Essays and Research Papers on (All) Literature

A 5 page paper provides a character, structural and point of view analysis of Henrik Ibsen's 1892 play, "The Master Builder." No additional sources are used.

A seven page paper comparing the journey of self-discovery described in J.D. Salinger's novel with that of the paper's writer. Tutorial notes are provided to assist the student in making analogies regarding the book's theme and that of his own life. Bibliography lists two sources.

A six page paper looking at the nature and presence of evil as demonstrated in both these stories by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Hawthorne emphasizes that although both protagonists feel they are deeply religious men, their faith is ultimately false because they focus on evil and sin instead of the goodness of God. Bibliography lists three sources. ...

6 pages in length. The writer discusses how Twains novel addresses the issue of southern values. Bibliography lists 5 sources.

A five page paper looking at this play by the ancient Greek playwright Euripides in terms of its lasting commentary on family relationships. The paper shows that the two cousins -- even though one is mortal and the other is not -- share many personality traits that demonstrate the Greeks' understanding of familial relationships. No ...

This 5 page paper considers the post modernist work Pinocchio in Venice by Robert Coover and then analysis the work by looking at the first chapter, The Entrance, in both he context of the work as a whole as well as the meaning it has within itself. The bibliography cites 1 source.

A five page paper looking at Stephen Crane's novel Maggie: A Girl of the Streets and William Faulkner's short story "Barn Burning" in terms of the effect family values have on the youthful protagonists. The paper demonstrates that in both cases, the main characters were raised with extremely negative family values, but while Faulkner's character ...

A 5 page review that analyzes the way that Cisneros builds her characterization of Esperanza, her protagonist in this unusual novel that consists of numerous short stories. Bibliography lists 3 sources.

A 3 page paper which discusses the story "The Farm," written by Louis Bromfield, and how it depicts the 1800's. Bromfield wished to portray this century to his daughters, and further emphasize how important the simple life was, and perhaps still can be. The paper also discusses the general intent of Louis Bromfield's story. No additional sources cited.

A five page paper looking at David Henry Hwang's "M. Butterfly" and Sophocles' "Oedipus Rex" in terms of the way they approach the conflict of truth and illusion. Both plays demonstrate that our perception of the truth is completely defined by what we want to believe. Bibliography lists three sources.

A five page paper looking at the debate over Joanna Rowling's Harry Potter books. Looking particularly at her first novel in the series, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," the paper presents both the fundamentalist Christian viewpoint against the book and the more moderate secular argument in favor of it, finally concluding that the book ...

This 5 page paper explores the racial interactions in Helen Hunt Jackson's novel, Ramona. No additional sources are listed.

A 6 page paper examining five of the Hemingway codes in this novel. Hemingway assigned life to a series of codes by which individuals lived, either serially or concurrently. He saw lives as compartmentalized with bits and pieces fitting into neat categories but never attaining more than only momentary joy. A Farewell to Arms is alternately ...

This 5 page paper provides an overview and assesses the notion of the benefits or good that comes from the plague through an assessment of Albert Camus' The Plague. This paper considers the way in which specific advantages can be determined from the plague as defined by Camus and the conflicting effects. No ...

A 5 page paper which examines how the theme of love is used in Ernest Hemingway's final novel as a redemptive force, and how the types of love are categorized among the book's major characters. Bibliography lists 4 sources.

A 5 page paper which examines the major and minor themes of Herman Melville's final novel, evaluates whether Billy Budd is an allegorical Christ figure or a Christ-like man, and determines whether Melville is expressing hope or lack of in his portrayal of Billy's final fate. Bibliography lists 4 sources.

This 5 page paper studies Chinua Achebe's use of theme. Thematic elements are identified and critically evaluated. No additional sources cited.

10 pages in length. Toomer's poetry is often seen as quiet and pastoral, dealing with tranquil aspects of existence. There is however, another side of his work: dealing with racial conflict between human beings. The exact manner in which Toomer reveals this conflict with respect to the northern section, one can infer that ...

5 pages. Compares the significance of the Mother figure in the Japanese family to that of the Navajo family as indicated in the book "Kinship and Gender". Also considers the film Dadi's Family in the same context. Bibliography lists 2 sources.

A five page paper looking at the difference between the way Geoffrey Chaucer's female pilgrims are portrayed in this medieval work from the depictions of the female characters in the tales themselves. The paper concludes that while Chaucer portrayed women without stereotyping them, his storytellers reflected the prejudice of their times. Bibliography lists three sources.

This 5 page report discusses the few female characters presented in James Fenimore Cooper’s “The Last of the Mohicans” (1826) and Washington Irving’s “Rip Van Winkle” (1819). The few clues the authors present demonstrate the near facelessness of women in these two literary works of the early 1800s. No other sources.

This 4 page paper asserts that the character of Felix Krull in Thomas Mann's Confessions of Felix Krull : Confidence Man is play acting as a means to hiding from his own insecurities. No additional sources are listed.

A 5 page paper examining Clytemnestra's eventual reaction to Agamemnon's womanizing and autocratic control. Homer portrays Clytemnestra as being weak and insignificant, but Aeschylus portrays her as a strong woman who ultimately has her fill of Agamemnon's domination and complete lack of regard for all women. Agamemnon could have seen the warning signs had he chosen to ...

This 5 page report discusses two short stories by African American women. Eudora Welty’s “A Worn Path” and Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” both tell stories of Black women’s reality and the ways in which they deal with the world. Both also have an “understory” of the changes faced by African Americans in 20th century America. Bibliography lists 4 sources. ...

5 pages in length. While many of us wish for the good life and want better things, not all of us are ready to admit what it takes to get there. Changing our future and shaping our life are part of everybody's hopes and desires. The dawning comes when we realize that it takes knowledge, learning, ambition and ...