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.
Book Cover of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies
Although my book cover to William Golding’s Lord of the Flies is rather simplistic, the cover’s illustration manages to shock the eye and provoke interest at first glance. The centerpiece of the cover is a sow’s head, fixated on a sharp stake flames engulf the sow’s head and the scattered limbs of burning branches. A crooked and shattered pair of spectacles decorate the top of the book cover, these spectacles are slightly overlapped by some text that indicates the book…...
CultureLiteratureLord Of The FliesSociety
Themes in Walden by Henry David Thoreau
Walden is a longer story by Henry David Thoreau, and in the excerpts of this story that are being represented, we see many different ideas. Thoreau urges those in society to question advancements in technology, the need for those advancements, loneliness, warfare, and intelligence in the modern age. The most elaborated metaphor throughout an excerpt from “Brute Neighbors” consists of human warfare being much the same as that of any warfare, Thoreau does a service to the readers by relating…...
LiteratureNatureWalden
How to Live Life as Shown in the Walden Experiment by Henry David Thoreau
For Henry David Thoreau, nature is much more than just the ”great outdoors.” At the time, Thoreau was thought of as an extremist, and to some extent he still is. He interpreted nature differently from anyone else that came before him. During Thoreau's lifetime, the industrialism revolution was just starting to die out. Factories, railroads. and other technological inventions are just some of the new things to come in within this time period. These innovations were starting to tame nature,…...
CulturePhilosophySocietyWalden
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Fullest Life in Walden and Hamlet’s Blackberry
Walden, written in 1854, and Hamlet‘s Blackberry, written in 2010, seem to be entirely about technology at first glance. However, excerpts from these texts both identify a common train of thought other than this technology theme, one of being able to make the best of one’s own life, The excerpts from Walden by Henry Thoreau and Hamlet‘s Blackberry by William Powers both identify a common theme of being able to live life to the fullest. According to Henry David Thoreau,…...
HamletPhilosophyPsychologyWalden
The Principles of Naturalism in Walden Two, a Novel by B. F. Skinner
In the classic novel Walden Two, American psychologist B.F. Skinner lays out an ideal utopia founded on the principles of naturalism. In Walden Two, a strictly controlled and somewhat engineered society, any notions of a Supreme Being or religion is erased, in accordance with the naturalistic view that religion and beliefs in deities are simply creations of human imagination and need. Society is carefully engineered, in order to nurture humans to their fullest and perfect potential society is free from…...
CultureEthicsReligionWalden
The Quote of Franz Kline About the Book Walden by Henry David Theoreau
One of Franz Kline’s most famous quotes is “Half the world wants to be like Thoreau at Walden worrying about the noise of traffic on the way to Boston; the other half use up their lives being part of that noise. I like the second half” What does Franz Kline mean though by “Thoreau at Walden"? Well, Walden is a book by author Henry Thoreau and in it, Thoreau talks about living in a natural world and being a simple…...
PhilosophyPsychologyThoughtWalden
A Comparison of The Pit and the Pendulum to the Works of Edgar Allan Poe
Even though the movie "The Pit and the Pendulum" bore little resemblance to the story by Edgar Allen Poe, it still had many of the same elements as his work. "The Pit and the Pendulum" was so similar to Poe's stories, that I almost mistook it to be a work of Poe. Poe's stories shared many of the same elements with "The Pit and the Pendulum." There were many elements that the director used to make the "The Pit and…...
LiteratureThe Pit And The PendulumThe Raven
A Review of Lorraine Hansberry A Raisin in The Sun
When Taylor Swift won a grammy, she dedicated it to the person who inspired her song about heartbreak. The internet went crazy, calling her vulgar names and calling her unsavory expletives. When Sam Smith won a grammy, he dedicated to the man who broke his heart and motivated him to write the song. Everybody was calling him brave and such an inspiration. A man makes an accomplishment, he's praised, but when a woman makes the same accomplishment, she's criticized. Sexism…...
A Raisin In The SunCultureSexism
Chasing the American Dream in A Raisin in the Sun
Dream in their own ways. When the play first opened in 1959 in New York, it received great praise from both Blacks and Whites alike. A Raisin in the Sun is arguably one of the first good plays to be written on how African-Americans live in an ideal society, and how they are treated, in a realistic manner. The pursue of the American Dream from the same African-Americans is also pointed out in the play. Considering how great the play…...
A Raisin In The SunCultureLiberty
American Dream in Two Novels
"People are so busy dreaming the American Dream, fantasizing about what they could be or have a right to be, that they're all asleep at the switch. Consequently we are living in the Age of Human Error." - Florence King King's words show us that the American Dream is something that drives us to work hard and give our best so that we can achieve and live the dream. Yet many people focus on dreaming about a better future in…...
