Essays on Short Stories

Young Goodman Brown and Sweat are two wonderful short stories authored by two famous American authors, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Zora Neale Hurston respectively. The short story by Hawthorne, Young Goodman Brown, narrates the journey of Young Goodman Brown into self-scrutiny by which he loses his integrity and belief. Sweat by Hurston describes the story of a washer woman and her jobless and insecure husband. Faith provides intense alterations in the life of people. The trial times expose the intensity and genuineness of their faith. The two characters of the two stories display many similarities with respect to their religious ...

Introduction

Literature is often referred to as the mirror of the society because it depicts the on-going situations in the society using various characters. Fictional characters such as J. Alfred Prufrock and Nick Adams have been used in various works so that they can represent some characters in the Society. Thesis Statement: J. Alfred Prufrock and Nick Adams have various similarities and differences as characters as well as some ways to which they represent the ‘modern man' that lives in the current society. The two characters are used in different works by different authors and they unintentionally represent many things ...

“Araby” by James Joyce and “Death in the woods” by Sherwood Anderson are short stories that are written by different writers. However, there are some common and different features that are applicable to both works. Both of the works are similar in their genre and focus on the female character, but on the other hand, they are very different from each other in themes. Short stories “Araby” and “Death in the woods” are very similar in the way they are structured. Both authors are using a male narrator for their stories. The stories are told from the first person ...

Edgar Allan Poe, the celebrated American writer, critic and editor, holds a prominent place among the literary circle. He is famous for his excellent short stories and poems, surrounded by an aura of anonymity and obscurity. He can rightly be termed as a Romantic who is often recognized as the forerunner of the detective fiction and science fiction. His personal life endured many ups and downs. The tremors of love and feelings find persuasive expression in most of his works. The Cask of Amontillado, The Tell- Tale Heart, The Black Cat, The Masque of the Red Death are some ...

HILLS LIKE ELEPHANTS. THE MAIN IDEA OF THE STORY AND ITS CONFLICTS.

Introduction:

background on both authors and texts

Summary of the text

Thesis statement: Jig and Paul being characters of different stories by different authors revolt against norms of the American patriarchal society in the first half of the 20th century.

The topic of homosexuality and alienation of the main character in “Paul’s Case”

Examples and explanations Summary of the issues discussed in the story and conclusion Difficulties of communication Examples and explanations summary of gender roles in the story

Symbols used in the story and their explanation

Examples and discussion Summary of use of form and content of the story Issues discussed in the story Discussion of the issues Summary of discussed issues ...

Introduction

The various forms of literature can best be defined by their format of presentation. In fact, every type of literary work employs a unique mechanism in its method of delivery and this attribute differentiates all literature pieces. For starters, poems have a rhythmic tone in their presentation that is achieved through the skillful composition of the stanzas and rhyme. On the other hand, short stories utilize multiple literary devices and narration in the presentation of the plot. Additionally, the characters in this type of literature have unique attributes intended to communicate a hidden message to the reader. Plays, on ...

All for Love

No matter what century and place in the world we are living in, there will always exist some eternal topics that are close to each human being. One of such topics is definitely love. This feeling, indeed, is a very especial and meaningful word to every person. Thanks to its power, people are not just blind creatures in the kingdom of darkness who are looking for the light. Love is that magical feeling capable of healing any heart and directing all lost souls to the right life road, in spite of all the obstacles in front of them. It ...

A Good Man is Hard to Find

Among American writers of the twentieth century, Flannery O’Connor holds a special place and has solid reputation as a representative of the unique American fiction subgenre – southern gothic. Despite being rather short, most of her stories convey important moral, cultural and philosophical messages while her peculiar techniques and choices reflect her own background. Indeed, Flannery O’Connor is among the writers whose literary legacy is closely intertwined with her biography, her family background, beliefs, experiences and challenges she was burdened with in the course of her rather brief life. The complex set of environmental factors which shaped her ...

Violence and Revenge

Violence and revenge only hurt people. Human beings are known for their innate desire for revenge, which makes vengeance part of our survival mechanics. However, those with mental illness pose more danger of harming others since they are driven by their subconscious mind to revenge against physical and verbal abuse and could use weird forms in the process. Revenge is often cruel, lustful and insatiable to the extent that a provoked mentally ill person would do anything to ensure they make others pay for physical or verbal abuse. Such acts of violence and revenge pose major problems in the ...

