Essays on Literature

Free essays on literature refer to the writing pieces that are available to everyone online without any charges. These essays can cover a wide range of literary topics, such as the analysis of a character or a theme in a novel, a review of a poem or a play, or an interpretation of a literary movement. They can be written by students, scholars, or literary enthusiasts, and can offer diverse perspectives and insights into the world of literature. Free essays on literature can be useful for those interested in learning more about a specific literary work or genre or for those seeking inspiration for their own writing.
A Literary Analysis and a Comparison of Swamp Angel and the Fifth Business
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Pages • 6
In the novel Swamp Angel the main character, Maggie, asserts that "swimming is like living, it IS done alone. This Is, In tact, a very telling statement with respect to the lite of both Maggie and the life of Dunstan, the main character in the novel The Fifth Business. Maggie's comparison of life to swimming raises interesting points about the way in which each of the two characters proceed along the road of life. Maggie's statement is actually a simile…...
Fifth Business
The Use of Cinderella Archetypes in Falling Leaves, a Book by Adeline Yen Mah
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Though many fairy tales have been created throughout history, Cinderella is saved in our subconscious by stimulating the sympathy felt over her unjust abuse as well as the theme of the down-and-out girl rising up to become prosperous appeals to the hope found in all situations. The word "cinderella" has, by analogy, come to mean one whose attributes were unrecognized, or who unexpectedly achieves recognition or success after a period of obscurity and neglect (Zipes 444). Adeline Yen Mah's use…...
Cinderella
Jimmy Braddock’s Life in Cinderella Man
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Living during the Great Depression was a difficult thing for most Americans to do. In the movie, Cinderella Man, the main character Jimmy Braddock suffers a great deal due to the depression. This movie greatly exemplifies the struggles Americans had to face during the depression. In this film, the Depression era was accurately portrayed. Many people had lost their jobs, and hunting for new work was a difficult task. Jimmy Braddock had lost his career in boxing, and because of…...
Cinderella
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A Personal Review of the Ahmanson Theatre Version of Cinderella
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Pages • 2
We all know the background story of the Disney classic Cinderella, but not how many different versions and twists of the story there are. The story of Cinderella can be related to many situations for many people whenever they feel less or unimportant. I saw a version of the classic at the Ahmanson Theatre that I hadn't really considered but I really liked. This Cinderella was more than just a prety face with the right shoe size, she was what…...
Cinderella
A Brief Explanation of the Movie Cinderella
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For this assignment I chose to watch Cinderella. This movie seems to give a subtle but fairly clear message that is it conveying to its younger viewers. The movie shows women to be maids, mothers, and objects of the prince's affection, and nothing more. While men in the film are shown to be kings, princes, people who make all the decisions for the greater good of everyone who follows or looks up to them in a respectful and honoring way.…...
Cinderella
The Purpose of Doubling in The Black Cat, a Short Story by Edgar Allan Poe
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“The Black Cat” is a short story written by Edgar Allen Poe about a man who suffers from guilt after hanging his beloved pet cat, Pluto. He later finds and adopts another black cat, but this cat terrifies him because it reminds him of what he did to the previous cat. The instances of doubling in “The Black Cat" have several purposes, which include providing situational irony, acting as projections of the narrator’s guilt, and creating symmetry in the story…...
Edgar Allan PoeEthicsPhilosophyPsychology
A Short Review of Sonnet-To-Science, a Poem by Edgar Allan Poe
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"Sonnet--To Science, ” by Edgar Allen Poe, acts almost like a challenge to science and the values it upholds. The author challenges the reader to look beyond the surface level of reality and see the world for the wonderful place it is. While science would have one restricted by what is real, the world of fiction and poetry allows one to explore and find hidden meanings beyond the physical level. Poe is suggesting that imagination and fantasy are necessary to…...
