … Read more
The Non-Discriminatory Nature of Time in Andrew Marvells To His Coy Mistress Time passes. Its journey is oblivious to power, weakness, beauty, or mercy. The nature of time itself lies in its unrelenting progression through life, until we are removed from its favor and then wither and die. The purpose of most carpe diem poetry … Read more
In the past, critics have ad moralized and/or brutalized every writer they could get their pen on. This is seen from criticisms of Henry Adams to William Butler Yeats. These writers critique everything about the writer and his/her works. For instance many critics criticize Willa Cather’s novel, My Antonia. Their criticisms lie on the basis … Read more
Tom Williams in the play The Glass Menagerie writes about a time when his family struggles. Many people can relate their problems one way or another with Williams. Though the play had a very realistic feel to it, many people enjoy fairytale endings. The play is very well written, but I would change the ending. … Read more
We had watched the movie Joy Luck Club, and I really enjoy watching it. The Joy Luck club is a story that about four Chinese friends and their daughters, and it shows the story of the mother’s straggle in China and their acceptance in America, and the daughter’s straggles of finding themselves as Chinese-Americans. The … Read more
Addie Bundren conjures up the central darkness derived from her death and directly or indirectly causes actions in which each Bundren character takes advantage of Addie. With the character’s actions revolving around her death, William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying reveals the truth about the people who surround a person may take advantage of him … Read more
I would like to analyze the conflicts that Heathcliff faced throughout the novel Wuthering Heights. Heithcliffs character was very complex. He lived a troubled childhood that is never completely revealed to the reader. All we know is that he was abandoned at a young age and when Mr. Earnshaw discovered him, he was sickly looking. … Read more
In “Young Goodman Brown,” Hawthorne makes the reader believe that Goodman Brown has learned that truth about the world and how evil it really is. In the story the accounts of Goodman Brown let you believe that he has truly seen the evil in the world and knows what lurks behind everybody masks. He makes … Read more
During the 1920s, sometimes referred to as the Progressive Era, political and social changes surfaced in society in efforts to progressively improve the nation. However, the 1920’s can accurately be described as the decade of selfishness. Society was material oriented and, as a result, there was a decrease in religious practices. This is vividly displayed … Read more
Holden Caulfield is the main character in ‘The Catcher in the Rye’. Like most people, Holden’s mind wanders, and that’s what I found the most interesting about him. He’s sixteen years old, and he just got kicked out of another boarding school: Pencey Prep. He’s tall, and skinny and he’s not broad-shouldered. He’s got a … Read more
With our view of God, comprehending the actions and thinking of the Greek deities can sometimes be difficult. The Christian God does not take such an active role in the affairs of people’s lives, where, the Greeks regarded direct involvement by the gods as a uncontrollable part of life. Naturally, divine intervention was a major … Read more
The Grapes of Wrath is a novel by John Steinbeck that exposes the desperate conditions under which the migratory farm families of America during the 1930’s live under. The novel tells of one families migration west to California through the great economic depression of the 1930’s. The Joad family had to abandon their home and … Read more
Sophocles said that a man should never consider himself fortunate unless he can look back on his life and remember that life without pain. For Oedipus Rex, looking back is impossible to do without pain, a pain that stems from his prideful life. Oedipus is aware that he alone is responsible for his actions. He … Read more
Beowulf was written in the eighth century by an unknown author. The story is centered on Beowulf, the main character, who is able to use his super-human physical strength and courage to put his people before himself. He encounters hideous monsters but never fears the threat of death. Beowulf is the ultimate hero who risks … Read more
The very first thing that surprised me in Shakespeare was the fact that I came across an unfamiliar in Romeo and Juliet. This surprised me since I had read it so many times. The part that caught my eye was the fact that I never stopped to think about why Romeo kills Tybalt. It has … Read more
“… it is no delusion. There is an Unpardonable Sin! ” , a quote by Ethan Brand that is at the root of many stories by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Nathaniel Hawthornes gloomy, dark style of writing is an emphasis on his theme of evil at societies heart. Writing about what he knew Hawthorne described the puritan … Read more
In 1850 while writing The House of the Seven Gables, Hawthorne’s publisher introduced him to another writer who was in the midst of a novel. This was Herman Melville, the book Moby Dick. Hawthorne and Melville became good friends at once, for despite their dissimilar backgrounds, they had a great deal in common. Melville was … Read more
