Essays on Literary Genres

2851

The Use of Motif to Represent Isolation in Seize The Day

4 pages / 1937 words

In Seize the Day, Bellow is concerned with the well-worn dilemma of the individual desperately isolated and profoundly alone, caused by aggression of society and the shortcomings of his own character, as the story opens, Tommy finds himself in debt to his wife and the...

Novel

2852

The Mole as a Three Part Metaphor in Second Best

2 pages / 911 words

In “Second Best”, D.H. Lawrence uses the symbol of the mole as the basis for three separate metaphors for dilemmas in the lives of his characters. Each character shows differences in attitude and action towards the creatures, and these differences represent the psychological disparities between...

Fiction Metaphor

2853

A Biting Elegy: Ben Jonson on Shakespeare

4 pages / 2014 words

A master of humor and satire, Ben Jonson was a playwright, poet, and actor; he was also known as one of Shakespeare’s theatrical contemporaries, if not Shakespeare’s prime literary rival. His poem “To the Memory of My Beloved the Author, Mr. William Shakespeare” was as...

Poetry William Shakespeare

2854

The Theme of Self-discovery in The Secret Sharer by Joseph Conrad

2 pages / 954 words

The potential for self-discovery, complemented by the capacity for transformation, lies latent within each man. When circumstances instigate a strong stimulus for change, man finds a way to actuate his innate potential. In Joseph Conrad’s The Secret Sharer, the overly rational captain finds himself lacking...

Joseph Conrad Short Story

2855

Digging Up The Past

2 pages / 961 words

Seamus Heaney’s poem “Digging,” an eight-stanza poem written in free verse, is the first in his collection of poems entitled Death of a Naturalist, which was published in 1966. Written in first-person narrative, this circularly structured poem utilizes formalistic elements to reconcile the fact that...

Poetry

2856

Disturbed Earth: a Lament for The ‘tollund Men’, and for Ireland

3 pages / 1235 words

‘The Tollund Man’, as is his ‘sad freedom’, seems tellingly paradoxical in death – ‘naked’ and exposed, yet somehow venerated as a ‘trove’ and a ‘bridegroom to the goddess’. He is destroyed, but elevated as a sacred symbol of serenity after this sacrifice. This peaceful...

Poetry Seamus Heaney

2857

The Unifying Spirit of Seamus Heaney’s ‘funeral Rites’

4 pages / 902 words

Seamus Heaney’s poem “Funeral Rites” intricately explores the theme of unity through the lens of rituals and the traditional customs surrounding death in Ireland. In a nation historically marred by sectarian violence, Heaney calls for a return to the ancient beliefs that once unified the...

Poetry Seamus Heaney

2858

The Tragic and Unnaturally Static Nature of Death in Heaney’s ‘opened Ground’

3 pages / 1436 words

Seamus Heaney’s ‘Mid Term Break’ and ‘In Memoriam Francis Ledwidge’ lament needless violence, as well as the one-dimensional and euphemistic way with which general society deals with the loss of innocent, pure lives, whether it be a personal tragedy, or a swathe of atrocities wreaked...

Poetry Seamus Heaney

2859

The Honour in Courage: an Explication of ‘requiem for The Crappies’

2 pages / 959 words

“Requiem for the Croppies”, written by Seamus Heaney in 1962, describes the Irish Rebellion of 1798 as seen through the eyes and narrative voice of one random, deceased Irish soldier. The term “croppies” refers to the rebels, attributable to their short hair – a style...

Poetry

2860

Analyzing 'San Manuel Bueno, Martyr': Truth in Times of Uncertainty

4 pages / 2212 words

Written in late 1930, just after the fall of military dictator Primo de Rivera, San Manuel Bueno, martir was published at a time of economic downturn and political instability. King Alfonso XIII remained on the throne but shared the popular dislike of Rivera, meanwhile the...

Novel

2861

Sappho and Emily Dickinson: a Literary Analysis

3 pages / 1546 words

All mediums of poetry are specific and unique among each other. They have different attributes that can be mastered in order to deliver a perfect execution. However, when it comes to the ancient genre of lyrical poetry, these attributes are based around a certain form...

Emily Dickinson Poetry

2862

A Day in The Life in The Future: The Contemporary Man in Saturday

2 pages / 1001 words

Introduction In Ian McEwan’s Saturday, the protagonist Henry Perowne is given the task of representing the trials of being a contemporary man. However, he seems to be more than just an average contemporary man. McEwan gives Henry the characteristics of a somewhat perfect man, an...

Fiction

2863

Adam Smith and Sea of Poppies: Self-interest and Empathy of Ghosh

6 pages / 2758 words

Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh follows the narratives of a multitude of characters in pre-Opium War India. Following the ship named Ibis, an old slave ship transformed for use in opium trade and transporting coolies, the reader invests in the stories and decisions of...

Novel

2864

Beauty is in The Eye of The Beholder - a Commentary on Sappho’s Fragments

2 pages / 1242 words

It is easy to love something that is beautiful. It is easy to see beauty in the things you love. What is difficult at times is seeing the distinction between these two ideas. In Sappho’s “Fragment 16,” she says that the most beautiful thing in...

Poetry

2865

Ian Mcewan’s Saturday: Criticism of The Post-9/11 Society

2 pages / 1151 words

The events of 9/11 were a shock for not only the United States but also for the whole world. Suddenly, the country that was often perceived as impenetrable and unbeatable had to deal with the repercussions of a terrorist attack, shattering its masculine image (Carpenter...

9/11 Fiction

2866

The Hopeful Message of Say What You Will

1 page / 756 words

Is it possible to live a happy life in spite of the disabilities that plague you? Many who suffer from mental or physical illnesses would say no. However, some have recovered and found solace from their hopelessness through friends, family, and lovers. In Say What...

Fiction

2867

The Theme of Fate in "Save as Many as You Ruin"

2 pages / 1099 words

In his minimalist short story Save as Many as You Ruin, British author Simon Van Booy comments on the human concept of fate, and how a series of random life events can bring forth the feeling of inevitability. The story is told from the point...

Short Story

2868

The Complexity of Junior in Salvage The Bones

2 pages / 968 words

Although Junior in Salvage the Bones is only 10 years old, his character not only is complicated but also provides complexity to the rest of Ward’s novel. His birth resulted in the death of Mama, which leaves the rest of the family motherless and alone...

Character Fiction

2869

Rewriting The Tragic Mulatto

3 pages / 1638 words

Colson Whitehead’s novel Sag Harbor (2009) and Barack Obama’s memoirs Dreams From My Father (1995) both tell a portion of the complicated story of race and race relations in America. The main characters in both of these novels have experiences of being the “tragic mulatto”...

Novel