Free essays on books are academic papers that analyze various aspects of literature such as the plot, characters, themes, motifs, symbols, and literary devices used by authors to convey their messages. These essays can be found online and cover a wide range of literary genres including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, drama, and biographies. They offer insights into the literary techniques employed by authors, the cultural and historical contexts that inform their work, and the relevance of these texts to contemporary audiences. Students, researchers, and avid readers can use these essays as study materials, examples for their own writing, or sources of inspiration for their literary analysis.
Innocence and the Loss of Innocence in Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
Catcher in the Rye deals with several different themes, including innocence and the loss of innocence. Holden relates youth to innocence and believes that adults are responsible for helping children maintain it. I feel that children lose their “innocence" once they start to grow older..That can be at a different time for everyone Separate aspects of your life can affect when you need to grow up. For example, a boy who grows up without a father might become the man…...
Catcher In The RyeHealthHealth CareMedicine
Holden’s Trust vs Mine
Catcher in the Rye, by JD. Salinger is a novel about a teenager named L-lolden. The story starts off with him in a mental hospital, discussing with a therapist how he is unable to trust anyonei On the other hand, he seems to have a connection with his old History teacher, Mr. Spencer. Still, he does not have much trust in him. As Mr. Spencer lectures Holden, Holden agrees with him aloud but silently disagrees. At first, he tells the…...
AdolescenceCatcher In The RyeFictionLiterature
The Main Motives of the Novel Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The novel “Catcher in the Rye” by J. D. Salinger is a true masterpiece of the 19th century, which is still relevant nowadays. Motifs play a very important role in the reader’s un- understanding of any film, poem and even book. Moreover, every text uses this literary device, A motif can be hidden behind anything: an idea, a concept, a color, or even a character. Motips usually have a symbolic meaning and carry certain mood. Their main function is to…...
Catcher In The RyeEthicsLonelinessPsychology
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Holden’s Misconception of Catcher in the Rye Lyrics
Holden heard a young boy utter the words “If a body catch a body comin thro the rye” With those words he imagined that he was catching children, before they run off of a cliff. That was incorrect, the poem's original lyrics said “If a body meet a body comin thro the rye”. The poem was actually about two lovers meeting in a field of rye, Holden’s misconception of these lyrics seemed to best represent the theme of being stuck…...
Catcher In The RyeChildPsychologyThought
Context in The Catcher and Pleasantville
The impact of context on the novel "The catcher in the Rye" by JD. Salinger and film “Pleasantville by Gary Ross is very significant and influences the ideas presented in the texts. Though from different eras, human nature’s tendency to lie and deceive is present in both texts. As well as this, the disconnection from society emotionally and our desire for freedom and independence is explored by both composers. The conservative values and ideals of the 1950s are explored through…...
Catcher In The RyeDeceptionPsychology
Moron Use in The Catcher in the Rye
The motif of a “moron“ is a noun used often by Holden in dialogue. He constantly reminds the audience that he is physically weak which makes it easier to see how he uses words as a form of power. JD. Salinger emphasizes the concept of Morons through Holden’s monotonous defense mechanism. In chapter 6 when Holden is frustrated with Stradlater he yells “You're a dirty stupid sonuvabitch of a moron”. While they are fighting, Stradlater has an upper hand in…...
Catcher In The RyePsychologySocial Psychology
Symbolisms in The Catcher in the Rye, a Novel by J. D. Salinger
The symbolism used throughout ‘The Catcher in the Rye’, is arguably one of the most indispensable techniques used by Salinger in order to seize and retain the reader’s infallible attention. The ample selection of symbols that are incorporated and ‘characterized by a shimmering surface of suggested meanings without a denotative core‘ throughout this novel- about a troubled, adolescent male who is at the crucial stage between childhood and adulthood- serve to highlight the struggle in this arduous transition that the…...
Catcher In The RyeChildCultureLiterature
An Overview of Dee Brown’s Book Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee
Dee Brown's book, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. This non»fiction story takes place in the West of America in the late lBOD's, from the point of View of an American Indian. This story explains in a straightforward way that the white men of our own country were murderers, It's about over the course of thirty years what happens to the culture of native American Indians and what causes it to fade. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee is from…...
Bury My Heart At Wounded KneeCultureViolence
Destruction of American Indians in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
Dee Brown s Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee is a documented account of the destruction of the American Indian in the late 18005 ending at the Battle of Wounded Knee The author asks us to confront our past, which may make us uncomfortable But there are two sides to every story, and Brown shows us the side that we rarely see. By forcing us to think about these issues, Dee Brown accomplished the goal he set out to achieve…...