In the novel Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, we are introduced to Jane, the orphan protagonist of the story. When the novel first begins, she is an isolated, powerless ten- year old living with an aunt and her cousins whom do not like her. Jane feels alienated from the Reed family; therefore she spends much … Read more
Many writers are distinct in their work, some better than others. A couple of these writers include Franz Kafka, Barbara Kingsolver and Hendrick Ibsen. Their works express the elements that make literature interesting. Franz Kafka, a writer of the silence and one of dimension. But what makes Kafka better than other writers such as Barbara … Read more
Subsidies are payments, economic concessions, or privileges given by the government to favor businesses or consumers. In the 1930s, subsidies were designed to favor agriculture. John Steinbeck expressed his dislike of the farm subsidy system of the United States in his book, The Grapes of Wrath. In that book, the government gave money to farms … Read more
The novel Of Mice and Men was originally called Something That Happened. It was converted into a play by George Kaufman, which had 207 performances. This play received the New York Drama Critics Award. There are also two film versions of the novel. One was created in 1940 and the other, just recently, in 1992. … Read more
But (Hester) is not the protagonist; the chief actor, and the tragedy of The Scarlet Letter is not her tragedy, but Dimmesdales. He it was whom the sorrows of death encompassed….. His public confession is one of the noblest climaxes of tragic literature. This statement by Randall Stewart does not contain the same ideas that … Read more
In Edgar Allen Poes story The Masque of the Red Death, he uses symbolism of the rooms, time, and the red death to portray his theme that no one can escape death. The masque was held in Prince Prosperos imperial suite that consisted of seven different and symbolic rooms. The fact that there where seven … Read more
“A Rose for Emily” is one of William Faulkners famous stories. The antagonist of it is Miss Emily Grierson, which was forced by her dominating and repressive father to grow up alone. She was raised to adhere to a certain standards. So, she stocked with the old souths rules. Miss Emily was raised with the … Read more
Voltaire’s Candide is a novel that contains conceptual ideas and at the same time is also exaggerated. Voltaire offers sad themes disguised by jokes and sarcasm, and the story itself presents a distinctive outlook on life. The crucial contrast in the story deals with irrational ideas as taught to Candide about being optimistic, versus reality … Read more
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is considered a novel that embodies America in the 1920s. In it, the narrator, Nick Carroway, helps his neighbor Jay Gatsby reunite with Daisy Buchanan, with whom he has been in love with since 5 years before, during World War I. The affair between the two fails, however, and … Read more
The Three witches in the tragedy Macbeth are introduced right at the beginning of the play. They tell Macbeth three prophesies, he will be Thane of Cawdor, Thane of Glams and King. These prophesies introduce him to ideas of greatness. Macbeth will eventually follow through on killing king Duncan. This brings into the play, idea … Read more
Early one morning, Gregor woke to discover he had transformed into a human-size bug. However, it was not him turning from a young man into a bug in the matter of one night that worried Gregor, but the fact that he was going to be late for work! After reading the first several pages, one … Read more
The novel The Catcher In The Rye, by J. D. Salinger, contains many complex symbols, many of the symbols in the book are interconnected. A symbol is an object represents an idea that is important to the novel. I believe the most important symbol in this novel is Holden’s idea of being the “catcher in … Read more
This novel is shortonly being about 180 pagesbut looks may deceive you, or in other words dont judge a book buy its cover or its thickness. A Clockwork Orange is actually 360 pages because you have to read between the lines. You may think that the storys theme is that the future will be filled … Read more
The characters in Gullivers Travels and Robinson Crusoe are portrayed as resembling trained soldiers, being capable of clear thought during tense and troubled times. This quality possessed within Robinson Crusoe and Gulliver is a result of the author’s background and knowledge. Daniel Defoe was knowledgeable and proficient in seamanship, he understood the workings of a … Read more
Edgar Allen Poe describes in great detail, his poem “The Raven”, in The Philosophy of Composition. Never before had I been able to read a poet describe in his own philosophy of making a poem. Poe goes in deep context and meaning to how he derives the story line to his poem. He explains what … Read more
To live in the today’s world is to be surrounded by the products of science. For it is science that gave our society color television, the bottle of aspirin, and the polyester shirt. Thus, science has greatly enhanced our society; yet, our society are still afraid of the effect of science. This fear of science … Read more