Edgar Allan PoePhilosophyPoetryScience
Varied Coping Mechanisms for Grief and Loss
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Everyone copes with the death of a loved one in different ways. Some celebrate, some send their belongings with them through fire, and some grieve, grievance for a loved one can be so strong at times, that even life can seem like it is taunting them. Their sadness becomes so overwhelming that a desire to find an explanation for their death is an adventure that can lead to irrational conclusions. In the poem “Annabel Lee”, Edgar Allen Poe utilizes allusion,…...
Edgar Allan PoeLovePhilosophyReason
The Different Techniques Used in Short Stories by Edgar Allan Poe
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Edgar Allan Poe, a very well know author, doesn‘t just write to write. He writes to intrigue readers into wanting more. There are many different techniques that he uses in his stories and three of them are point of View, characterization, and foreshadowing. The techniques create a sense of curiosity or even confusement to bring the readers into the story. In The Black Cat, one of the techniques Poe uses is the first-person point-of-view. Using first person in this story…...
CultureEdgar Allan PoeLiteratureWriting
Poe’s Raven & Usher: A Comparison
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Edgar Allan Poe has three theories by which he composes his works, According to his essay “The Philosophy of Composition," a work should be short in length, developed with techniques to achieve a desired result, and the successful conveyance of an impression or effect is essential. In his poem “The Raven" and the short story “The Fall of the House of Usher," these methods are used successfully.  In “The Raven,” reason has no place the narrator is a man already…...
Edgar Allan PoeLiteraturePsychologyThe Raven
Uni Student’s Christmas Carol Adaptation
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For the extra credit report, I went to the performance on Thursday, November 29, 2018. It was held at the Grand Theatre at Salt Lake Community showcasing the Lyric Opera Ensemble. In this performance, the ensemble performed Amahl and The Night Visitors and A Christmas Carol. Both operas were very interesting to watch as I had never been to an opera before, I really enjoyed seeing the stories unfold in both. Also, I was surprised to find out that the…...
A Christmas CarolEntertainmentMusicOpera
Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, a Novel by Charles Dickens
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During the 19th century, in London, England, Ebenezer Scrooge is a wealthy man who does not spend his days wholesomely. He is quite miserly, preferring to keep his possessions all to himself. He is unsympathetic towards the troubles of his fellow man. Still, he clearly displays how unhappy he is with his own lot in life, despite how well he has done as a businessman. In the novel A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, Ebenezer Scrooge is tremendously miserly, unsympathetic,…...
A Christmas CarolChristmasFictionLiterature
Reckless Tom and Daisy in Gatsby
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Throughout history, the wealthy have always been able to escape their unlawful actions while the less fortunate have had to face the consequence, we see that exactly in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. While many believe that no one can escape their wrongful actions, F. Scott Fitzgerald and “ Luxury Shopping, from the Other Side of the Register” by Carmen Maria Machado, demonstrates how the fortunate are careless people who are able to escape their unlawful actions with…...
MoneyPoliticsThe Great GatsbyWealth
Linen Forms in Great Gatsby
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Whiteness is defined as the property or quality of being white in color. However, since the beginning of civilization, whiteness has held a certain power and weight. Whether in correlation to race, class, or even the ideas of purity and innocence, there is a sense of power and privilege in the color white. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel, The Great Gatsby, is regarded as a hallmark of American literature. Fitzgerald is famous for his descriptive writing style, use of imagery,…...
ChildCultureRealityThe Great Gatsby
An Important Concept in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Novel the Great Gatsby
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In one’s life, there are many pathways and changes that can occur; only one thing for certain-- death. As quotidian as birth, the death of one physical soma is inevitable, and though morbid and woeful, it is used as an important concept in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby. In the work of fiction, Fitzgerald uses death throughout the text to demonstrate how subconscious desires manifest certain realities in times of despair. In the several scenes which death occurs,…...
AngerPsychologyRealityThe Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby Has Various Scenes Where Water Is Used as a Symbol
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Throughout works of literature water can represent different ideas from the washing of sins to cleansing and purity. The characteristics of water are used to define different moods, from calm sprinkling to unsettling thunderstorms. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald water appears at various times and moves as a progression, from separation, and uncertainty, to purification. For more than five years Gatsby has fantasized and ached for the day where he and Daisy could meet again. At the…...
