Study Like a Boss
Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, written in approximately 1385, is a collection of twenty-four stories ostensibly told by various people who are going on a religious pilgrimage to Canterbury Cathedral from London, England. Prior to the actual tales, however, Chaucer offers the reader a glimpse of fourteenth century life by way of what he refers to … Read more
In the nineteenth century, Ireland was marked by extensive personal suffering. Civilians, predominantly the catholic lower and middle-classes, were having a hard time finding jobs, paying rent, feeding their children, as well as putting up with overpopulation which contributed to the overall growing problem of poverty. During this time of suffering, many began to question … Read more
In the play, Death of a Salesman, the main character, Willy Loman’s tragedy is due to both his own flawed character and society’s flaws. Advancements in science throughout this century have led to tremendous advancements in industry. In this case however, advancements in industry have not always led to advancements in living conditions. For some, … Read more
The are only so many ways an author may sum up the course of a human life within just a few pages. Eudora Welty has the awesome talent of being able to do just this. In her stories “Where Is the Voice Coming From”, “A Visit of Charity” and “A Worn Path”, Welty uses the … Read more
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams shows the struggle of two people to fit into society, Tom and Laura, and how society wouldnt accept them. They were the dreamers that were unjustly kept out and you may even go as far as to say persecuted into staying out and aloof like the other dreamers which … Read more
Ethan Frome, the main character in the book entitled Ethan Frome, by Edith Wharton, has many complex problems going on at the same time. His family has died and he has a wife that is continually sick, and the only form of happiness he has is from his wife’s cousin Mattie. This, however, at times … Read more
When comparing and contrasting the character’s Oedipus and Othello by means of the different theatrical practices, one must take in account that there have been many interpretations, and productions of each of their respected plays. The differing presentations of each may lead someone to think differently about the play than another would. In comparing and … Read more
For a host of persuasive but commonly disregarded reasons, the Earl of Oxford has quietly become by far the most compelling man to be found behind the mask of Shake-speare. As Orson Welles put it in 1954, I think Oxford wrote Shakespeare. If you don’t agree, there are some awful funny coincidences incidences to explain … Read more
English 283 discusses many themes of British Literature, covering novels from ancient to modern times. These themes are evident in the personality of the main character, usually the hero, of each novel. These themes include loss of a close friendship and great displays of violence. However, one prominent theme in most of the novels is … Read more
Jealousy causes many of the characters in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar to commit dangerous and foolish acts. Cassius’ jealousy drives him to kill Caesar. All the conspirators, except the noble Brutus, kill Caesar because they feel threatened by his power. Brutus is the only conspirator who murders Caesar for more honorable reasons. Jealousy is … Read more
There are major differences between the film we saw in class and The Black Cat by Edgar Allen Poe. The film had added effects to get the viewer’s attention. The film also let out important parts that were in the short story. The short story gave the reader a better background for character analysis. Although … Read more
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne was written in 1849. This novel won him much fame and a good reputation as a writer. In writing The Scarlet Letter, Hawethorne was creating a form of fiction he called the psychological romance. A psychological romance is a story that contains all of the conventional trappings of a … Read more
Joseph Heller who is perhaps one of the most famous writers of the 20th century writes on some emotional issues such as war. He does not deal with these issues in the normal fashion instead he criticizes them and the institutions that help carry these things out. Heller in fact goes beyond criticizing he satirizes. … Read more
Pride and Prejudice, the novel by Jane Austen, and Sense and Sensibility, the movie based on the novel by Austen, share many striking similarities. These similarities lie in the characters, plots and subplots between these characters, the settings, and the overall style and themes used in creating the two works. Jane Austen uses extremely similar … Read more
“Symbols are nothing but the natural speech of dramathe purest language of plays. ” Once, quoted as having said this, Tennessee Williams has certainly used symbolism and colour extremely effectively in his play, A Streetcar Named Desire’. A moving story about fading Southern belle Blanche DuBois and her lapse into insanity, A Streetcar Named Desire’ … Read more
Pablo Picasso once said there are two kinds of women; there are goddesses and doormats. This quote perfectly reflects the outlook of Renaissance women. Shakespeare fully illustrates this in his novel, Taming of The Shrew. By portraying the darker side of the Renaissance life of Elizabethan women, the concept of marriage as a business agreement, … Read more