The thesis of this paper is to prove that the title of Susan Glaspell’s play “Trifles” represents how men considered women’s duties and their opinions to be of little importance compared to a man’s role in society. The dictionary defines the word trifle as something of little importance or value, or to deal with something … Read more
All famous American authors have written novels using a variety of characters, plots, and settings to illustrate important themes. Throughout literary history many of the same themes have been stressed in different novels. In J. D. Salingers The Catcher in the Rye and Mark Twains The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, each author writes about the … Read more
When Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte, first appeared in 1847, it was thought to be obscene and crude (Chase 19). To the common person, it was shocking and offensive, and it did not gain popularity until long after it was first published. When the piece of literature became widely read and discussed, however, Bronte was … Read more
In the novel I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou goes from a little southern black girl who wishes to be a a long and blonde haired, light-blue eyed, white girl, to a very mature young adult that is proud of her race. Throughout s (Mayas) life she goes through many difficulties … Read more
In a story, we have two circumstances: The first is what happened in the story, and the second, is why did this event occur. The plot helps define the story with a series of events that are arranged in a certain order. The main character, usually the protagonist, is also very important to the story. … Read more
F. Scott Fitzgeralds novel The Great Gatsby is about a man named Gatsby and his struggle to attain the American Dream in 1920s Long Island. He fights to get his dream woman and to do so, he must first become rich. Unfortunately, he doesnt really go about it the right way; he takes part in … Read more
The human psyche is a mysterious and unknown force that human beings have attempted to understand for centuries. It is understood that as human being we possess this psyche, however the nature of this psyche is not known and has thus been examined and hypothesized upon by many great minds. Literature in particular seeks the … Read more
Through the character Charley, Arthur Miller illustrates how the American Dream may be achieved through hard work. To Charley, the American Dream is having a comfortable life and putting his son Bernard through college. Charely worked consistently throughout his life, never trying to shoot for too high hopes. Because of this, Charley later in life, … Read more
Old Major calls a meeting in the barn in which he speaks of the rebellion and animalism. When the writer put the meeting in the barn, he put all the characters in one place to tell you about all of them at the same time and he gave a place where he could give the … Read more
In a perfect world, hatred would be without justice; love would be totally innocent. However, utopias like that are nonexistent; thus, one can easily look around, like Auden, and exclaim, “No hatred is totally without justification, no love is totally innocent. ” In The Merchant of Venice, there is an imperfect world, as well as … Read more
In Puritan Massachusetts the key word was suspicion. In order to be accepted, by the community, you had to be a member of the “elect,” destined for a spot in the eternity of heaven. In order to be member of this elite group of “selected” individuals you had to be free of sin and evil. … Read more
The tragic fall of Oedipus in Sophocles play “Oedipus Rex” is both self-inflicted and result of events drawn from his own destiny. First off early on in Oedipus’ life his first deadly mistake towards succeeding his self-inflicted downfall was the murder of his father the former king. In a blind rage without any motive, he … Read more
First of all, I liked the way that The Glass Menagerie was not specifically dated. What I mean by this, is even though the play was written in the forties, today we (people in general), can still relate to some of the issues in it. Like take for example the disability issue. Laura was so … Read more
Cryogenics is an entire field of physical science. It is the study of matter at temperatures much colder than those that occur naturally on Earth. Cryogenic temperatures are considerably lower than those encountered in ordinary physical processes. There is another field of interest associated with very cold temperature-cryonics. Cryonics is the practice of freezing of … Read more
Willy Loman is a man on a mission. His purpose in life is to achieve a false sense of the “American Dream,” but is this what Willy Loman really wants? In Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller analyzes the American Dream by portraying to us a few days in the life of a washed up … Read more
The main character in the book The Epic of Gilgamesh, is Gilgamesh himself. In the beginning of the book one realizes that Gilgamesh is an arrogant person. Gilgamesh is full of himself and abuses his rights as king. He has sexual intercourse with the virgins of his town and acts as though he is a … Read more