A Raisin In The SunAmerican DreamThe Great Gatsby
Author’s Environment and Their Work
In American Literature concerning written by and about minorities, the environment that the author was in at the time, and grew up in, often affected the subject matter and how the author portrays it. This trend is especially evident in literature written in the 20th century, in works by authors such as Langston Hughes, Lorraine Hansberry, Anne Sexton, and Claude Mckay. These authors had experienced racism, subjugation, and hate simply for the color of their skin and for their gender,…...
A Raisin In The SunCultureSocial Issues
The Importance of the Trojan War in the Odyssey and Ancient Greek Culture
The Trojan War played very important roles in both The Odyssey's and ancient Greek culture. This war is one of the most iconic events in Greek mythology due to its importance to their culture and how affected they were in a good and also in a bad way after the war, it was an event that basically changed the culture of the Greek population and how they approached life in a sense. In the book 'The Odyssey' translated by Emily…...
Odyssey
A Detailled Overview of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Chapter 1: Maya writes about the time when she and her older brother, Bailey, were shipped off to live in Arkansas from California with their grandmother. Their parents divorced when Maya was 3 and Bailey 4. The parents sent Maya and Bailey to Arkansas with a porter, but the porter abandons them in Arizona, leaving the two siblings to find their own way to Arkansas. Once Maya and Bailey arrive to their grandmothers house, Annie Henderson, and her disabled son,…...
FictionI Know Why The Caged Bird SingsLiterature
Reflections on I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
The title of the poem, I know why the caged bird sings by Maya Angelou, is a curious one. It pre-supposes a question and the title of the poem suggests an answer. This is a different approach since most poems are more of an offering of a thought, experience, feeling or observation. Since Maya Angelou is an activist within the black women's movement in the United States, it is anticipated that this poem will deal with issues relating to the…...
I Know Why The Caged Bird SingsMaya AngelouThought
Cultural Values in Othello and Caged Bird
Throughout literature writers use various ways of showing the reader a new way of life with different values, rituals and customs. These aspects can been seen in the works of William Shakespers Othello, and Maya Angelou s I Know Why The Cage Bird Sings. These books are very good examples of showing the importance of value and different culture to readers. In the Autobiography I Know Why The Cage Bird Sings Maya Angelou tells the story of her life. She…...
CultureI Know Why The Caged Bird SingsOthello
The Life Lessons in Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
I watched a movie the other night called, "The Color of Friendship". It was about a white teenage girl from Africa, visiting America on a Foreign Exchange Program. She was placed in a Black home and was very frightened at first because she was taught, as a child, to dislike Blacks. She befriends the teenage hostess and decides that Blacks are not as bad as she was taught to believe. While she is visiting America she tells her new friend…...
FictionI Know Why The Caged Bird SingsRacism
Prejudice in Maya Angelou’s Autobiography
Have you ever felt like you've never been wanted? Well, Blacks have gone through this experience for decades in their society. We see this experience with Maya Angelou in her autobiography which is set in the south during segregation. In the autobiography, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou, prejudiceness has impacted Maya throughout the book. In I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, maya faces prejudice, and is constantly fighting this outrage, yet not always winning.…...
I Know Why The Caged Bird SingsRacismSocial Issues
Racism in Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
There has been an uprising in the African-American community due to the Confederates waving the Confederate flag in African-American neighborhoods. Unlike the past, African-Americans now have gained civil rights; therefore, causing a riot and fighting theseConfederates. The novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, written by Mark Twain, is set before the Civil War and in the Mississippi River. To elaborate on the issue, Black oppression was high, slavery existed, and Blacks had no rights. The novel could be interpreted differently…...
Mark TwainSlaveryThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn
Paps Drunkeness in Mark Twains Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
The theme of alcoholism has long gripped the hearts and minds of America's society. In Twains, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck's father is ridiculed for his ignorance and racism. He is therefore depicted as the uncivilized, drunken father. In fact, Pap's drunkenness characterizes the ills of behavior and society. For example, through Pap's actions, we can see that he is considered white trash. He abuses the helping hands of those around him. "When he got out the new judge said…...
Mark TwainRacismThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn
Racism’s impact on education in Huckleberry Finn
Racism is a common yet harmful part of human society, described as the biased treatment of a person based on skin tone or ethnicity. It is also an important theme in literature involving African American and white populations in America during its younger years. Mark Twain's novel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is a particular work of American literature that uses fictional characters to portray this human vice. Huck, a white boy living in Missouri who refuses to be “civilized,” and…...