Bury My Heart At Wounded KneeCultureMilitary
Powder River Invasion in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
Chapter Five is mainly about the Powder River Invasion. The Powder River Invasion took place on July 1 to October 4, 1865. It stretched across the Powder River Country, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, and Nebraska. The Cheyenne‘s found out about the United States soldiers building a fort in the Powder River Country, They try to warn some Arapaho‘s of the soldiers coming, but they did not believe them leaving their village destroyed. The Sioux chased these hungry and cold soldiers…...
Bury My Heart At Wounded KneeImperialism
Chapter Eleven of the Book Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown
Chapter Eleven is about the war to save Buffalo. The chapter begins with a quote by Satanta the Chief of the Kiowas, He said, “I have heard that you intended to settle us on a reservation near the mountains. I don‘t want to settle I love to roam over the prairies. There I feel free and happy, but when we settle down we grow pale and die. A long time ago this land belonged to our fathers; but when I…...
Bury My Heart At Wounded KneeMilitaryTexas
Black Like Me by Howard Griffin
The title of the book I chose to read was Black Like Me. The author of this book is Howard Griffin. The main character of the book is John Howard Griffin, The book takes place in 1950 and 1960. It is about a iounalist who has picked the topic of racism for his next article. He dies his skin the color black to see how life is from a negroes perspective. John becomes horrified seeing all the pain and struggles…...
Black Like MeFictionRacism
Black Privilege Inequality
In life, we see many things which are not fair and when people do it more often it becomes a common thing and then it's considered to be fair. “I swear to the Lord, I still can’t see why democracy means everybody but me.” This was said by Langston Hughes at the 1920s and at this time many Black poets, musicians, and writers were being recognized by their talents but yet they could not be able to go into best…...
Black Like MeMalcolm XMoneyPolitics
Black Like Me Confronting Southern Racism
The novel Black Like Me is a fantastic book that tells how racism was in the South; and how a young man, named John Howard Griffin, had the bravery to change who he was to become a negro and experience how Negros live the South. John Howard Griffin, the author and main character of Black Like Me; is a middle-aged white man living in Mansfield, Texas in 1959. He was journalist and wanted to write about the racism between whites…...
Black Like MeCultureOppressionRacism
Challenges of a Black Man in Racist South in Black Like Me
John Howard Griffin is the author and main character of the Anisfield-Wolf Award win- ning book, Black Like Me. In the autobiography of his experience, Griffin, a middle-aged white man, details the deliberate transition and his challenges as a black man during a time of racial in- justice in the South. Obviously expecting to find bigotry, persecution, and destitution, Griffin is further shocked by the actual depth of racism upon experiencing the abysmal conditions and devastated communities of the black…...
Black Like MeOppressionPoliticsRacism
Experiencing Prejudice In Black Like Me
Libba Bray once said, “And that is how change happens. One gesture. One person. One moment.” In the novel Black Like Me, set in the deep south in 1959, John Howard Griffin shares his true accounts of extreme prejudice, severe segregation, and small acts of kindness through the eyes of a black man who was once white. John Griffin, a white racial equality journalist in Texas, decided to darken his pigment and record his experiences as a Negro in the…...
Black Like MeCultureRacism
The Issue of Racism in the Books Black Like Me and The New Jim Crow
Black Like Me and The Newjim Crow are two incredible but deeply disturbing books about the culture that I am from. America’s history in dealing with race is very poor, filled with slavery and discrimination of many forms. These books explore that history and the present state of the country without holding back. Black Like Me is the story of a reporter in late 1959 who decides to change the color of his skin to see if people treat him…...
Black Like MeCivil Rights MovementRacismSocial Inequality
Griffin’s Personality Traits in Black Like Me
Certain experiences can bring about a significant impact to an individual's life this was especially true for John Howard Griffin. As 1 reflects on Griffin's earlier life before Black Like Me was published, there had definitely been some painful and learning experiences. When he was called to war against Japan, he spent time and lived with African Americans. There, he got to understand the difficulties they had endured within racism, and he came to feel guilty about his own racist…...
Black Like MeCivil Rights MovementPoliticsRacism
A Critique of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin by William Gilmore Simms
William Gilmore Simms did a review of Uncle Tom’s Cabin in the Southern Literary Messenger of October 1852 in which he made three main attacks on Stowe’s novel. One, that the novel contained many literary faultst First he denoted that she used her great skill on an unworthy topic, then, he pointed out the fact that the stories of Uncle Tom and the Harris family are completely unrelated and the characters never meet or interact at all. Also, he believed…...
Human RightsSlaveryUncle Tom'S Cabin
Faith and Christianity in Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
The epitome of the 19'” century; Uncle Tom‘s Cabin illuminated the inhumanity of slavery to the American public, leading it to eventually become the bestselling novel of that century. Stowe’s abolitionist ideals expressed through the novel stirred and boiled up emotions for people of the North, compelling them to support to the abolitionist cause. in fact, the novel brought such controversy and tension between the North and South, it eventually was poised as one of the sparks that ignited the…...