CultureFictionLiteratureThe Great Gatsby
Postmodern Hero in Dr Horrible’s Sing Along Blog
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What is a postmodern Hero? When we hear the word “hero“ one of our first thoughts are famous characters from cartoons and movies such as Superman, Superwoman, Batman, Spiderman and so out. These people are basically characterized by the word “hero“ but we’ve moved and found ourselves located in a postmodern era so what is a postmodern hero? Dr. Horrible Sing Along Blog is a mini-series divided in three acts. We are introduced to the conflicts through DrrHorrible‘s Web blogs…...
BatmanFictionHeroSuperhero
The Tragic Hero in Julius Caesar, a Play by William Shakespeare
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Tragedy is, a branch of drama that treats in a serious and dignified style the sorrowful or terrible events encountered or caused by a heroic individual, with that we have a tragic hero. A tragic hero is a person of a noble birth with a tragic flaw that leads to his or her downfall. Both are seen in “The Tragedy oflulius Caesar" written by William Shakespeare By examining Marcus Brutus‘ high rank, tragic {law and clear internal conflict it is…...
CultureHeroTragedyWilliam Shakespeare
Dany Laferriere as the Hero of His Story A Drifting Year
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There are many stories I’ve read in the past by many authors who portray themselves as heroes, but in my opinion the one I found most interesting and striking is the story a drifting fl written by Dany Laferriere. After thoroughly reading this story I came up with an interpretive question that analyzes what this particular story is about and that is in what ways does Dany Laferriere cast himself as a hero in the story A Drifting Year and…...
FictionHeroLearningTruth
The Early Life of Emily Bronte and Her Literary Techniques in Wuthering Heights
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Yorkshire, England as the daughter of a clergyman. She grew up without a mother, because she died from cancer roughly nine months after giving birth to Emily's sister, Anne, when Emily was only three. Emily was sent away to school at age 6, but was brought home when her two oldest sisters became fatally ill with tuberculosis because all of the children were weak and sickly to start off. The remaining Bronte children had very active imaginations, which stemmed from…...
FictionLiteratureWuthering Heights
The Brontes Mystery and Suspense in the Wuthering Heights
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Analyse how Bronte creates mystery and suspense throughout wuthering heights. "But Mr. Heathcliff forms a singular contrast to his abode and style of living. He is a dark- skinned gypsy in aspect, in dress and manners a gentleman, that is, as much a gentleman as many a country squire: rather slovenly, perhaps, yet not looking amiss with his negligence, because he has an erect and handsome figure—and rather morose. Possibly, some people might suspect him of a degree of under-bred…...
FictionLiteratureWuthering Heights
A Characterization of Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights, a Novel by Emily Bronte
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Heathcliff is introduced in the family structure story as an outsider. He is initially considered to be both a gift and a threat. The conflicting identities of Heathcliff, therefore, form part of the uncertainty of his character in the story. He is typically identified by contradicting definitions even as the story proceeds. To Catherine, he is a brother as well as a lover while to Isabella; he is a romantic hero and an oppressor who seems to lack the virtue…...
HeroLiteratureWuthering Heights
The Fall of Man in Genesis Chapter 2-3 and in Louis Untermeyer Pandora’s Box
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In Genesis chapter 2-3, and in "Pandora's Box" by Louis Untermeyer the theme "Fall of Man" occurs when the world goes from innocence and purity to evil and sin. Eve and Pandora both allow curiosity to get the best of them causing a punishment with a small amount of good; however, Pandora wasn't tempted while Eve was. Eve and Pandora both had curiosity within them and allowed it to take control. Pandora unleashes evil, sadness, and pain but also finds…...
ChristianityPandora'S BoxReligion
Amelia Earhart: First Woman to Fly Across Atlantic & Death
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A leader is often a pioneer, being the first to accomplish a certain goal and pave the way for others. This was definitely the case for Amelia Earhart. The dedication, assertiveness and most of all fearlessness of her achievements will never be forgotten. She was a woman of action; she could walk the walk. "Never interrupt someone doing what you said couldn't be done" (Earhart). On June 17th, 1928, she left Trepassey Harbor, Newfoundland in Canada and arrived in Burry…...