(Student’s Full Name)

A General Framework I have always been interested in the role of women in different regions of the world, especially in the Middle East and Asian regions. I was always fascinated by the ways in which women were treated in these parts of the world. This is because women have been known to be discriminated against. This discrimination is seen when women are placed in servile positions rather than in positions of authority. I have always wondered what was the prevailing mindset that governed the way women were treated in these parts of the world. ...

It needs to be reckoned that one of the main aspects of a fictional literary work is the characterization that goes on to bind the entire text together accentuating its affective appeal to the readers. Literary artists too have come to exude their aesthetic and literary quintessence when it comes to the question of penning characters in their respective stories. For the purpose of proper comprehension of the matter in context, one can take into reckoning three very popular short stories that have come to gain the accolades of the literary critics as well as the avid readers all ...

Introduction

It was a unique time in history; slavery had been abolished, Jim Crow las were in effect but the civil rights movement had not yet begun. Voices like Langston Hughes spoke out against the racial oppression. Hughes himself wrote many short stories, poems and plays in his time. One of the themes that repeats itself in the works of Hughes is the word “mulatto”. “Mulatto”, a word used to describe a person of mixed black and white heritage, elicits a negative feeling or response from most people given the prejudiced nature of the word. Due to the negative nature ...

The outstanding collection of seven short stories written by a Bosnian immigrant to United States Alexandar Hemon and entitled The Question of Bruno was met with a lot of praise and considerable sympathy by the readers. The collection is really an extraordinary composition by a talented author. The entire piece of work is set on scenes around Bosnia where the author currently lives or Yugoslavia where the he spent his childhood. Some reviewers went as far as comparing Hemon to such great writers in American literature as Vladimir Nabokov (for his penetrating view on the everyday world of American ...

Jack London is characterized as a naturalistic writer through most of his literature works, for instance, The Law of Life and To Build a Fire. In the two short stories, Jack incorporates naturalism themes such as nature vs. man, death, and the struggle for survival. The author presents main characters who struggle to survive with the indifference of nature to survive, but they ultimately die as nature wins the war against them. In To Build a Fire, London presents a protagonist who sets out on a journey despite the harsh weather. The man was warned against traveling during the ...

“A Rose for Emily,” published in 1930, is one of the classic short stories written by renowned author, William Faulkner. It is a story that has left many questions by readers in terms of the meaning or symbolism behind Emily Grierson’s character and the events that take place surrounding her life and death. The story has a macabre feel to it, as it is examines the possibly insanity of the main character and the strange decisions she has made in regard to the dead body of her father, and then Homer, the man she was hoping to marry. ...

“The Lesson” is the short story written by Toni Cade Bambara and its main topic is the social and economic inequality. This inequality can be seen in the position of the children and their families in the society. Miss Moore is also teaching them about social and economic inequality in her private lessons which happen during summer. The children symbolize the innocence and the young who are supposed to be educated about the world and about all of the injustice. The world functions in such a way that there are the privileged and the under-privileged groups of people. In “ ...

Kurt Vonnegut was a prolific American author, who wrote the novel “Slaughterhouse Five” (1969). The novel is one of the arguments against war that exists even today. The reason for this is because the novel deals with the effects of war on a person when they return home. This is because for many people it is hard to truly leave the battlefield behind due to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. As PSTD was not a recognizable diagnosis at the time of Vonnegut’s writing, he used Billy’s inability to connect with reality as a representation of the potential effect ...

Introduction

The appreciation for the literary craftsmanship of Franz Kafka cannot be understated. In fact, according to one journal article’s assessment by Berthoff, “Lovers of literature are forever indebted” to the writer’s friend Max Brod, “who ignored Kafka’s ‘last request’ to destroy all his manuscripts and proceeded to edit and publish” some of his novels (499). Also at the outset it is important to recognize that the original language Kafka wrote in was German, although he spoke in Czech. According to the same source Kafka’s office writings had been informed by – or at least and influencing ...

Literature: Flannery O'Connor, A Good Man is Hard to Find.

