Protagonist: The Crucible By: In the Crucible, Arthur Miller is not clear about whom he intended to be true protagonist of the story. When reading the story, one comes across two major characters who are able to fit this role, John Proctor, and Reverend Hale. However if one truly comprehends ea...

An analysis and interpretation of the short story "Cathedral" It is widely recognized that you cannot know, nor understand anyone, before you know and understand yourself! This is one of the main themes in the short story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver. The main character i...

Culture Clash The two short stories, "The Tenant" by Mukherjee and "The Red Sweater" by Ng bear many similarities as well as differences. The authors of these two stories go about conveying basically the same message, however, with a slight variety. In these short stori...

Ernest Hemingway was a profound American writer who earned a Nobel Prize for literature in 1954. During his life he was one of the most influential writers of twentieth century America. Since his tragic suicide in 1961 his influence on American writing has only become more evident. Some...

More Joy in Tragedy Tragedy is defined as a drama or literary work in which the main character is brought to ruin or suffers extreme sorrow, especially as a consequence of a tragic flaw, moral weakness, or inability to cope with unfavorable circumstances. All definitions of tragedy and all tragic...

Helen Garner, in her short story collection, My Hard Heart, uses a wide variety of different narrative perspectives. Each type of narration is closely linked with, and special to, the story or experience being told. Susan Hosking, describes Garners writing style as an 'ability to refine subjec...

Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Tell-Tale Heart" consists of a monologue in which the murderer of an old man protests his insanity rather than his guilt: "You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But you should have seen me. You should have seen how wisely I proceeded......

Chekhov's Use of Grief What is the fascination with grief and suffering that caused Anton Chekhov to entwine these two sad emotional states into everything he wrote? "Reading Anton Chekhov's stories, one feels oneself in a melancholy state. Everything is strange, sharp, lonely, mo...

"Hands," by Sherwood Anderson, is a story that seems to be stripped of sentimentality, yet conveys emotion. Anderson tells the somber story of a misunderstood and wrongfully accused man. The protagonist, Wing Biddlebaum, failed to communicate his true self. His inner desires were repressed...

A Stranger is Watching is a terrific book. I enjoyed reading this book very much. The non-stop action kept me reading for hours. This was my first Mary Higgins Clark book, so I wasn't sure what to expect. The story is interesting and thank God it moves fast. One of the best features ...

Motivation is the condition of providing something as need, belief, or desire that induces a character to act. In the historical fiction Night, by Elie Wiesel, action and setting contribute significantly to the motivation of the central protagonist, Elie. The overall effect of motivation presents th...

There is going to almost always be a chance in a persons lifetime to have the unique experience of making the acquaintance of someone who strikes them as extremely fascinating, but yet that person also seems to be lacking something in their life. In Katherine Mansfield's story, "Miss Bril...

Motivation is the condition of providing something as need, belief, or desire that induces a character to act. In the historical fiction Night, by Elie Wiesel, action and setting contribute significantly to the motivation of the central protagonist, Elie. The overall effect of motivation presents t...

Motivation is the condition of providing something as need, belief, or desire that induces a character to act. In the historical fiction Night, by Elie Wiesel, action and setting contribute significantly to the motivation of the central protagonist, Elie. The overall effect of motivation presents t...

Irony occurs when a reader predicts what will happen in a story, then the story takes a turn and the complete opposite of the prediction occurs. Authors use ironic situations in stories to retain their reader's interest and keep the readers wondering what will happen next. Guy de Manpassant w...

From the beginning, I was uncertain about what the book's message would be, but throughout the play, I was able to pick up the messages and themes. The play focuses on the main character, Li'l Bit, as she goes through many difficult and emotional decisions. We are shown that her Uncle Peck is...

Kay Boyle's "Astronomer's Wife" is the story of an inhibited woman named Mrs. Ames who is married to a domineering and apparently abusive astronomer. In the beginning of the story Mrs. Ames awakens early one morning to a visit from the plumber sent to repair a water leak inside...

In the autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, the main character Marguerite Johnson, is influenced by a preponderance of characters including Bailey Jr. , Momma Henderson, and Mrs. Bertha Flowers. One of the primary influences is her older brother, Bailey Jr.. Momma, or Annie Henderson, the ...

In the autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, the main character Marguerite Johnson, is influenced by a preponderance of characters including Bailey Jr. , Momma Henderson, and Mrs. Bertha Flowers. One of the primary influences is her older brother, Bailey Jr.. Momma, or Annie Henderson, the ...

Anne Tyler's, The Accidental Tourist and Morgan's Passing, illuminate man's alienation in modern society. In both, the quest for self-knowledge is the primary goal faced by the main character. The Accidental Tourist and Morgan's Passing both deal with characters attempting to overcome their ali...

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest; by Ken Kesey, July 1989, 272 pages For my outside reading assignment, I read the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and found it to be a very enthralling book. Even tough the central Character, McMurphy, broke all rules, irretated Nurse Ratched, he was try...

James Baldwin's "Sonny's Blues" is the story of a young jazz musician named Sonny, who lived in Harlem and gets addicted to heroin. He is arrested for using and selling drugs, and returns to his childhood neighborhood after his release from rehabilitation. After moving in with his older brother and...

To the photograph a person or object from below, distorts that object. It tends to elongate a person, making him seem more important. It also intimidates the audience, since it is in the inferior position of looking up. The scene gives an added power to the person on the screen. Kane is...

In literature, irony is a tremendously important facet of fictional work. Irony involves a contrast or discrepancy between one thing and another. The contrast may be between what is said and what is meant or between what happens and what is meant to happen. In Edgar Allan Poe's The Black...

For many centuries people have found theater to be an excellent form of entertainment. The public's appreciation for such entertainment is based upon different theatrical themes. Whether it is a lighthearted comedy, that is most certain to lift anyone's spirits, a passionate romance, that stirs...