The Joy Luck Club is a story about four Chinese friends and their daughters. It tells the story of the mothers struggles in China and their acceptance in America, and the daughters struggles of finding themselves as Chinese-Americans. The movie starts off with a story about a swan feather, and how it was brought over … Read more
“The Chrysalids” by John Wyndham is an entertaining yet plausible story. It compels the reader to think about human nature and our attitude to the world around us that we often take for granted. The setting of “The Chrysalids” is several hundred years after a nuclear war. What is left of civilization is a few … Read more
Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front, a novel set in World War I, centers around the changes wrought by the war on one young German soldier. During his time in the war, Remarque’s protagonist, Paul Baumer, changes from a rather innocent Romantic to a hardened and somewhat caustic veteran. More importantly, during … Read more
During the period of Milton’s Paradise Lost as well as myriad of poets construction of an epoque submerged in metaphysical literature, a number of significant events both socio-political, entwined with a systematic religious metamorphism of the sixteenth and seventeenth century led to a time of unrest and discovery. The creators and author’s of work of … Read more
Well anywise Willy Loman was played by Dustin Hoffman and well he did a great job portraying his charter. And he did very well. The move well little slow to the start but after it introduced all the charts and the things starting falling in place then that is when everything came clear. But I … Read more
Defined by a book of current literary terms, a climax is “the arrangement of a series of ideas or expressions in ascending order of importance or emphasis; the last term of the arrangement; a culmination. ” Written by F. Scott Fitzgerald during the roaring 20’s, The Great Gatsby provides a look into the upper class … Read more
In “The Yellow Wallpaper”, by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the dominant/submissive relationship between an oppressive husband and his submissive wife pushes her from depression into insanity. Flawed human nature seems to play a great role in her breakdown. Her husband, a noted physician, is unwilling to admit that there might really be something wrong with his … Read more
Gregor Samsa awakes one morning to find that he has been inexplicably transformed into a giant insect. He has also slept late. His parents and his sister Grete try to rouse him so he can make it to his dreary job as a traveling salesman. The family depends on him for its livelihood. Gregor, however, … Read more
In John Milton’s Paradise Lost, he tells of Satan’s banishment from Heaven. He and his brigade have plotted war against God and are now doomed to billow in the fiery pits of hell. Satan is a complex character with many meaningful qualities. The relationship between Satan’s qualities and Hell’s atmosphere tell the reader more about … Read more
In this paper I’m going to focus on the themes, and also do an analysis of the main characters in the book. I’m going to focus on the theme of the concept of illusion and reality and the nature of the characters and their impact and contribution to the play. The main theme in Death … Read more
The plot of “Much Ado About Nothing” is an elaborate network of schemes and tricks. This statement is confirmed throughout “Much Ado About Nothing”. The play contains many examples of tricks and schemes that are used to manipulate the thoughts and feelings of characters. The major examples of such manipulation include- Don Pedro, Claudio and … Read more
This novel opens on the Shelby plantation somewhere in Kentucky before the Civil War. The Shelby’s own numerous slaves all of whom they treat as though they are family. Unfortunately, at the opening of the book it is understood that Mr. Shelby has gotten into some financial difficulties, and the only way out of debt … Read more
Foreshadowing is used in many of Charles Dickens’ novels. It can bring about a sense of wonder and imagination of what might occur later in the novel. The conceopt of foreshadowing means to present a warning sign, or hint beforehand. Dickens is able to use this concept in three examples. The threatening footsteps in the … Read more
John Stubbs’ essay is an examination of the defense which he believes Henry and Catherine use to protect themselves from the discovery of their insignificance and “powerlessness… in a world indifferent to their well being… ” He asserts that “role-playing” by the two main characters, and several others in the book, is a way to … Read more
The narrator approaches the House of Usher on a “dull, dark, and soundless day. ” This house–the estate of his boyhood friend, Roderick Usher–is very gloomy and mysterious. The narrator writes that the house seems to have collected an evil and diseased atmosphere from the decaying trees and murky ponds around it. He notes, however, … Read more
The attempt to capture the American dream is a theme in many novels, and that is no exception when it comes to The Great Gatsby and Ethan Frome. Jay Gatsby, the central figure in The Great Gatsby, had the American dream that he could acquire happiness through wealth and power. Ethan Frome, the main character … Read more
Archetypes are, by definition, previous images, characters, or patterns that recur throughout literature and though consistently enough to be considered a universal concept or situation. Archetypes also can be described as complexes of experiences that come upon us like fate, and their effects are felt in our most personal life. A Rose for Emily by … Read more