Introduction The play, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is an interesting play based on a real life situation occurrence. The story is not only interesting, but also exemplary due to the unique stylistic devices used (Gooch 61). The storyline is captivating and out rightly capture the mind of any reader. The story was written by a renowned writer in the United States of America, the ever amazing Flannery O’Connor in the year 1953. Despite the story’s old age, it still remains an outstanding work in the field of literature. Furthermore, the story was a major ...

Introduction

Mishima Yukio is one of the most famous Japanese writers who is also famous for committing suicide, leaving plenty of unpublished novels, short stories and poetry behind. Her works are characterized by the increasing sensibility, attention to the details and symbols and are sometimes criticized for its homoerotic content. In some of the works Mishima Yukio wants to refresh and probably revive the memory about the traditional Japanese social system which is based on the imperial ruling.

Analysis of Confessions of Mask

The most prominent book of Mishima Yukio is called Confessions of Mask and it was written in nineteen ninety four and it ...

Introduction

Literature has a way of connecting the reader’s imagination with a distant or even future place. It is the avenue where future inventions and even fears can be highlighted and it is important in directing the thinking and even the current actions of the humans today. The following are the works of art that tend to highlight some examples of dystopia that relate to human behavior and state of mind. James, P. D. The Children of Men. London: Faber and Faber, 1992. Print. The book highlights the story of a future world which is marred by political anarchy ...

Short stories are some of the literature read mostly by people because they are interesting and considered more educative to young and old generation (Gioia 7). Many scholars wrote short stories in the twentieth century, and one of them was Shirley Jackson, who wrote The Lottery. The Lottery is among the most favorite short stories in the History of American Literature. As narrated by Cummings (3) he explains that the function took place between 10 am and noon on June 27th in a small village with a population of only three hundred villagers. The event took place on a ...

There is never an opportune moment for death. Death occurs when people least expect it. Edgar Allen Poe in his “The Cask of Amontillado” and Kate Chopin in her “The Story of an Hour” talk about how death comes at inopportune moments - when it is least expected. Death is the central theme in both of these works, with the protagonists wishing for someone else’s death. The results however are completely different. Even though the protagonists wish for the other person to die, they really do not have a strong reason for them to die. Montresor talks of ...

Ching K’o was a guest in Prince Tan’s house, an assassin who would kill for his host and a noble man who did not renegade on his promises.. He was an expert in martial arts, spiritually disciplined and loyal to the core. Ssu-ma mentions Ching K’o in his book Shiji as an assassin who attempt to kill the Chin king failed. The short story about Ching K’o is reminiscent of Chinese short stories of that era. The principles espoused in the stories and by the characters share no similarity with their European counterparts and the ...

First of all, I would like to focus on the story “The Man with the Twisted Lip” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The story is about Mr. Neville St. Clair, who has recently moved to the area. He rented a luxurious villa. Mr. St. Clair is happily married and had two children. His neighbors consider him to be a wonderful family man, and an excellent person. The character is engaged in commerce and seems to experience no financial difficulties. However, one day Mr. Neville St. Clair disappears. His wife asks Sherlock Holmes to find him. She tells Mr. Holmes ...

Background of the author

Bobbie Ann Mason comes from Kentucky and is a writer of short stories and novels. Her love for writing was nurtured by her parents who always gave her stories to read. Mason wrote her first story as a teenager; her stories were based on the books that she had read since childhood (Mason, n.p). She graduated with a degree in English from Kentucky University after which she proceeded to get a master’s degree from New York State University (Mason). Mason started working as a feature magazine contributor. She has written several short stories, many novels, a memoir, biography ...

Thesis: This paper will analyse the undertones and themes of O’Connor’s Christian faith and southern life in “A Good Man is Hard to Find” and “Good Country People.”

Introductory Paragraph

Thesis statement 2. Body Paragraph 1- Religion and Faith

A. Background information on O’Connor’s religious dedication and Christian faith

B. Examples from the texts 3. Body Paragraph 2- Southern Background

Background on O’Connor’s Southern roots and attitudes

Examples from the texts 4. Conclusion Paragraph

Summary of thesis and restatement

Conclusion Flannery O’Connor and her Personal Theme Flannery O’Connor was a writer who liked to focus her stories in the American Gothic tradition, focusing on grotesque characters and deep thrills. In her short stories “A Good Man is Hard to ...