Amelia EarhartCommunicationOcean
Aunt Raylene’s Bad Choices in Bastard Out of Carolina
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Our lives are made by the choices we make. Like James Baldwin once said, “People pay for what they do, and still more, for what they have allowed themselves to become. And they pay for it simply: by the lives they lead." People's actions are their own and each of their actions has a consequence whether it's good or bad. Those consequences can later shape the person's life like Bone's Aunt Raylene in Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison.…...
ChoicesFictionLiterature
Choices & Fate in East of Eden
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Critic Roland Barthes once said: "Literature is the question minus the answer." With the novel East of Eden by John Steinbeck, the author explores this quote throughout the novel with the question: "Can you choose between good and evil?" The answer to this can be identified during Cal's journey through his choice to manipulate Aron, choosing to accept his flaws, and making the choice of seeking to redeem himself. This character's journey conveys Steinbeck's message that your choices can affect…...
ChoicesCultureLiterature
A Review of the Dystopian Tale Machine Stops by E.M. Forster
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The Machine stops is one of the greatest Dystopian tales I've ever read. As a race humans love Dystopias and so its no surprise I hear about so many people, including myself, enjoying this short story about Vashti, Kuno, and the Machine. In this tale Vashti is a mother who doesn't really look or act like one, and most parents in this time period are just like her. She is short and very pale, almost sickly looking. She, as well…...
CultureDystopiaReligion
The Burning of Books in Fahrenheit 451, a Dystopian Novel by Ray Bradbury
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Books and fire never go well together. Afterall, books are made of paper which is flammable as tinder for fire. But in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, books are the bane of their futuristic society. Firefighters are supposed to put out fires but in Fahrenheit 451, firefighters start fires, burning down buildings that house books even with the inhabitants inside. Books, a valuable asset to our society since the day history was written down, are a taboo in Ray Bradbury's fictional…...
DystopiaFahrenheit 451Fiction
Equality in Anthem, a Dystopian Fiction Novels by Ayn Rand
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In the society Equality 7-2521 lives in, everyone is equal. No one is allowed to talk to anyone else in a way that seems that they are unequal from everyone else. They are also not allowed to talk to anyone else that is not in their working group, Equality 7-2521 is a street sweeper so they are not allowed to talk to any other worker, nor are men allowed to notice women, and women allowed noticing men. "We wish to…...
DystopiaFree WillThought
Censorship in Fahrenheit 451
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In the novel Fahrenheit 451, author Ray Bradbury explores the idea of censorship in a futuristic, dystopian society of the United States in which possessing or reading books is against the law. The ban on reading or even owning books is an example of the censorship of information. The government banned books because they believed the information inside of the books could hurt people. Beatty discusses the ban on books with Montag: "Colored people don't like Little Black Sambo. Burn…...
DystopiaFahrenheit 451Social Issues
John in The Yellow Wallpaper
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John is the husband and the doctor of the narrator, who is suffering from an illness called nervous depression, which is a slight hysterical tendency. One might think that John is the antagonist in the story "The Yellow Wallpaper", but there are a few reasons why one would also state as the protagonist, including he was only trying to help the Narrator get over her illness. John prescribed the best and possibly the only thing he knew, and he did…...
FictionLiteratureThe Yellow Wallpaper
The Use of Diction in the Story The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
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In the short story "The Yellow Wallpaper" written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Gilman uses many different techniques in order to cogently critique the gender roles of nineteenth- century America. One example of this would be her use of diction in the story, Gilman strategically uses language that displays the intensity of the gender roles. She also very strategically uses setting in order to symbolize the complete isolation and deprivation that women were forced into during this time. More specifically Gilman…...