“Boys will be boys” is a clich often used when males exemplify the traits of wild, abandoned exploration, or use poor judgment in situations due to a desire to fulfill self. These traits, however, are seen as great downfalls and serious cause for concern should females display the same characteristics. Willa Cather beautifully portrays characters … Read more
Kate’s soliloquy brings about a joyous conclusion to The Taming of the Shrew. The audience leaves the theatre with a pleasant feeling, glad that such a shrew could be tamed so well. Kate herself realised the error of her ways, making the men feel confident while making the women feel safe. Moreover, the audience found … Read more
Fitzgerald establishes Nick Carraway as an impartial but not passive narrator. He does reserve judgment on others, yet as he states, he is not entirely forgiving. From the opening paragraphs, there is already a tension. For the narrator, Gatsby represents all that is contemptible, but Gatsby is the one person exempt from this scorn. The … Read more
Evil and charm are considered by many people to be very different things. It is not often that it is thought that evil and charm coexist together. Evil is defined to be; morally bad, or wicked, while charms definition is; a trait that fascinates, allures or delights. According to British author Brian Masters evil is … Read more
In life change is inevitable, in novels it is a way of life. All of the characters in. , Ethan Frome change in one way or another, From Ethan Falling in love with Mattie, to him starting to shave every morning. These changes from the minor ones to the major ones all play a large … Read more
At the close of Crime and Punishment, Raskolinkov is convicted of Murder and sentenced to seven years in Siberian prison. Yet even before the character was conceived, Fyodor Dostoevsky had already convicted Raskolinkov in his mind (Frank, Dostoevsky 101). Crime and Punishment is the final chapter in Dostoevsky’s journey toward understanding the forces that drive … Read more
When selecting a good piece of literature one must attempt to appeal to a wide variety of tastes. William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night is often used to introduce students to literacy style that carries back as far as the seventeenth century. There is one main plot that consists of a love triangle between Orsino, Olivia and … Read more
In today’s rough and tough world, there seems to be no room for failure. The pressure to succeed in life sometimes seems unreasonable. Others often set expectations for people too high. This forces that person to develop ways to take the stress and tension out of their lives in their own individual ways. In the … Read more
In the last forty years there have been some key people and events that have shaped history and in turn have influenced the works of some of literatures most prolific writers. During this time period some of the most powerful speeches, poems, and literary protests were written. These works of literature were sometimes written out … Read more
In The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe, the dark side of human nature is illustrated through the character of Montresor and his victim, Fortunato. Montresor is a manipulative and vengeful person whom is obsessed with the downfall of Fortunato. Through the acts, words, and the thoughts of Montresor, one is able to see … Read more
With all of the hunting trips that Ike experienced through his many trips, taught him many different lessons about living and many life lessons in which he experienced. On some of these trips he learned courage, self-reliance and conquering his own fear and many more lessons. In William Faulkner descriptive short stories the author use … Read more
This Side of Paradise chronicles the life of Amory Blaine from his childhood up through his early twenties. Born the son of a wealthy and sophisticated woman, Beatrice, Amory travels the country with his mother until he attends the fictitious St. Regis prep school in New England. He is handsome, quite intelligent though lazy in … Read more
Aside from all of the physical changes that Gregor encountered, his personality also took some major turns. Before this unfortunate transformation occurred, Gregor did not have the best relations with his family. Even though he was pretty much generating all of their income, he didn’t have much of a closeness with them, except for his … Read more
In his short story “The Fall of the House of Usher”, Edgar Allen Poe presents his reader with an intricately suspenseful plot filled with a foreboding sense of destruction. Poe uses several literary devices, among the most prevalent, however are his morbid imagery and eerie parallelism. Hidden in the malady of the main character are … Read more
Of Mice and Men (1937), written in the same genre as The Grapes of Wrath, that of a story about migrant farm workers and their lives as a reflection on society, was the book that thrust Steinbeck into the limelight as a national celebrity. He won many awards and honors including being picked as one … Read more
The purpose of the Russian Revolution was to fix problems from Czar Nicholas II. The purpose of the Animal Farm Revolution was to make life better for all the animals. However, both revolutions made life worse afterwards. All of the characters in Animal Farm have counterparts in real life. This book was based on the … Read more
“Jane Eyre” is set during the Victorian period, at a time where a womens role in society was restrictive and repressive and class differences distinct. A job as a governess was one of the only few respectable positions available to the educated but impoverished single women. Not only is “Jane Eyre” a novel about one … Read more