LoveReligionSlaveryUncle Tom'S Cabin
Strength and Faith of Uncle Tom in Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Advocates of all kinds have popped up throughout history, completely embodying the characteristic that they’re trying to represent. Advocates and representatives of this kind have had their roots in foundations like religion, revolution, political parties, and a myriad of others. In Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Uncle Tom remains faithful and reverent throughout the hardships of being separated from his wife and children, suffering the death of a loved one, and having to live under Simon Legreet. As the…...
ChristianityReligionTheologyUncle Tom'S Cabin
Symbolic Right to Choose in Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
In history, America has traditionally been the country created of a mixture of different nationalities and fatherlands. In the early formation of the country, this sense of patria was distinctly different for most Americans, whose ancestors had understood that their fatherland was an inherited tradition. For the new Americans, they were given the freedom to choose their own homeland and individually decide whether or not they were American or the nationality that belonged to their parents. The idea of Patria…...
ChristianityCultureReligionUncle Tom'S Cabin
White Characters in Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Stowe focuses on developing genteel white characters in order to convey the actual types of people involved with slavery prior to the Civil War in America, Marie, Miss Ophelia, St.Clare and Shelby are examples of the different attitudes people held towards slavery. The characterizations advance the theme of good Christianity vs. bad Christianity because all of the characters are considered examples of bad Christianity; this is following the belief that slavery and Christianity are incompatible proper spheres of action for…...
CultureEthicsSlaveryUncle Tom'S Cabin
The Two Books We Chose Were “The Notebook” and “A Walk to Remember”
This was my first book group. and I think it was a great experience for me I enjoyed every minute of this assignment. When Dr. McNeal was givtng out numbers for our class to decide what group we were going to be in l was hoping that I would like my group and I did I benefited from having a book group. In many different ways, I made new friends and I learned to like to read. Before I have…...
A Walk To RememberCultureLoveThe Notebook
The Narrator’s Loss of Identity in A Separate Peace, a Novel by John Knowles
In the beginning of A Separate Peace the narrator Gene is introduced as an academic, rule-following boy, however, as the novel continues Gene starts to lose his identity and portrays acts of violence. Gene describes his experience at devon as his own war, and much of this is caused by the fact that other classmates, like Phineas, influence him more than he would like. Also, his jealousy towards others, even his best friend, caused problems for Gene resulting in violent…...
A Separate PeaceAngerPsychologyViolence
The Character of Phineas in A Separate Peace by John Knowles
A Separate Peace by John Knowles follows the temporarily intertwined lives of several young men in boarding school during World War 11 over a linear plot line. An adolescent called Phineas exerts a physical ability unparalleled by his fellow student body and a “larger than life” personality and persona. The events in the novel and the short-lived life of (arguably the main character) Phineas are narrated by his (Phineas’) best friend and roommate Gene Forrester, similar to the way Arthur…...
A Separate PeaceAdolescenceCultureSense
Grief in A Separate Peace
The five stages of loss and grief, created by Elisabeth Kiibler-Ross, are part of a theory that describes how humans deal with death and dying. The protagonists in the novel A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, were affected by tragedies, Kiibler—Ross’s theory on grief is shown throughout the novel and how each person copes with this obstacle in different ways; some positively and some negatively. Dr. Elisabeth Kiibler-Ross is a well-known psychiatrist and professor of the University of Chicago She…...
A Separate PeaceAngerGriefPsychology
A Separate Peace by John Knowles: Gene’s War Against Finny
In the novel A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, an adolescent named Gene faces internal conflicts in his life while World War Two is going on. He has a friend named Phineas whom Gene purposefully broke his legs. Throughout the book, Gene describes the events that occurred during their friendship until Phineas dies the constant ‘war’ Gene is in against himself and Phineas connects very well to the title of the novel, “A Separate Peace” in which by the end…...
A Separate PeaceMindPhilosophyWar
Phineas as a Victim of High School Changes in A Separate Peace by John Knowles
High School is a time for great physical, mental and emotional changes in youth. Some students experience a three-foot height change, and others, an epiphany. These changes happen over the course of high school but can be brought about quickly under the correct circumstances. In the novel "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles, Phineas is another victim of high school changes, catalyzed by injury His life begins normally, as a superb athlete A tragic "accident" wrecks his chance at a…...
A Separate PeaceExistencePhilosophyReality
A Look at Character Friction in A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving
In the novel by John Living A Prayer for Owen Meany, there is a lot of friction between many characters, this novel was also written about a dark time in the history of the United States. As is told in the novel John F Kennedy is President of the United States and he influences a boy named Owen Meany. He is a small boy who receives many beatings from fellow peers, both physical and verbal. Even though the title may…...
