Literature Essays

The hope of the poor redeeming themselves diminishes with every passing day. Simply put, the book, Hard Work: Life in Low Pay Britain by Polly Toynbee has just disclosed to the society the true situation of the poor as worse, and the prospect of improving the status of the poor is just hopeless and unpromising.

John Keats’ poem “Ode to a Nightingale” and Thomas Hardy’s “The Darkling Thrush,” explain the concepts of nature. Keats and Hardy explore the synergy between animals, human beings, and plants. Although Keats and Hardy present nature in different perspectives, the theme influences their attitudes, emotions, and way of thinking.

Being morally right in upholding decrees, he becomes a virtuous man whose cruelty knows not a boundary. He subjects a relative to tormenting punishment due to defiance but later suffered a tragic loss of his son, wife, and mother. He is left more miserable because of curses he received from those he excruciated through painful tribulations.  

Overall, John Steinbeck uses biblical symbolism to deliver his message towards the readers since during the time that the novel was published religion is a common factor among Americans (Slashdoc.com); hence can easily be understood in the light of biblical symbolisms making an impact on the message of the novel piercing towards its readers. 

Kenzaburo has been accredited with putting Japanese literature in the limelight due to his various books that have won him awards internationally. This is attributed to the fact that individuals reading his books could relate to them. This is due to the fact that Oe put a lot of emphasis on social factors which formed the majority of his themes.

In this portfolio, I wholly focus on writing a blog. Every week I read the set readings, look over the questions the tutor has set under the ‘Review your reading’ tab and I extend this through reflection and further search and reading on my own. My main focus is on the three topics in PUBL9006 which interest me the most.

The Muslims view the Quran as the word of Allah. The book contains religious observances and specifications that are full of both figurative and literal suaveness. These adumbrations become a challenge when translating the Holy Quran from Arabic to English. This paper attempts to explain some equivalence challenges facing the process of translation giving evidence with instances of verses from the Quran.

Literature as a form of art is a source of debate, dialogue, and exchange of ideas that are reflected in these works. Works of literature have been used to share human experiences that paint or present the existing social realities. This makes literature more than art due to the great role it plays in society (Ogundokun, 2013).

According to Needham, the post-renaissance scientific revolution accredited to the West during the time of Galileo is imperialistic in attitude and does not advocate for a cosmopolitan approach. This statement forms the epicenter of criticism and has invoked various reactions by historians of science.

With rich imagery and the comic strips, both juxtapose the characters to investigate and discover the ideas on love and marriage that were much prominent in the lives of women. Beatrice and Benedick are turned into two biggest critics of love in “Much Ado About Nothing”, and this play also shows the way society bestows treatment towards the inferior sex and how the chauvinistic attitude of man.

Poetry in Chinese literature has often been used to describe thoughts and details that defined culture for the Chinese. Even so, it was vastly different from the poetry written by the Greeks and Romans, which were mostly histories about Gods and Goddesses or battles and voyages.Chinese poetry often talks about themes like the balance of life, yin and yang, the divinity that is found in animals, birds, and even inanimate objects.

The essay discusses the fable of the seven voyages in chronological order determining how each provokes the theme of quest. Studies have identified quest as a central theme in the Legend of Sinbad the Sailor. Mythologists conveyed this theme in a multidimensional aspect that includes, inter alia, recurrence, emphasis, the flow of events, coincidences as well as monotony.

Narratives differ from each other depending on the narrative mode used by the narrator or the writer. It should be noted that every culture values narrative since they are a very symbolic aspect of any culture. In some circumstances, narratives are known to contain the answers of the origin of some things or even people in a certain community (Morini, 2009).

These novels point out the major issue of identity that the post-colonial authors in Australia struggle with. Due to this issue of not identifying with the place they were related with or born in, they undertake introspection of their objectives and understanding of their native places.

The revolution began in 1789 after the convocation of Estates general and went through to 1799 when power was held by the consulate. This process was full of ups and downs as the citizens accepted and rebelled against some of the changes taking place.The effects of the revolution especially the revolutionary war are still felt in the present era.

The author acts as an omniscient narrator in this book and provides all the details and insights about the characters. An omniscient narrator is described as a narrator who knows about the entire story and even provides the conflict, thinking, and ideologies of each character.

The skill and imagination of the author are the things that determine the setting of adolescent fiction. Major themes are coined around the challenges that the youth face. Styles for writing these kinds of stories vary from the many literary styles to the speed and clarity of the free unobtrusive verse Appel Jr. (1991).

