In the Sinclair Lewis novel Babbitt, the character of Babbitt is completely controlled by the power of conformity. Conformity is so powerful that even after Babbitt realizes the stifling nature of the society in which he lives he is powerless to change his fate as a member of conformist society. George F. Babbitt is a…
Toad. The word conjures up images of a grotesque, little amphibian and yet it is this little animal that Larkin decides to base his poem on. He describes two toads. One is the exterior influence that society has on an individual level, and the other is the interior or personal prompting to work. He takes…
I. Biographical Insights John Grisham was born on February 8 1995 in the town of Jonesboro, Arkansas. His father was an emigrant construction worker so the family moved a lot. In 1967 they came to Southhaven, a little town outside Memphis. John got an undergraduate degree in accounting at the Mississippi State University and after…
In the novel Deliverance, by James Dickey, the themes of man and his mind set are pondered upon many times. The theme “the passing of the torch” seemed to stand out in my mind more and more as the novel concluded. Throughout the novel, three of the characters seemed to rely on the fourth character…
Summary Introduction In this book analysis, about the book “The Outsiders” by S. E. Hinton I will discuss character and plot development, as well as the setting, the author’s style, and my opinions about the book. In this part of the analysis, I will give some information about the subjects of the book, and about…
Dr. Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States might be better titled A Proletarian’s History of the United States. In the first three chapters Zinn looks at not only the history of the conquerors, rulers, and leaders; but also the history of the enslaved, the oppressed, and the led. Like any American History…
The Parthenon was a temple to the patron goddess of Athens, Athena. Located atop Athens’s Acropolis, the Parthenon was an architectural masterpiece. It was constructed between 447 and 432 BCE by the Greek sculptor Phidias and the Greek architects Ictenus and Callicrates. It the largest temple in Greece. However, subtle elements used in the construction…
“The Minister’s Black Veil”, a literary masterpiece written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, was a divergent parable for the period it was written. Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote as an anti-transcendentalist in the transcendentalist period; as a result, his view’s in writings were mostly pessimistic considering his family’s sinfulness. Hawthorne’s grandfather was a judge in the Salem witch trials;…
Thesis: Poe uses symbolism to unfold this gripping tale of terror. I. The first symbol in the story is the name of the Prince himself, Prince Prospero. II. The ebony clock is another major symbol within this tale. III. The black room is the most prominent symbol in the story but is not clear until…
Conrad Richter presents a historic fictional work describing the colonial frontier in The Light in the Forest. True Son, born as John Butler, was captured by the Lenni Lenape Indians at the age of four. He was adopted by them and raised as the son of their chief, Cuyloga. He became a part of the…
The Island of Dr. Moreau is a story that questions the ability of men playing God. The balance of nature is put to the ultimate test as a man by the name of Charles Edward Prendick stumbles across an out-of-control experiment that fuses man with animal. At first glance, this tropical paradise seems idyllic. But…
There are many characters in The Jungle. These characters vary widely in their professions, social status, and economic status. The main character in the novel is a Lithuanian named Jurgis Rudkus. His wife is Ona Lukoszaite, also a Lithuanian. Their son is named Atanas. Mike Scully is a powerful political leader in Packingtown. Phil Connor…
“The House of the Seven Gables” is a romantic novel set in a grand and rustic, old house with seven gables in New England town. The story opens with its history, beginning in the 1690’s, when witch-hunting was rampant. Afterwards, it revolves around the course of one summer in the 1850’s. At his housewarming party,…
The Fall of the House of Usher is acclaimed as one of Edgar Allan Poe’s greatest works. Poe uses Symbolism and analogies in both characters and setting to tell this gothic tale of death and downfall. He often drew upon memory for the setting of his stories. He combines atmosphere and analogy to form the…
In the Epitaph, Thomas Gray shows his discontent toward the way that life and death are categorized on this planet. He speaks of earth as a place which holds people for the time being that they are going through this grand cycle of what is called life. When somebody only “rests his head upon the…
Jealousy and envy are among the greatest of sins and have been the downfall of many. Maupassant’s “The Necklace” is the story of a woman who is overcome with jealousy and envy. Mathilde Loisel feels she has been cheated by life from all of the wonderful things it has to offer. The reader learns how…
Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, is the tragic tale of Macbeth, a virtuous man, corrupted by power and greed. This tragedy can be classified by one of two theories. One theory suggests that the tragic hero, Macbeth, is led down an unescapable road of doom by an outside force; namely the three witches. The second…
The Concubine’s Children, by Denise Chong, is a true story about a Chinese family and how both physical and emotional distance can tear generations of families apart. We are presented with the lives of the children of three generations, starting with the oldest, the story of May-ying, a concubine, and her husband, fellow wives and…
THE CLIENT by John Grisham is an action, suspense novel about boy who learned to much from a Mafia lawyer. Mark is an eleven-year-old boy who is growing up in a trailer home with his mom Diane, and his nine-year-old brother Ricky. The incident all began when Ricky stumbled over a pack of cigarettes Mark…
Literature has the power to transport us to other worlds and introduce us to characters who stay with us long after we finish reading their stories. And in Peter S. Beagle’s novel, The Last Unicorn, we meet one such character in the form of Molly Grue. Molly is a woman who undergoes a profound transformation…