Mark TwainRacismThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn
Freedom in Huck Finn
In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain discusses and illustrates the pursuit of individual and social freedom through Huck and Jim's respective struggles. Huck, as an individual, yearns to break free from a "sivilized" life. As a young boy full of curiosity and daring, he feels restricted by the rules that govern his day-to-day life. Thus, when he "couldn't stand it no longer", he elected to run away and live a "free and satisfied" life, only to return for his friend…...
Mark TwainPoliticsThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn
Racism and Freedom in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a Novel by Mark Twain
In the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Mark Twain, the author, displays the differences of society's corrupt views and human morality. When Huck and Jim are on the river rather than the land, Huck gets a better understanding of flaws in the way people are treating blacks like Jim. They both neglect the usual treatments of their society and are outcasts on a quest for freedom from the community they live in. The river and land are comparable by…...
Huckleberry FinnHuman RightsThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn
Huck and Finn’s Freedom
Corrupted families, a flawed society, and conflicting opinions- this is just half of what Huck Finn faces throughout his journey with Jim in Mark Twain's novel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The readers follow the unlikely pair, and an imaginative boy, Tom Sawyer, as they face their battles. Through these characters we can infer the real meaning of freedom: to be independent and free of physical, societal, and emotional captivity. Twain depicts the struggles to escape the imprisonment through the use…...
CultureHuckleberry FinnThe Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn
Equality Fear in Huck Finn
People have always been judgemental. There was the prejudice views of jews in medieval times, as well as the preconceived notion that all Muslims are terrible people. In Huckleberry Finn, the major example of judgemental people is shown when people talk about humans who are different or do not share their views. Throughout the book, there were many examples of white folk thinking poorly about all slaves without knowing really "knowing" any. Without really knowing someone, how can someone base…...
Huckleberry FinnReasonSlavery
Gothic in Huck Finn – Ch 6
Throughout life, there are many scary and horror-filled things that can happen. Every day, you see new and frightening things that have happened in the news. You think that none of that could ever happen to you, that these moments are meant for other people, not yourself. The truth, though, is that almost everyone will have something terrifying happen to them throughout their life, and those who don't, have not truly lived. These moments are the gothic parts of our…...
FictionHuckleberry FinnMark Twain
The Fatal Flaws of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, a Novel by Mark Twain
The character that has had the most influence on Huck is undoubtedly Pap, who Huck has been around for almost his entire life. Although many may see it differently, Pap has in fact had a number of positive influences on Huck. In fact, Pap has never really had negative influence on Huck because Huck never looks up to him or sees him as a role model; Huck actually strives not to be like Pap. Huck has been forced all his…...
Huckleberry FinnThe Adventures Of Huckleberry FinnThe Adventures Of Tom Sawyer
Symbolism in Edgar Allen Poe’s The Masque of the Red Death
The Masque of the Red Death, a short story by Edgar Allan Poe, includes several symbols dealing with life and death. Each symbol signifies something in the story and helps teach lessons about life. The ebony clock, for instance, represents the time of death, and "Red Death" represents a deadly, uncontrollable disease spreading in the rural area around. Poe's imagery and symbolism convey the theme that death is inescapable. Poe employed symbolism to set the mood of the story. The…...
FictionLiteratureThe Masque Of The Red Death
A Comparative Essay about The Lottery and The Masque of the Red Death
Wait, a person can be stoned to grow crops or suddenly killed by deadly disease? In Shirley Jackson's short story "The Lottery," the town participates in an annual stoning as part of a ritual. In Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Masque of the Red Death," a dangerous plague, the Red Death, is killing everyone. Certain characters from both short stories, Prosper and Tessie Hutchinson, show similar characteristics. Tessie tries to prevent the stoning of her husband while Prosper tries…...
FictionThe LotteryThe Masque Of The Red Death
The Concept of Death in Edgar Allan Poes The Masque of the Red Death
Nearly every story written by Edgar Allan Poe explores the concept of death, and “The Masque of the Red Death" is no exception. "The Masque of the Red Death" is a very intricate short story written in 1842 by Poe. Poe uses symbolism throughout the story in the form of the rooms, the clock, and the Prince to illustrate that death is inevitable. The first symbol Poe uses to show that death is an inevitability is the rooms. In the…...
FictionLiteratureThe Masque Of The Red Death
The Red Death’s Inevitable End
"The 'Red Death' had long devastated the country. No pestilence had ever been so fatal, or so hideous. Blood was its Avatar and its seal- the Redness and horror of blood" (Poe 446) "The Masque of the Red Death" is about a prince, named Prospero, who throws a party in the middle of a great plague. He spends a great deal of money on the party in hope of keeping the pestilence out. However, it is through the party that…...
