Essays and Research Papers on American Literature

A 6 page paper analyzing Tennessee William’s use of irony in developing his characters in this classic play. Noting that Blanche’s hell is of her own making, the paper also discusses irony in her relationship to her sister Stella, brother-in-law Stanley, and Stanley’s friend Mitch. Bibliography lists 5 sources.

This 4 page paper explores Hawthorne's use of puritan characters in several of his stories, and argues that they are unpleasant and baleful, even though they believe themselves to be following God's law. Bibliography lists 3 sources.

A 5 page analysis of how Mark Twain, Henry James and Flannery O'Connor have each pictured how individuals have reacted to early experiences with evil. In so doing each has shown aspects of society, as implied through laws and social norms, that rather then promoting the spiritual welfare of its citizens actually work against the ...

An eight page paper looking at five of London’s shorter works in terms of their expression of the doctrines of naturalism and social Darwinism. Stories discussed are “The Law of Life,” “The League of the Old Men,” “The Master of Mystery,” “The One Thousand Dozen,” and “The Whale Tooth.” Bibliography lists seven sources.

There have been a plethora of evaluations of Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. Most critiques focus on the religious organization of the Puritan society, the laws and consequences that made 'sin' a criminal act as well as socially reprehensible. The relationships between the characters has been examined in detail. This 5 page paper argues that The Scarlet ...

This 6 page paper discusses Maya Angelou and her poetry, and how much of her life can be found in her work. It also touches on her fascination with Shakespeare. Bibliography lists 8 sources.

A 6 page paper in which the writer argues that through mad antics toward ‘the revenge plot,' both Ahab and Hamlet serve to bring the action in the two tragedies to their inevitable conclusions. In all aspects the characters' motivations are different. Ahab's madness is more focused and not within Ahab's control--he is ...

A 5 page paper which examines how three elements of tragedy and of the tragic hero apply to the protagonists of King Oedipus, Prince Hamlet, and Amanda Wingfield. Bibliography lists 4 sources.

This is an 8 page paper on the themes and influences on the works of Walt Whitman, William Shakespeare and William Golding. An introductory outline is included. American poet Walt Whitman, British playwright William Shakespeare and British writer William Golding all manage to include important historical, cultural, religious and societal influences in the themes within ...

A 6 page paper which examines two frontier novels of the mid-nineteenth century, Mark Twain's "Roughing It" (1872) and James G. Swan's "Northwest Coast" (1857) to consider the authors' depiction of the American Indian. Bibliography lists 3 sources.

A 7 page paper looking at the way Leslie Silko’s protagonist Tayo is reassimilated back into the Indian community and the Indian mindset following traumas suffered in war. The paper argues that Tayo is only able to sustain his psychic health by seeing the world in an Indian way. No additional sources.

A five page paper looking at James Fenimore Cooper's novel in terms of its ending, in which the noble Indian Uncas is killed by another Indian. The paper suggests that Cooper's readers would not have been able to deal with the truth: that the Indians were actually being exterminated by the white man. Bibliography lists ...

This is a 6 page paper discussing Jhumpa Lahiri’s “Interpreter of Maladies”. Jhumpa Lahiri (1967- ) wrote “Interpreter of Maladies”, a collection of nine short stories, in 1999 which since has been critically acclaimed in addition to having received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Although this was Lahiri’s first major publication, the cross-cultural, -gendered and ...

This 5 page research paper reviews Sherman Alexie's 1996 novel, Indian Killer by examining the life of central character, John Smith, who has gone on a killing rampage in his attempt to reclaim his Indian heritage from the white man. The supporting protagonists, each with his own anger and motivation against white society are ...

A 5 page analysis of House Made of Dawn by N. Scott Momaday and Indian Killer by Sherman Alexie, in terms of the authors’ theme of alienation. The paper argues that whereas House Made of Dawn shows that there is a way back from the brink of spiritual and personal disintegration, Indian Killer shows ...

A 4 page paper on Leslie Marmon Silko's novel about Indian heritage. The paper argues that the function of the folktales in this novel is to reconnect the protagonist with his Indian heritage on a subconscious level, treating his psychological symptoms by reindoctrinating him into the culture of his people. Bibliography lists 1 source.

This 3 page paper discusses the book "Indian Givers" by Jack Weatherford, and his idea that many of the basic concepts of non-Indian society were given to us by the native peoples of North and South America. Bibliography lists 3 sources.

This is a 6 page paper discussing form and content in works of N. Scott Momaday. N. Scott Momaday, a Native American writer who first won the Pulitzer Prize in 1969 has a unique presentation within his works. In “House Made of Dawn” (1968) Momaday relates the story of Abel, a young Jemez Pueblo Indian ...

A 5 page analysis of the book by Native American writer, Linda Hogan. This novel tells the story of what happened in the 1920s when oil was discovered on Native American land. Through the eyes of two Indian families, the reader learns how whites coerced the true owners of the land through brutality and murder ...

A 3 page essay that discusses Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony, which is a novel that draws its meaning from symbolism that is grounded in the Pueblo Indian tradition and the culture of these Native Americans. A deeply psychological novel, it can be addressed on a number of layers of meaning, but it basically concerns the ...

Was Mark Twain prejudiced? This 5 page paper explores Twain's depiction of women, Blacks, Jews and Indians in an attempt to answer that question. Bibliography lists 4 sources.

A 4 page essay that contrasts and compares "A Sermon Preached at the Execution of Moses Paul, an Indian" by Samson Occom and "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" by Jonathan Edwards. The writer argues that these sermons demonstrate how these two eighteenth century men adhered to similar theological perspectives and themes. However, ...

This 3 page paper provides an analysis of Ernest Hemingway's short story entitled Indian Camp. The fact that the themes are vital to the plot is demonstrated and the beginning and ending are stressed as elements which serve to magnify them. The father and son relationship between the main characters is explored. No additional ...

A 5 page discussion of some of the central premises presented in this autobiography edited by Leo Simmons. The early life of Hopi Indian Talayesva illustrates that of one who is caught between two cultures, his traditional culture and mainstream American culture. This imbalance is actually one which is addressed by the traditional ...

5 pages. Examines the symbolism and treatment of death as it appears in Cormac McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses. This paper also contains contextual information such as the treatment of death by the Comanche Indians and the Mexicans of that era. Bibliography lists 3 sources.