The Kama Sutra is relatively a textbook for lovers and courtesans. Through such an organized environment, with its well-arranged marriages, the existence of plenty dull as well as painful households where the copy of the Kama Sutra would appear in handy. Hinduism acknowledges that searching for pleasures and avoiding pain are essential to human psychology.

Divided into five acts, the play covers the historical period from 1415 to 1420 and concludes with Henry V’s demise in 1422 (Hunt 134). The plot centers on the young Henry V’s military conquest of France and his ambition to unite the French and English crowns. Responding to a provocative jest from the French Dauphin, Henry prepares his troops and sets off for an invasion of France.

Albeit of his mother’s warning, Peter decides to venture into McGregor’s garden.  Upon his arrival at the garden, he feeds on Mr. McGregor’s produce. Mr. McGregor spots the presence of the intruder and begins to chase Peter around the garden. In the course of this chase, Peter loses his shoes and clothes and becomes dishevelled.

However, whoever has it has control over many aspects of people's lives. Power is a major theme in Titus Andronicus. This is evident even from the beginning of the tragedy play by William Shakespeare. From the beginning of the play, it is clear that the characters in Rome understand the importance and advantages of were.

This is illustrated in Emily Bronte’s eighteenth-century classic Wuthering Heights (1847), as the power play between estates of Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange.  This essay shall argue that nature and culture are metaphors through which the inhabitants of Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange are described; the former as possessing unbridled wildness, while the latter is portrayed as passionless, educated, rich, and class-conscious.

Shelley acquired considerable knowledge regarding the works of her parents, which she admired and diligently studied. This was quite evident in the creation of her magnum opus, Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus. The absence of her mother caused Shelley to feel a palpable loss, which she attempted to recreate by means of her novel.

Victor, in his creation, loved what he was doing, but when he realized what he had fashioned, he abhorred it and even spend his life running away or after it so as to end what he had started. The novel introduces the reader to Victor traveling on a dog-pulled sled, he is rescued by Captain Walton, whose ship has stumbled upon impenetrable ice.

The tragedy Agamemnon by Aeschylus was written sometime in the 5th century and was first staged in 458 B.C. It formed part of the trilogy Oresteia and was entered by Aeschylus for competition in the City Dionysia festival in the month of Elaphebolion in the year 458 B.C. He won the first prize for the trilogy, which also featured Libation Bearers and The Furies.

Many researchers have attempted to come up with the definition of the word “text”. For instance, Eugene et al (2003) define “text” as an extract or complete piece of writing which can be used for both written and spoken language.  Cornbleet & Carter (2001) adds that text generally subscribes to a range of conventions and guidelines which determine the language and structure used in particular text types.  

She is not happy with her daughter at home and always crosses her shoulders with her. On the other hand, her son arrives from the city. She pretends to be sick only to go to the city. Once in the city, she mistreats her daughter-inn lawin her own house to the extent that she does not eat food prepared by her. That day her son Brian arrives from work.

Ecocriticism defined broadly as the study of the connection between the physical environment and literature is an emerging literary field, which started growing in earnest in the later 1980s and early 90s. The term ‘ecocriticism’ first emerged in the 1978 essay “Literature and Ecology: An Experiment in Ecocriticism," by William Rueckert's in which he used ecological standards as a model for thinking about the way literature functions.

During the occurrence of the war, the Greeks had strong connections to the gods and believed that their activities and actions were predestined by these gods. Their influence on nature and human beings' characteristics in the way they thought, acted, and believed was a significant part of the Greek culture.

The paper "Discourse Analysis in the Story Old Delhi Walking Tour, India " is a delightful example of a book report on literature. During the process of creating a narrative, the narrator creates a relationship with the world in a number of ways so that the reader is able to create a picture of the nature of the story.

Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” is a largely metaphoric novel about the journey which unveils the truth about civilization and discovers the true nature of humans. The main character Marlow who undertakes the journey in Congo discovers many things for himself and moreover, he discovers his new self.

The story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight follows the classic medieval pattern of a noble knight in pursuit of a mysterious spiritual quest as a means of winning back his honor and proving his commitment to an ideal. The plot seems simple enough. A Green Knight appears before King Arthur’s court with a challenge that any knight might strike at him.

The line between the author and the narrator - a thoughtful, guilt-ridden man - is blurred. He knew that Vietnam was an unethical war, but he fought anyway because he couldn't tell his family he wasn't going. Twenty years later, he is still writing about this mistake and all the horrible things he saw and did.