FictionLiteratureThe Masque Of The Red Death
Gothic Elements in Two Stories
The Gothic style usually revolves around the darker elements of human nature. The two short stories, "The Masque of the Red Death", by Edgar Allen Poe and "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment", by Nathaniel Hawthorne are both gothic. They have differences and similarities. "The Masque of the Red Death" is Gothic because it contains Gothic elements. The ebony clock in the story told time which represents the time the people had left before their deaths. Another symbol is the seven rooms in…...
FictionGothic FictionThe Masque Of The Red Death
Wife of Bath’s Argument in Canterbury Tales
The Wife of Bath considers herself to be a strong, independent, and carefree woman, and her philosophies described in The Canterbury Tales corroborate this personality. Some of her radical (or at least, radical for women of this time period) ideas included her encouragement of multiple marriages, her denunciation of virginity, and her outspoken criticism of the bible. Because her beliefs are so unordinary, she has to utilize the use of humor, knowledge, logic and flattery in order to persuade people…...
ArgumentsPhilosophyThe Canterbury Tales
Chaucer’s Tales: Reeve & Wife of Bath Analysis
The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer is a series of poems and short stories told by pilgrims on their way to the Canterbury Cathedral to pay homage to Saint Thomas Beckett. The tales in the collection include a vast array of characters ranging from richest to poorest and holy to sacrilegious. The Reeve was a manager of a large estate gathered from years working in the carpentry field. He told the tale of a bad miller who cheats people out…...
Geoffrey ChaucerPilgrimageThe Canterbury Tales
Religion and Sin in The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
Religion and sin play an important part in The Canterbury Tales, as well as in the time period the story was written in. Nearly all of approximately two dozen characters in the story represent one or more of the Seven Deadly Sins, which are; sloth, greed, envy, lust, wrath, gluttony, and pride. In the Canterbury Tales, the Pardoner shows that perhaps the worst of all the Seven Deadly Sins is greed. Back in the time period of The Canterbury Tales,…...
ChristianityReligionThe Canterbury Tales
Moral Comparison in Canterbury Tales
"The Knight's Tale" and "The Miller's Tale" differ greatly in Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales in their moral values as well as in their perception of heroism and heroes. In their tales there are opposing ideals like adultery and justness as well as conflicting characters like Theseus and Nicholas. Theseus and Nicholas are both smart, but Theseus magnanimously uses his wisdom to better the circumstances of those around him, especially the less fortunate or wronged, while lustful Nicholas uses cleverness to…...
EthicsHeroThe Canterbury Tales
An Analysis of The Knights Tale in The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
In the literary classic, The Canterbury Tales, Geoffrey Chaucer includes The Knight's Tale to teach the lesson that breaking the basic societal codes of life leads to suffering and must end in justice. In The Knight's Tale, two knights from Thebes, sworn to brotherhood, fall in love with the same woman, Emily. These two knights are bound by the code of chivalry to protect each other, but when the rules of love come into play, conflict ensues. To prove his…...
ChivalryMiddle AgesThe Canterbury Tales
Into the Wild & Walden: Walking Towards the Edge
As kids, the only reason we are afraid of the edge is because our parents told us we would fall off of if we got too close. Being mere children, our fears overwhelm our curiosities. Little did we know that the older we get, the farther away the edge becomes. At that point, just a sliver of curiosity is all that matters. One can only feel so alive when they feel trapped in a society that doesn't reflect who they…...
Henry David ThoreauPsychologyWalden
Emerson vs Thoreau
Of all the writers and philosophers who are considered to be transcendentalists, two of the most prevalent are Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. Their works have been pondered for over 150 years. It is evident that Emerson is fundamentally a transcendentalist; however Emerson is not as much of a transcendentalist as Thoreau. Emerson believes in a strong connection to nature, focused on an "oversoul," a single soul which is possessed by all life, as well as God himself,…...
Henry David ThoreauRalph Waldo EmersonWalden
A Guide on How to Properly Write a Lesson Plan
Have you ever sat at your desk late at night and stared at a blank lesson plan template that is due for your 8am Education practicum with no idea how to even begin? If you relate to this experience you are probably a first semester Elementary Education student struggling with writing your first lesson plans for your very first practicum experience. You probably have felt the pressure to create a lesson that will keep the attention of the twenty first…...
The Lesson
Fear Paralyzes Bartleby in Melville’s Short Story
Bartleby, the Scrivener is an allegorical short story in which the author, Herman Melville, writes from the perspective of an anonymous narrator. The Narrator introduces himself as a "safe man" who is the owner of a scrivener office on Wall Street in New York (Melville 1103). In need of another "copyist" for his practice, he publishes an "advertisement" for a job opening (1107-1108). The owner is soon approached by an unfamiliar, ominous prospective employee, Bartleby, whom he describes as "motionless"…...
Bartleby the Scrivener
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