A Prayer For Owen MeanyCultureLiteratureWar
Future Predicament in A Prayer for Owen Meany
In most cases, it is impossible to know the future; however, the past can often be just as bewildering. John Irving conveys this to us through his character Owen in “A Prayer for Owen Meany.” In this novel, we hear the tale of Owen Meany’s life through the stories of his best friend John Wheelwright. John often questions the past and its meaning and has trouble making peace with events that occurred during his childhood. Because of this, he is…...
A Prayer For Owen MeanyCultureFictionFuture
Irving & Owen Meany: Similarities & Differences
John living, the author ofA Prayer for Owen Meany, uses his background and childhood to affect the plot of the novel. Although there are many things that make his life in the past different than the lives of the characters in the book, there are some similarities as well, which show where Irving may have gotten some of his ideas from. The life of Johnny, the main character in the novel, lives a life very similar to the life Irving…...
A Prayer For Owen MeanyChildCultureLiterature
Owen in A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
Owen Meany is by far the most complex character that John Irving characterizes in A Prayer For Owen Meany. From the exposition, Owen Meany is perplexed by society's standards and this conflict builds his entire character. Owen Meany's insight and contrasting points of View from the traditional society of rural New Hampshire sets a rebellious, but yet realistic, mood in the book. Meany's self-crafted belief system sets him apart from the rest of the society he lives in. Meany is…...
A Prayer For Owen MeanyCultureForgivenessSociety
Harriet Wheelwright in A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
Harriet Wheelwright, a direct descendant of the town's prominent founder, is not a typical sweet, old grandmother. He doesn‘t dance around the truth when recounting his story. Showing a complete lack of empathy, Johnny recounts “I remember that it was shortly after Lydia’s leg had been amputated because it was still a little strange to have her eating with us at the table (in her wheelchair), and to have the two new maids doing the serving and clearing that only…...
A Prayer For Owen MeanyEthicsPhilosophyPsychology
Use of Grace in a Good Man Is Hard to Find, a Short Story by Flannery O’Connor
In Flannery O’Connor‘s, A Good Man is Hard to Find, the subject of grace and the grandmother arises. This story is about a family who travels to Tennessee for a vacation, but they run into a man called the Misfit who ends up killing the whole family, O’Connor uses a lot of foreshadowing of the family's death in the story. At the end of the story, the grandmother is left with the Misfit, who is prepared to kill her. She…...
A Good Man Is Hard To FindCulturePhilosophyReligion
Appreciating Life in A Good Man
In the beginning of the quote it states that, “The Misfit's eyes were red-rimmed and pale and defenseless-looking”. This can suggest that the grandmother‘s words beforehand may have triggered a small change towards the Misfit. He had previously stated that he enjoyed being mean because that was who he was and he embraced it. In his life he decided what was right or wrong. After encountering the grandma and hearing the words she pleaded to him, he noticed that she…...
A Good Man Is Hard To FindCulturePhilosophyReligion
Mankind’s Mocking Moral Code in A Good Man Is Hard to Find
As children, many people are taught about the moral code of mankind. Treat others as you would want to be treated. Do not lust, kill, steal, or hurt others the list goes on and on. Whether this code originates from religion, unique experiences, or personal judgment, it exists, and it affects the way many people live. The story, A Good Man is Hard to Find, although it represents many different things, is designed to make people rethink their own personal…...
A Good Man Is Hard To FindChildEthicsThought
Themes in O’Connor’s Stories
After indulging in a bit of light research on Flannery O'Connor, I learned that to understand O'Connor's short stories is to understand the rural South that she was familiar with before 1970. She inserts her readers into the settings by capturing thought processes. O'Connor likes to write her stories to set opposing forces against one another, though, as demonstrated in “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” and "Parker’s Back,” they routinely incorporate a severe lack of hope in humanity.…...
A Good Man Is Hard To FindCultureReligionRevelation
Grandmother in the Short Story A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O’Connor
In the short story, A Good Man is Hard to Find, by Flannery O'Connor, the grandmother is very interesting. She is a true Southern belle! She is always dressed to impress and thinks that she is superior to everyone else in her family, She is clearly the protagonist in the story, because she is always in the midst of family drama. Although she is loved and looked up to by her family, the grandmother is often the cause of much…...
A Good Man Is Hard To FindBooksFictionProtagonist
The Persona in the Novel Fifth Business by Robertson Davies
Obsession with the Persona The persona is one's character that is perceived by others. In the novel Fifth Business by Robertson Davies, between the marriages of the Dempster's and the Staunton's, Amasa and Boy, both desire acceptance from society. Continuing, to achieve acceptance, Amasa and Boy not only create an image for themselves but for their wives, who need to live up to the societies and their husband's beliefs of the perfect wife and for their children, who must follow…...
Fifth Business
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