While They're At War is a true story of American families on the home front. Henderson shows how during the war the casualties are not restricted to the war zones but also to the people left behind. The loneliness of the women is no less than the devastating effect of bombs, the fear too can be as traumatic as it is for the military during combats.

Death is the common theme in Leo Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Illych and Edgar Allen Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher. However, both stories differ markedly in their treatment of death. The protagonists, Ivan Illych and Roderick Usher, face death in different ways, the message conveyed by the two tales – one of hope and the other of despair, is totally different.

Antonio, in the novel, is a young boy who on his journey towards maturity discovers the dreadful evils that exist in this world. At the beginning of the novel, Antonio Marez is seven years old living with his family in a small town? His three brothers are away at war. His mother Maria and father Gabriel are very different by nature.

Frost writes much to symbolize life and choices in which one will make. Frost uses a unique ability to see an ordinary, everyday activity to portray such a theme. Frost reaches his audience on a more personal level. It is only one's past, present and the attitude with which he or she looks upon the future that determines the shade of light in which the poem will be seen.

Although the rope swing was an important element of bringing Jesse and Leslie to Terabithia, complete with its connotations of a rite of passage and a literal leaving of the ground to land in another place, Jess finally came to realize that this activity was little more than a symbolic gesture into a place that existed mostly within his own mind.

The spell of the Cinderella story, in all its many variations, is only broken when the role of the subservient wife comes into conflict with the role of the caretaker of the children.  Cleofilas is willing to sacrifice herself, numbly accepting Juan’s unexplained beatings, as she silently witnesses her neighbors’ troubles.

The reason why I opted for “Everyman” is that I have developed a strong interest in the play because of the style of the play, language of the play, and because of its being a play that is considered enough reputable in history. I want to do some research on “Everyman”. I am interested in the theme of morality depicted in the play.

The story revolves around the life of two men close to the author – her father and her uncle. The book is a true to life story of two men’s lives and deaths, and of a daughter’s great love for both of them. Danticat narrates the story of starting a new life in a new country while anxious for the safety of those still in Haiti as the political situation worsens. 

The description of Egdon portrays the narrator’s point of view - a vast claustrophobically preventing the reader from attempting to provide changes. Edgon is, therefore, referred to as a static changeless place that encompasses time - time that narrates the only changes of the sun and seasons wherein humanity becomes history.

It is a story about poverty and violence, drug-dealers, and young mothers in the Latino ghettos of the Bronx. The author of this book and an award-winning investigative journalist spent a decade living with a mixed group of Latinos of Bronx and recorded their lives. The result is a riveting account of the lives and travails of this motley group.

A hero must constantly have definite traits such as bravery and nobility, but the qualities of heroism can differ to a great extent. Even if apparently, some heroic characters might appear to be very unlike, these dissimilarities are accounted for because of the variation between the cultures they lived in. Beowulf opens with a brief account of some of the great heroes of Norse history and legend.

Amanda has had a glorious past or at least that is the past her memory has recreated for her. She cannot get away from the past and face her dark and dreary present. It is this that makes her unable to understand her children, especially Toms's obsession with the future. In her, we find someone who Is obsessed with her own delusions almost.

Definitions by Belsey and Eagleton of the literary dramatic form known as a tragedy share some basic, common characteristics: the noble hero suffers and dies because of something inside, such as a character flaw, or because of conflicts from outside, such as unexpected opposition from a dark-hearted villain.

The literature of the late 1800s introduced some of the more fascinating monsters of the next century. These monsters, creatures such as Dracula from Bram Stoker’s novel of the same name written in 1897 and Mr. Hyde from Robert Louis Stephenson’s novella The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde published in 1886, were hideous not only because of their inhuman activities.

Elena died under unfortunate circumstances at a young age, with her two-year-old son in her arms, but her death leaves a sorrowful, tragic, and lasting impression in the minds of the reader. She is a gallant lady, who stood by her convictions even after owning the family responsibilities and by remaining true to her love. She died for a cause.

One has to be more aware of one’s “responses, reactions and needs” is the message of this chapter (Scumaci, 2007). According to Scumaci (2007), the next step is to become more aware of others to develop their relationship skills. The fifth chapter elaborates on the idea of becoming a skilled negotiator.

In "A Rose for Emily", the writer has told a story of a woman called Emily Grierson. Despite her isolation from social life, Miss Emily Grierson manages to create a strong interest in the minds of people living in Jefferson. Every move of Miss Emily Grierson is observed and discussed by people living in the town.