PhilosophyPsychologyThe Yellow Wallpaper
The Loss of Choice and Free Will in The Handmaid’s Tale and The Yellow Wallpaper
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Jean Paul Sartre once said, "We are our choices". Without choices, that makes us nothing, nobody. The value of the ability to choose and judge, our free will, is our humanity and independence. It is what separates humans from animals and plants and machines. Our ability to judge and to make decisions leads each person on their own individual path. When the freedom of choice is taken away, we are left with nothing that is our own. We become less…...
CultureFree WillThe Yellow Wallpaper
Yellow Wallpaper Madness Causes
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There are many reasons for the progression of the author from depression to madness. Here are some of the causes. A misunderstanding husband – Gilman had a misunderstanding husband who saw things in a different way. For example, he told Gilman, that she should not touch anything or perform any house chores after she delivered. This according to Gilman was not only depressing but also drove her into madness. The rest cure - The other thing that made the author…...
HealthMedicineThe Yellow Wallpaper
The Exercise of Functions in The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
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The author, Charlotte Gilman Perkins stated, "Every kind of creature is developed by the exercise of its functions. If denied the exercise of its functions, it can not develop in the fullest degree" (Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wall-paper"-The "New Woman). This is a very bold statement and brings my thoughts back to the psychological perspective behind her short story titled "The Yellow Wallpaper". Both the narrator and the author have suffered or currently suffering from a mental illness. It…...
HealthMental HealthThe Yellow Wallpaper
Humanity’s Quest for Space Exploration Throughout History
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Historically, there has been no better way to prove a nation’s dominance than being able to be the first to publicly show off their achievements for the whole world to watch. That is why when the Soviets launched Sputnik, the first artificial satellite mankind has ever released into the cosmos, the US government authorized NASA in order to hastily reestablish their superiority in the great Space Race, Nations have always been in possession of a somewhat unhealthy amount of ambition…...
AstronomyFlightScienceSpace Exploration
Influence Of The Fusion Concept of Utopia
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Brothers Naum Gabo and Antoine Pevsner are two Russian brothers who were the initiators of this architectural movement. They were the writers of The Realistic Manifesto, highlighting the constructivism movement. (arch hist) Constructivism was one of the most influential modern art movements of the twentieth century in the USSR. Many of the more influential Russian artists, who supported the movement, soon became spokespeople who vocalized their opinions on constructivism. It inspired many of today’s modern works of art as well.…...
ArtCultureModernismUtopia
Utopian Thinking In Planning
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Utopian thinking has influenced planning for centuries. But, utopian thinking in planning doesn’t lead necessarily to a completely utopian place. First, expand upon at least three characteristics of utopian thinking (7.5 points). Then, identify an example of utopian ideals in the contemporary urban landscape, and discuss the way it embodies the positive and negative aspects of utopian thinking (7.5 points). First, utopian thinking is a critique of the present. Not only that, but utopias try to bring the future into…...
ChinaPoliticsUrbanizationUtopia
Queer Utopias & Protagonist’s Trauma in Film
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Through the unique artistic choices represented in the film to the absence of heteronormative imagery, FKA Twigs creates an environment that is usually not represented in the Hip-Hop community. In particular, to this absence of heteronormative imagery, I point out the over-sexualization of women, toxic masculinity, and the lack of female narrative. In her new album named Magdalene, a name usually associated to the adulteress Mary Magdalene, we see the reclamation of not only the narrative but also of a…...
CultureFeminismMasculinityUtopia
A Momentary Utopia That Compensates Achilles and Priam For Grief
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Pages • 3
In book 24, Achilles expresses sympathy towards Priam as they speak alone without the interference of politics. At the beginning of the book Apollo calls Achilles “that man without a shred of decency in his heart”, all “brute force and wild pride” and no “shame that does great harm or drives men on to good”. Now, the two heroes are portrayed as sitting together, crying together, eating together, and sleeping near one another. The scene is a momentary utopia that…...
ApolloMythologyUtopia
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FAQ about Literature

The Great Gatsby Has Various Scenes Where Water Is Used as a Symbol
...It seems that Gatsby died peacefully and in purifications involved with water they are supposed to give the person peace and a sense of renewal. Throughout the whole work of literature there is no mention of any other of Gatsby’s relatives, except ...
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